Bored Panda reached out to Pavlina Svarcova, the person behind the cute amigurumi bear which was featured in the subreddit thread. Besides ready products, like small toys and decorations, shared by the artist on her social media profile, Svarcova also creates paid and free crochet patterns available for all the crafty folks in her Etsy store OliyankoAmi.

We were curious to find out more details about Pavlina’s work and her creative projects. The artist told us more about how she initially got into crocheting: “I learned to crochet almost exactly a year ago thanks to my mother-in-law who one day sent a package to my son filled with crochet blankets and stuffed animals. At that time I had no idea that toys could be done by crocheting and what amigurumi is. I could hardly even pronounce it! She pointed me to the website of patterns and I went immediately yarn shopping. My mum then taught me how to make a basic chain and magic circle and I kept rewatching the same YouTube tutorial over and over until I memorized the basic stitches so I could make a ball. I made my first plushie a few days later and never stopped since.”

The DIY enthusiast shared with us what motivated her to turn it into a business. We learned that: “It happened when I realized, I can write a pattern. I love the idea of creating something from scratch and then sharing the steps with others so they can make it themselves. It makes my day each time I see someone has crocheted a toy using one of my patterns.”Pavlina has also described her creative process from idea to finished product: “My creative process always starts with inspiration. Whether it comes from real life, something I saw on the internet, or a cartoon I saw with my kid, the moment I see something I like, my head starts spinning. What kind of yarn should I use? What color combinations? What features should it have and what size should it be? It’s wild! I can’t really draw so the idea stays in my head until I can finally crochet the pieces.

Before I even start crocheting, I check social media if someone else already has the same idea and the pattern already exists the way I imagined it. It’s almost impossible to create something that is not out there yet, but it’s very important to keep our interpretation original. And then, if it doesn’t exist yet, I finally start.”

The Amigurumi creator continued: “For creating patterns, I then write down every single step of the process and take tons of pictures of every single piece along the way. You do not want to see my camera roll. It’s either pictures of my kid or random animal parts. It’s a gamble, really, and some things don’t work out at all, while some pieces turn out exactly as I imagined them. Once I’m happy with the final amigurumi, I type it all into the computer, add the pictures of the steps, and send it to my testers. They remake the toy based on my instructions and point out anything that should be fixed. The last part of the process is then publishing the pattern and sharing it with our amazing crochet community!”

Svarcova creates adorable plush toys, suitable even for small children. We were wondering how the artist ensures the safety and durability of her crocheted toys, especially for the youngest users. Pavlina said: “I don’t sell my finished toys but I gift them to my family and, of course, my 2-year-old son. He is the definition of a boy and he tests the strength of my plushies mostly with his teeth. For that, I try to make sure the yarn I use is high quality and I sew the pieces together strongly to avoid accidents. I would also recommend not to use safety eyes and noses for young kids. They can loosen up and are a choking hazard for children up to 3 years. Toys with safety eyes are on a high shelf in our house and if he has access to any, I constantly inspect them to ensure the parts are not loose.”

Lastly, the OliyankoAmi creator shared with us which one of her designs became her favorite: “It’s my Christmas reindeer. He must be the most adorable amigurumi that ever came off of my hook and I have made him countless times for friends and family. This design was a complete surprise in the sense of how much attention it brought to me and my business and it opened the door to other collaborations and possibilities. He is my lucky reindeer!”