A Flower–Loving Heart Behind

Welcome to a place that waited more than fifteen years to be born — and, above all, waited for me to find the courage.

For reasons I still don't fully understand, back in 2010 I found it much easier to believe I could publish magazines for hobby sewists, teach sewing, and build a large community platform in the Czech Republic than to believe I could truly follow my own art. 

It may sound surprising, but when the first magazine came out, I had been sewing for less than a year. For the next three years, I created every single project for every issue for the very first time in my life.

In a way, it was meant to unfold like that.

I went on to publish dozens of magazines (Marina Quilt, Love Bellet Fabrics, later Pepitta and Pepitta Folk Art), several books, and more than a thousand step-by-step tutorials. I worked on behalf of an entire team of people and lived for years at the edge of survival. Looking back, I understand that what I lacked most was trust in myself. I tried to prove my worth to the world through an almost absurd pace of work — while the soul that had once painted quietly began to starve.

What remained were small drawings: on napkins, in the margins of sewing patterns, on fabric scraps. Oil paints, once set aside, were replaced by gouache — a medium that asks for less space, less ventilation, and less time. And within the relentless rhythm of sewing work, the first folk art paintings slowly began to emerge, deeply shaped by the world I was living in: embroidery, textiles, tapestries, and traditional patterns.

Everything changed with a long illness. With a total letting go. And, finally, with the desire to survive — as myself.

TO WRITE AND ILLUSTRATE FAIRY TALES — anyone who has known me for a while knows that, since my twenties, this has been my answer to almost every life-tailored question. And this is the road I ultimately chose.

"Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again." — C. S. Lewis

I look forward to meeting kindred spirits — those who, like me, see in classic fairy tales their philosophical, moral, and historical value. Tales that often speak even more to us as adults than to children — while still being essential to read to children precisely because of those values.

There is still somewhere to go, and at the same time, no need to rush. There is time to live a beautiful life. This is what I try to pass on, above all, through my work. 

If my art helps, even a little, to slow down the frightening speed of today's world — and if you find a sense of calm here — then it has fulfilled its purpose.

You're always welcome here ♥

— Ivana

If you wish to write to me directly, my email truly goes straight to my pocket: ivana.havelkova@gmail.com