Maria Michael shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Maria, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
I’m most proud of building MIRootsCreations. It started as nothing more than a hope and a dream — just me, a Cricut, YouTube tutorials, and a tiny corner of our kitchen. I had no roadmap and no mentor, but I had a vision. What I never imagined was that five years later, I’d still be here, not just surviving but growing a business that has become a true extension of who I am.
MIRootsCreations isn’t just another small business, and I’m not just another tumbler maker or decal designer. Everything I create is meant to feel like an experience — from the moment someone lands on my website, to the design process, to the day their package shows up at their door. Behind the scenes, it’s a one-woman operation. I manage the website, design every product, handle all marketing, advertising, customer service, shipping, and every new launch from concept to creation.
I’ve had help along the way when it comes to things like ordering supplies, but the heart, the vision, and the day-to-day work has always been mine. And as MIRootsCreations has grown, so has my desire to pour more of myself into what I offer. That’s why I expanded into creating custom handmade reflective journals — tools rooted in my own personal experiences and healing journey. These journals aren’t just products; they’re guides meant to help others reflect, grow, and connect with themselves in meaningful ways.
What I’m most proud of is not just the business itself, but the fact that I built it piece by piece, skill by skill, moment by moment — often quietly, often late at night, and always with heart.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Maria, and I’m the creator and owner of MIRootsCreations — a brand that grew from a hope and a dream into a place where my own roots become someone else’s treasured memories. I started this business in 2020 with nothing but a Cricut, a corner of my kitchen, and the belief that life is too short to keep waiting for “someday.” After losing my father-in-law, I watched someone live a life with no regrets, and it pushed me to finally step into the dream I had been carrying for years.
What began as a small creative outlet quickly became something much bigger. MIRootsCreations is a one-woman operation, but it holds the heart of a full community. I design most of my tumbler wraps and decals in-house, create physical products by hand, manage my website, marketing, customer care, shipping — every piece of it. I also share my designs with other crafters, because I believe creativity should spread, not stay fenced in.
What truly sets MIRootsCreations apart is the connection behind the work. I’ve built deep relationships with customers who return time and again, and I show up for my local community through fundraisers and donations whenever I can. My authenticity is woven through every part of this business — the good, the growth, and the honest moments where I’ve had to learn, adapt, and own my missteps. I’m grateful for every order, every referral, every person who chooses to support me. None of it is taken for granted.
MIRootsCreations also carried me through some of the hardest seasons of my life. When everything around me felt uncertain or heavy, this business remained the one place I could keep building, creating, and holding onto hope. It grounded me, challenged me, and ultimately became the space where I rebuilt myself piece by piece.
Today, I’m excited to continue growing — expanding my product lines, bringing MIRoots into more local storefronts, and sharing new releases every month. This brand is more than a business; it’s a story of resilience, creativity, and connection. And I’m honored every time someone chooses to make MIRootsCreations part of their own story.
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. Who taught you the most about work?
The person who taught me the most about work is my dad. He ran a State Farm insurance agency for years, and from the time I was little, I watched what it truly meant to build something with integrity, consistency, and heart. His office was my first classroom. I stamped mailers, answered phones, took property photos with him on appointments, and saw firsthand the effort that happens behind a business name long before anyone sees the results.
He taught me to show up — even on the hard days. He taught me that if you treat people with respect and kindness, whether they’re employees or customers, they will stay, grow with you, and celebrate your milestones right alongside you. He also taught me the fundamentals that most people don’t see: financial planning, understanding profits and losses, margins, and what it means to make smart decisions that support long-term growth. To this day, he’s the person I call when I have a business question.
But the lesson that stayed with me the most was how he treated his customers. He didn’t just do business with people — he knew them. He made house calls, celebrated their marriages and babies, showed up with sympathy in their losses, and attended funerals when clients passed away. He showed me that work is really about connection, and that taking pride in what you do means taking pride in the people you serve. And he always reminds me that you’re never too old to keep learning.
All of those lessons are woven into MIRootsCreations today. My craftsmanship, my customer relationships, the pride I put into every order, my gratitude, my humility, my willingness to keep showing up even when things get tough — that all comes from him. MIRootsCreations is hands-on, heart-first, and grounded in the values he modeled for me. In many ways, the work I do now is simply an extension of the work ethic he taught me from the very beginning.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
There was a moment not long ago when I truly thought I was done. In October of 2025, MIRootsCreations hit its lowest point — sales flatlined, new products missed the mark, and it felt like every effort I made slipped right through my fingers. I was pouring in more than I was getting back, and the weight of my personal life and mental health struggles made it hard to function as a mom, a partner, or a business owner.
