When faced with adversity, most of the time, it is our passion that keeps us sane. It is exactly what Adyani Amit, a full-time crocheter and amigurumi artisan, experienced as she as she confronts life’s ups and downs. In an interview with writer Priscilla Tawie, Adyani, who also goes by the pseudonym Lady’s Fingers, details her early interest in crocheting and her motivation.
Finding peace and joy in threads
By chance, I stumbled upon an amigurumi craftwork at a local art bazaar recently. It piqued my interest, and I took the chance to interview Adyani Amit, the lady behind the name Lady’s Fingers. After learning about the hardships and challenges that she had to face in life, the interview session was inspiring to say the least.
Adyani said that she first learned the art of crocheting at the age of 12. At the time, she took the craft as a mere hobby, something that she would practice during her leisure time. In 2017, she discovered amigurumi, and took it as a new challenge for her to experiment with.
Amigurumi is the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small, stuffed yarn creatures. Amigurumi is essentially the same as crochet, only it refers specifically to the process of making 3D designs intead of 2D like crochets.
“I had done a lot of designs when I first started crocheting. I did a shawl with a pineapple motif to a television cover, laptop cover, speaker cover, and even a table cover. But my first amigurumi project was a little ‘Mashimaro’ cartoon character doll. It was quite ugly,” the 40-year-old stated.
Adyani pushed herself even farther in 2019 by making more than 10 bears for her son’s preschool graduation ceremony as gifts. Despite the time commitment, the mother of one is driven to keep going since she anticipates the happy faces of those who will receive the gift.
“Seeing them smile is like therapy for me,” she added.
And even when she encounters difficulties, such as clients requesting an amigurumi based on a photograph for which no pattern guides are available, she still maintains a good attitude.
Her determination to produce the best piece of art is what drives her forward. When met with challenges, Adyani said that that she would use all of her crochet and amigurumi knowledge to produce a custom-made design.
“These custom-type projects are time-consuming and mentally draining, so I will inform my clients that it would take some time to complete. I cannot rush things as if I work under stress, I can’t produce a satisfying product,” she explained.
Adyani explained that the duration of each job is determined by its complexity and intricacy. “There is no specific time. The quickest was completed in 30 minutes, while the longest one took me about a year to complete.”
Beyond the struggles
When Adyani gave birth to her son in 2013, she gave up her full-time job to be a stay-at-home mother. Alhough it was a tough decision to make, she felt that it was the right thing to do as she only wanted the best for her son.
“I almost got into depression back then because my baby was always cranky, and cried almost every day. I remembered when he had trouble sleeping at night, my husband and I would drive around until he fell asleep.”
Throughout the hardships of being a new mother, Adyani was grateful to have a great support system in her family, especially her younger sister, who would often give her advice and comfort her whenever she felt lost. “I also have many friends from school with whom I’m still in contact via Facebook. They also supported me throughout those days as well.”
Her son was diagnosed with autism when he was three years old. Adyani went on to say that it was difficult at first, but over time, it became a lot easier and with a set of daily routines, it is now more manageable.
As the days became tough, Adyani found comfort in different places. She met numerous friends after joining several Malaysian crochet groups on Facebook, with whom she had exchanged ideas and received support.
Adyani admitted that juggling life and her passion for crochet and amigurumi was difficult at first. “But if you love what you’re doing, the sacrifices are worth it,” she noted, adding that she would do some creative work whenever she had time throughout the day or after dinner.
“Having an autistic son means that we need all the extra money we can get to give him the best and fulfil his needs. I consider myself fortunate and blessed because my son also loves seeing my craftwork. Furthermore,now that he is all grown up, it is easier to deal with him than before,” said Adyani.
Though the future is uncertain, Adyani has always dreamed of opening a mini-shop-cafe concept that also offers crochet and knitting products and supplies. “There, I imagined having a face-to-face class with those who were interested with the activity. I also want customers to come to the cafe to unwind while crocheting and enjoying dessert and coffee.”
As the mother of an autistic boy, she hopes that one day she can somehow be able to create autism awareness through her crocheting. “I am also hoping to crochet a masterpiece that can showcase Sarawak to the world.”
