Inspiration, hard work and love for what’s Bulgarian – these are some of the secrets of Maria Robeva from the town of Gorna Oryahovitsa in regard to the making of her cloth dolls which bring joy to her compatriots here and abroad. Maria was into fine arts for a few years, but then cloth dolls turned out into her real passion and later on – into a major occupation:

“There are more dolls out there which I would like to make than what I can actually produce and I have been constantly competing with time. I get easily inspired and even the simplest thing might turn into a muse for me. I love all my dolls with all of my heart. If I see one of them as the most beautiful for the moment, the next one should be even better,” the doll master says.

Maria’s doll projects have brought awards and natural materials are used for the small characters: hand-woven cloth, woolen yarn and cotton lace.

“My dolls do not wear folklore costumes only. I have created them for different occasions. I can even place them in categories: a bride and a groom for a wedding; a romantic couple for a wedding anniversary, then we have a fisherman, a hunter, a footballer etc. The third category shelters fairytale creatures like Tooth Fairy, angels, wood nymphs, witches etc. The common thing between them is their mission. The dolls are my prayer for good, love and happiness. Their mission is to bring smiles, as I think the world needs those. Both kids and adults enjoy the dolls in their own way. The grownups seem to appreciate more my craftsmanship, while children tend to see the magic – fine little fellows who look playfully and smile – a bit different toys.”

People feel with no doubt what Maria has put into her dolls as an emotion. Hence the increasing number of orders from all over the world:

“My little fellows are great travelers. I can’t remember all the places right now, but I have dolls in Switzerland, Sweden, Poland, Slovakia, Italy, the USA, Canada etc. Some people don’t state the future destination of the dolls upon ordering them. However, in most cases I am fully aware of the occasion for their ordering and know that those will travel happily around the globe, bring joy to someone far away from Bulgaria.”

Saying she is a keeper of the Bulgarian spirit, Maria Robeva wishes to herself a long life and health, in order to create many new dolls and to pass her skills on to the next generation:

“I’ve been teaching young children to create toys of woolen fabric. I teach them to sew, but what is more important – I teach them to create. Each kid sees the doll created by its own hands as something different, unique and therefore – priceless. During the process of sewing I usually talk about the Bulgarian traditions and crafts, also about the ritual dolls and the magical creatures of Bulgarian folklore. I would like to make a doll for each folklore region, with the respective traditional clothing. For the moment I only have a Rhodope and a Thracian girl dolls. Dreams do not come true by themselves – one has to follow them persistently, day by day and despite it all. I never stop dreaming and work every day, in order for the miracle to happen.”

English version: Zhivko Stanchev