What broke me the most wasn’t the numbers — it was the fear that something I loved so deeply was slipping away. I cried almost daily because MIRootsCreations wasn’t just a business to me; it was the one thing I had built entirely on my own, the one place where I felt proud, capable, and grounded. I desperately wanted others to see what I saw in it.
But instead of walking away, I went back to the drawing board. I spent hours rebranding, reorganizing my website, studying analytics, rebuilding my social media presence, and learning everything I could about what wasn’t working. There was something strangely steadying about that season — when everything else felt chaotic, the work gave me structure. In that space, I was the one in control. I was the boss. I had a plan, and I trusted that if I kept showing up, something would eventually click.
And it did. Slowly, the rhythm returned. Then momentum. Then growth. I’m now on the upswing of a complete rebrand, and seeing MIRootsCreations come back to life has been beautiful, empowering, and honestly one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
That season taught me that I’m stronger than I ever realized. That rebuilding is possible. That purpose can grow out of pain. That consistency matters far more than perfection. That my work has meaning. And that even when life buries you, you can rise again.
Today, that resilience is woven into MIRootsCreations. It shows up in my craftsmanship, the pride I take in every order, the closeness I feel with my customers, and the gratitude I carry into every part of my business. MIRootsCreations survived its hardest season — and so did I. And now, we’re growing together in a way that feels more aligned, more intentional, and more meaningful than ever before.
So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What would your closest friends say really matters to you?
The people who know me best would say that what matters most to me is showing up — consistently, intentionally, and with heart. My life hasn’t always been easy, and there have been seasons where both my personal world and my business were strained in ways I didn’t expect. But even in those challenging moments, I kept moving forward. I kept creating, kept learning, and kept working toward the vision I believed MIRootsCreations could become.
They would say I value integrity, honesty, and doing things the right way. I’m someone who doesn’t pretend to be perfect; I’m human, I’m learning, and I’m committed to growing — both personally and professionally. The version of me that people see publicly is very much the real me: driven, authentic, and dedicated to building something meaningful.
They’d also tell you that I care deeply about the people I serve. Whether it’s customers, supporters, or my own family, I put intention into everything I do. Showing up — even when it’s hard, even when results aren’t immediate — has been one of the biggest lessons of my life and one of my greatest strengths.
At the end of the day, what matters to me is creating work that has purpose, treating people with respect, and proving that growth is always possible when you’re willing to stay consistent, stay humble, and stay committed to the long game.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
When my story is eventually told, I hope people say I loved my kids with my whole heart — loudly, fiercely, and without hesitation. That I rooted for each of them as individuals, celebrated who they were becoming, and poured every ounce of myself into being their mom. I hope they say I lived with intention: kind, genuine, giving, a little unfiltered, and someone who showed up even in seasons where showing up took everything I had.
As an artist, creator, and author, I hope people remember that I built something meaningful from the ground up. MIRootsCreations started as a dream at my kitchen table, became a reality through resilience, and ultimately saved me in more ways than one. I hope they say my work felt personal — that I put intention into every order, that my designs and products became keepsakes woven into other people’s memories, and that MIRootsCreations turned my own roots into something others could hold onto for a lifetime.
And as an author — the role I am still wrapping my mind around — I hope the legacy of my words lasts even longer than the products I create. I want readers to say my writing made them feel seen, less alone, understood, or comforted. That my stories made them laugh, cry, reflect, or heal. That I wrote honestly about real life, without filters or façades. That I embraced creativity without limits. Becoming a published author is one of the things I’m most proud of, and I hope those books remain a part of my legacy long after I’m gone.
At the heart of it all, I’m a storyteller — whether I’m creating a tumbler wrap, designing a decal, crafting a reflective journal, or writing a novel. I tell stories through what I make and through the words I write. I hope people remember that I used my creativity to build moments, memories, and meaning. That everything I touched had heart behind it.
And most of all, I hope when people tell my story, they say:
She didn’t just create things. She created impact. She created connection. She created her own legacy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.mirootscreations.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mirootscreations1.0
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MIRootsCreations1.0
