Self-taught knitter, spinner, sewer and all around crafty girl. I'm a bit of a renaissance girl, I'll try just about anything at least once (except sky-diving, bungee jumping, and swimming with sharks), and I love to learn new things, hence my passion for all things craft.
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Why Deco Handspun? Anyone who has ever been to or heard of Miami, the first thing they think of is the Art Deco architecture on South Beach. As a former architecture student, I have still retained a lot of the design essentials I was taught and I hope to capture that in the products I create.
Being that I was born and raised in Miami, I really don't have much need or use for woolen objects (as it's really only cold here 2 days out of the year) but I LOVE working with wool. Therefore, much of the excess fibers/yarns will be sold here.
As a child, I used to spend summers at my grandmothers house and one year she decided to teach me to crochet. She did this in an attempt to keep me busy and away from the T.V. set, and mainly because she would see that I was bored. As you hear in many of these stories, it didn't really take. I understood the techniques and could actually crochet, but I didn't know what to make, what I could make out of it, and didn't really know about patterns and the like. My abuela (grandmother) just taught me to make round potholders and doilies, but what is an 8 year old going to do with that!? It just didn't become fun.
My mom became pregnant with my baby brother when I was 8. She used to sit there and embroider blankets, bibs, and all kinds of really cute baby items for the coming baby. She saw that I was interested in what she was doing so she decided to teach me how to sew and embroider. I was hooked! She would buy me cute cross stitching kits, and I would sit around and cross stitch things that I would then frame and hang in my room. Then my grandmother showed me to use her sewing machine! I must have been 9 or 10 at this point, and that was the highlight of my crafting youth! Learning to use the sewing machine opened me up to all sorts of things, like making clothes for my Barbies!
All of these things have always stuck with me, and it's things that I really enjoy doing.
In 2004, I went through a divorce, I started dating again - there was a lot going on in my life and I really didn't know how to get my head straight and focus on what I needed to do for me. Then someone online suggested I learn knitting. What a great idea that was! I picked up a pair of needles and some yarn - both of which were totally off because the needle size was to big for the yarn weight and the end product was a huge disaster! But I learned the knit stitch. I learned the purl stitch. And before I knew it, I had a completed item! I learned fully online since I didn't know where I could go locally for help, I didn't know who to ask to teach me, and it was just easier. Before I knew it, I was knitting lace, socks, sweaters, and I have recently moved on to complex color work. Knitting is the one place in life where I have no fear, even when the world around me may be coming to a halt, knitting is the one place where I feel most confident. The best part about being a knitter is the wonderful people I've meet along the way. The group I attend has a wonderful mixture of young and old, experienced and not, and they are there.
I have recently (2007/2008) taught myself to spin, dye, and process wool as well. I wanted to get even closer to having an end product that was all my own work. I guess you could say I'm a purist. I didn't want to have to credit anyone for processing the wool, dying the wool, etc. This isn't to say that I don't enjoy purchasing someone else's creations, but I do like the feeling of being able to say, "I made this, start to finish" and feel proud that I was there throughout the entire process. Unfortunately, being that I live in Miami, having a sheep farm is really not in my future, but I think I've come as close as I can start to finish to producing a product that was made almost wholly from my hands.
One day, I would love to have my own, physical studio/shop where I could go and work and sell my wares and do my thing, as well as selling here on Etsy as well because I also love the atmosphere here. Ideally, that what I would want one day, but until then, my little venture will have to remain as something I do on my spare time out of my living room.
