The Business of Crochet 101 - Are you a Designer?
You crochet. You can't remember a time when you didn't. You were taught by a mentor; Mom, Grandmother, Friend, Aunt, somewhere along the way, or you picked up a book and taught yourself. Now, your inspired by all the exciting new fibers and design ideas are popping inside your head, your dreaming about new stitches, different ways to connect them, every waking thought is about CROCHET! You might be or could be a designer.
Before embarking on this huge step take stock of what you know about your craft, your supplies, your pattern books, your research library, your tools, your time! Most of all analyze yourself. That's right, analyze you. Your skills, your craft knowledge, computer software knowledge, your ability to fail time and time again. Do you get frustrated and determined or do you despair and quit. This is an important analysis of your traits and what will work for you or against you.
Some of the skills a designer needs is the ability to practice with their yarn(s) to create something unique, or make something traditional with a new fiber that hasn't been done before. Creating pieces for present day trends You should also be able to recreate it, meaning you've documented your steps well. There are folks who are pattern writers who can help you but they can't determine what you were trying to accomplish, that is your design right as a designer.
The market (single pattern, big box stores, small yarn shops, organizations, magazine and book companies etc) is very robust for all kinds of articles (clothing, blankets, afghans, scarves, hats, mittens, leg warmers, socks etc) made from yarn in a variety of crochet stitch techniques (cables, tunisian, intarsia, broomstick, double-hook, croknit etc).
Some of the skills a designer needs is the ability to practice with their yarn(s) to create something unique, or make something traditional with a new fiber that hasn't been done before. Creating pieces for present day trends You should also be able to recreate it, meaning you've documented your steps well. There are folks who are pattern writers who can help you but they can't determine what you were trying to accomplish, that is your design right as a designer.
The market (single pattern, big box stores, small yarn shops, organizations, magazine and book companies etc) is very robust for all kinds of articles (clothing, blankets, afghans, scarves, hats, mittens, leg warmers, socks etc) made from yarn in a variety of crochet stitch techniques (cables, tunisian, intarsia, broomstick, double-hook, croknit etc).
Be strong, keep designing, researching and networking that's what being a designer is all about!