I'm the person behind Lizakwak — designer, maker, photographer, pattern writer, professional tiny-animal namer, and the one answering your messages :)

Before all of this, I spent years working as a software tester. It was a perfectly sensible career... and I really, really didn't like it.

Crafting became my little side quest — I knitted, crocheted, beaded and sewed, basically anything that let me make something with my hands. It brightened my days and, for a long time, helped keep me afloat.

Eventually, after a particularly difficult period in my life, I decided to quit my job and give myself a chance to do something I actually loved. Somehow, that decision turned into all of this.

I'm originally from Kharkiv, Ukraine. My city is very close to the Russian border and has been under constant attacks since the full-scale invasion, so I had to leave home and find somewhere safer. That's how I ended up in Prague, where I now live.

I fell in love with felt because it's simple, tactile and sooo forgiving. You can turn a few tiny pieces into a new little friend in just a couple of hours — which is perfect for someone like me who loves making things but isn't very good at waiting for the result.

And the finished little creatures make lovely gifts, ornaments, keychains, Christmas decorations... or tiny residents of your bookshelf who contribute absolutely nothing to the household.

Everything is sewn completely by hand, so you don't need a sewing machine or fancy equipment to make one yourself.

Every Lizakwak pattern starts with a sketch, becomes a slightly wonky prototype (or several), gets tested by real makers, and eventually turns into the pattern you see in my shop. And the names? I usually just look at them and think, "oh... that's obviously Ferdinand."

Outside of tiny felt animals, I'm very fond of good food, flowers, forests, giving gifts, collecting whimsical postcards, taking photos, watching romantic movies and occasionally disappearing into a book.

Thank you for being here and giving my little creatures somewhere to go. <3