LIVING CROCHET
Yan Schenkel has a penchant for creating the most characterful quirky creatures
Crochet has always been part of Yan Schenkel’s landscape, although it’s only been part of her own arsenal since her oldest child started kindergarten a few years ago. “Here in Argentina we have a week for ‘adaptation’, while the children get used to attending school and the mothers wait outside,” Yan explains. “While I was waiting I tried reading, but the other mothers interrupted me. Crochet seemed like the best alternative – portable, easy to put away when someone wanted to chat.”
Crochet had been a familiar sight through Yan’s childhood, “my mother used to crochet edgings for towels. I didn’t like it so much then – for me, it looked like old lady stuff!” Happily, Yan has since rediscovered the craft and realised the possibilities it has for creating original and wonderful mini works of art. “Soon I was crocheting every day!“
Then one afternoon, Yan was making a scarf for her son and realised she was about to run out of yarn. “He doesn’t like cowls so I had a think about how to make this tiny scarf wearable. I crocheted a little bear with some leftover yarn and I used it as a button to fasten the scarf.” What an ingenious idea!
“It was a really ugly-looking bear,” Yan exclaims, “but everyone loved it, and I loved it, too! So I started looking online for advice on making three-dimensional crochet toys and I found amigurumi. I was so excited!”
A love of crocheting in the round meant that Yan soon had her basic template sorted. “I began to make more and more of these toys, first for my son, then for gifts, and in less than a year I was selling my toys at some nice design stores in Buenos Aires.”
A NEW VENTURE
Before long, Yan had launched the website Pica Pau to showcase her menagerie, and was gaining a loyal following of fans. The decision to start selling the patterns for her crochet creations came about almost by accident. “When I started Pica Pau, I never thought crochet could become a way to make a living,” she says.
At that time she was an Arts student and worked as a Portuguese teacher. “I had already published some free patterns on my blog, but never thought that I could sell them. Once that changed and Pica Pau turned into my full-time job, besides selling the finished toys, I discovered platforms like Etsy and Ravelry where a lot of people were selling their patterns, so I started publishing my own crochet patterns on Etsy.”
It’s unsurprising Yan’s creations garnered affection so fast. There’s something about their long limbs and spherical heads that gives them a bit of a vintage vibe. Ranging from bears to rabbits to monkeys and more, they’re endearingly personality-packed, too.
CHARACTERS COMING TO LIFE
As she designs and crochets, Yan thinks hard about the character she is creating, and writes bios for many of them, which fuels the impression of them being independent creatures with lives, and dreams, of their own. For instance, Henry J. Fox (you’ll find him over on page 32), is a professor of Medieval Literature at Oxford University, who loves walks in the park, reading The Canterbury Tales and going on adventures!
“I realised the design looked a lot like Henry Jones Sr, Sean Connery’s character in the Indiana Jones movies,” Yan explains. “Also, the character is a fox and any time I think of a fox I think of Michael J. Fox and the Back to the Future films. His bio turned out to be a crazy mixture of some of my favourite movie characters and actors!”
This kind of blended creation comes naturally to Yan, who says she’s influenced by a wide range of cultural genres. Her first book, El Mundo de Pica Pau (Pica Pau World), came out in 2015, and includes design ideas sparked by a wide range of influences.
“I seek inspiration in my favourite movies, music, illustration, my daily activities as a mother and even my own family,” she comments. “Federico bear, one of the characters in Pica Pau World, is based on my grandfather. He was a German descendant, a reserved guy who loved classical music and sailing boats. Once I’ve decided on the personality, it’s easy to write the bio.”
AN EXPRESSIVE TOUCH
Now that creating and crocheting toys is a full-time job, Yan opts for other types of crochet to relax with, including “blankets and baskets.”
Yan relishes the whole process of crocheting, “from shopping for yarns, choosing colours, textures, trying all sorts of different combinations and stitches, to writing new patterns and even teaching people how to crochet – now another big part of my job! For me, it’s like I’m drawing my creatures with my hook, bringing them to life.”
She admits to having needed to rethink a few creature designs over the time she’s been making them. “Sometimes – more than I would like – ideas in my head are not so great when I try to crochet them, but I always learn something,” she says. “I try not to throw them away and I write everything down because you never know when a mistake could help you to solve another crochet design problem.”
When it comes to makers of her creations, she recommends, “Patience, as with any project! I don’t think my patterns are too difficult (perhaps only the four-legged ones) because I make them as simple as I can.”
The most important thing when it comes to giving your creatures life, she says, is to “dedicate some time to the face. Some crocheters are so eager to finish the toy they forget to spend time making a nice expression on the creature – and that’s crucial to the appeal of the finished toy.” Sewing up is another challenge that needs patience. “I think no one likes to sew little parts, but if you spend so much time crocheting, why not give the same effort to sewing the parts together?” Yan points out wisely.
Crocheting takes up the majority of Yan’s time. “I’d love to write another book, so I’m designing new patterns and reworking some old ones. I enjoy collaborating with other artists and fortunately I have a few projects with some great people this year. I’ve also been working on the idea of setting up a craft store here in Argentina.”
With so many ideas, such enthusiasm, and so much to plan and do, we think that Yan will forever keep us inspired.
Written by Judy Darley
“FOR ME, IT’S LIKE I’M DRAWING MY CREATURES WITH MY HOOK, BRINGING THEM TO LIFE”