(Tatyana Kazayeva – Villa Paradiso)

In Delightful Pursuit of Bear Making

By Pam North

Tatyana Kazayeva is Russian, born in Kazakhstan almost 41 years ago while Kazakhstan still was a part of USSR. A creative person since childhood, she learned over the years many manual craft techniques that have proved very useful to her, but as a young woman she opted for a promising and comfortable future by choosing to attend law university. At 19 years of age she married, moving to Milan, Italy, continuing her studies. This netted her two law degrees, one in Kazakhstan and one in Italy, but eventually she decided to pursue another path. “I had an interesting career as a key-person for the Unicredit Kazakhstan bank, and after that I was a commercial manager for an oil and gas services company, but in 2014 I followed my heart and started creating again,” she explained, “so now I am a happy teddy bear artist. I decided that I wasn’t interested in continuing my career for money, preferring to have my own freedom, health, and to see my daughter growing with me and not with a babysitter. I moved to a very small town near Rome where we have the Italian sun, a sea view, a garden full of flowers, and our animals. No multinational companies and no standard work for me, and by being my own active person I started to create more and more.” Still living in Italy, she delights in domestic life. “Family is really important to me. My home is a little paradise of love where everybody is happy: my husband, my daughter, our three dogs, one cat, one hamster, and me.”
Drawing on the creative experiences that had come to her through her childhood, she continued to pursue learning techniques and the discovery of quality materials and their uses. The internet aided in her search, and she improved and was able to create her own personal designs and patterns for her animals. The internet also provided an outlet for her to sell in a worldwide market as she created shops for her creations on Bearpile, Tedsby, Etsy, and by utilizing Facebook and Instagram. Today her creations beautifully encompass a variety of fine-quality materials and a level of sophisticated techniques that bring her animals to life with endearing personalities.
One of the startling contrasts Tatyana provided was a photograph that showed the amazing evolution of her work from an early attempt in 2014 to what she was producing in 2017. Many would-be teddy bear makers see the superb examples of what established artists are making, and it is difficult for a novice to realize that the creative process is journey of  learning and mistakes before that higher plateau of amazing craftsmanship is achieved. Tatyana commented on the photo: “The bear on the left in the photo was my first bear. I was afraid to use expensive materials, and so I made him in cotton just as an example from a pattern I had found on the internet. By my second bear I already was trying to make modifications to that pattern by adding something of my own, improving and improvising. The white bear on the right was another important step for me when I started creating in a more realistic style.”
Teaching others the bear-making craft has had a place in Tatyana’s life. “I have taught a few workshops for beginners in Italy, where the teddy bear is unknown, and I also offer some patterns for beginners in my Etsy shop.”
As for what’s next for her and her creations, she readily offered possibilities on that subject. “I have a lot of ideas and projects that I would like to realize. I love the full flexibility that I have in developing the details in my creations, and I want to keep that in my future work. I would like to continue to create realistic, expressive animals, and also fantasy animals, as all in life fascinates me. I hope to participate more in teddy bear exhibitions, to see different countries, and to have a direct contact with wonderful peoples who love bears.”
Teddy bears are iconic in Tatyana’s opinion. “I believe that love for teddies makes our world better, and I appreciate and thank all who have and work for this passion. What I love most and what gives me the the most satisfaction about what I do is making others happy!”

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Contact Information:
Name: Tatyana Kazayeva
Business Name: Villa Paradiso
Address: Via Villa Petrara 137
04018 Sezze (LT)  Italy
Telephone: +39.3284563051
Email: t.kazayeva@gmail.com
Website: www.bearpile.com/villaparadiso 
www.instagram.com/villa_paradiso_creazioni
www.facebook.com/tatyana.villaparadiso 
https://villaparadiso.tedsby.com/