The panda dances to wake up the lion, the snowman puts on a beanie, the bear puts on a doll's skirt, and the white rabbit lives in the apple house...... These scenes do not appear in fairy tales, but an imaginative world of woolen dolls created by Yu Xiaorui, a girl born in the 80s, by hand-knitting.
The whole scene is due to the original design and weaving of Xiao Rui.
Yu Xiaorui, who has been teaching herself how to hand-knit yarn for more than 10 years, has been immersed in this traditional handicraft, constantly improving her skills and increasing the variety of her works, and the various dolls she creates are especially popular, and she has opened her own studio.
On April 15, the reporter came to the Changde Garden Community in the harbor district, because the studio was being renovated, the living room at home became Yu Xiaorui's temporary studio. She is knitting a pair of teddy bear pendants, and the knitting needles in her hands are neatly shuttled, and the cute bear with long fluff has begun to take shape.
"In addition to 'customizing' according to the order, as soon as you have inspiration, you have to sit down and start work quickly, and this pair of bears suddenly have such pictures in their minds, and when they weave them out and present them in front of them, it is particularly rewarding. Yu Xiaorui said.
The cupboards, sofas and pianos in the home are filled with large and small woolen animal dolls, lions, elephants, giraffes, hedgehogs, baby squirrels, owls...... Yu Xiaorui will also match these cartoon characters with scenes such as lawns, big trees and forest huts, or design them to weave wool, eat sugar gourds, lion dances and other actions, making people feel as if they have stepped into a vivid and interesting cartoon.
Her home is full of her work.
Each work from an idea to the presentation in front of her will make Yu Xiaorui feel a sense of achievement.
"As soon as I devote myself to knitting, I will be patient, it is very fun to use my brain and hands, and I have been doing such a thing for more than ten years, and I don't feel bored at all. Yu Xiaorui said that she has always loved hand-knitting, has been learning different weaving techniques, breaking through more complex weaving methods, and constantly contacting the popular elements in current artworks, toys and cultural and creative products, enriching her work selection.
The "drawings" were already in her mind, and Yu Xiaorui quickly knitted a small skirt for the doll toy.
In Yu Xiaorui's view, to transform hand-knitting from "looking at pictures and painting" to being able to create freely, it takes a lot of practice anytime and anywhere.
Once, she dug out one of her mother's old plush coats, and on a whim, she tried to dismantle it and reknit a white bear doll. Finding that the coat had become a "big bear", although the mother was a little crying and laughing, she saw that her daughter was so persistent in weaving, and she also began to support her choice.
Mother and daughter talk about their thoughts on knitting pieces.
After the establishment of the studio, Yu Xiaorui's orders gradually increased. In recent years, after her works were released through the Internet, they have also attracted many overseas customers to order. Yu Xiaorui, who pursues her inner perseverance, has become a traditional craftsman who makes life and weaving a companion from a hobbyist.
"Xiao Rui, this girl is ingenious and very enthusiastic, and she has also volunteered in our community by using this specialty. Zhang Liyun, Secretary of the Party Committee of Haijianli Community, Haigang District, to which Changde Garden belongs, said.
In recent years, the community has created a "capable space" to attract residents with skills to join the team and serve the neighbors in need.
Immerse yourself in hand-knitting and have a lot of fun.
"Because I am engaged in this craft, I want it to be passed on and let more people understand the charm of it. Yu Xiaorui said that she has found her own wonderful world in hand-weaving, and hopes to inject more fresh strength into traditional handicrafts with her hands.
Reporter: Liu Shuangxi, Wang Ge, Tang Xiaohui
Co-ordinator: Tian Zheyi, Tang Xiaohui
Reviewer: Li Yong, Liu Han, Guo Chenrong
Editor: Li Zhicai
Editor-in-charge: Liu Fuqing
Supervisor: Wang Qing