A MOTHER, A BIOLOGIST, A CROCHETIER

Most people call me April Sevy. Some people call me Levi’s mom or Parker’s mom. The latter two names are the version of me I lead through. Whether it’s my job or my hobbies, I strive to do my best, be my best, and set a good example for them.

I’m originally from the suburbs near St. Louis, Missouri. If you’re not familiar with Missouri, it’s the river state. As such, it was easy to develop an affinity to water. It started with fishing with my dad, then swimming and exploring trout streams. Have you ever looked at the bottom of a stream? There is so much cool stuff that lives there! This passion for the water and nature led me to a career as a streams biologist and citizen science coordinator. While I love fish, my expertise was in the fish food—invertebrates, from mayflies to hellgrammites to (my favorite) snails.

Now you may be wondering: Why does a biologist become a crochetier? My husband’s answer to this is, “because she has anxiety.” And to be honest, he’s not wrong. I always wanted to learn how to crochet and decided to try a kit to loop my daughter a bag. From the first chain, it was so relaxing—just looping and counting. There is a pattern to follow, there’s a systematic approach, and so much counting. Not only did this help calm my mind, but it also made my OCD happy. Crochet became my therapy at home, and at work, and at sporting events, and anywhere I could pack a needle and yarn.

NOW you may be wondering: Why make this into a business? Whether it’s a crochet bag or an amigurumi plushie, the finished project always brings me so much joy. It’s pure happiness in loops. Then I saw the joy it brought to other biologists at a natural resources conference. I had donated plushie fish and snails to support fisheries, then sat back and watched people fall in love with the anatomically inaccurate looped critters. It was that event that I decided I wanted to share my crochet with others, bringing happiness into the world with one amigurumi at a time. I

I won’t claim to be the world’s best crochetier, but I will promise to make each project with my hands and my heart.