diff --git a/engine/Monstra.php b/engine/Monstra.php
index 6017e2b..54f1ae3 100644
--- a/engine/Monstra.php
+++ b/engine/Monstra.php
@@ -179,6 +179,7 @@ class Monstra
             ORM::configure(MONSTRA_DB_DSN);
             ORM::configure('username', MONSTRA_DB_USER);
             ORM::configure('password',  MONSTRA_DB_PASSWORD);
+            ORM::configure('driver_options', array(PDO::MYSQL_ATTR_INIT_COMMAND => 'SET NAMES utf8'));
         }
 
         /**