I'm a yarnaholic. Fiber enthusiast. Artist at heart. A creative being.



My husband might call me a hoarder... but we won't talk about that!

 

I love crocheting and making jewelry, but I've also spent hours painting, drawing, cross-stitching, scrapbooking, and even doing a little knitting. Reading, hiking, and simply spending time with my family are also favorite pastimes. My latest obsession? Nail art.

 

A little back story, shall we?



I've been crafting in one way or another since my mother first allowed me to use scissors. Paper dolls, noodle art, perler bead fridge magnets, and popsicle stick art were just a few of my early favorites. When I got a little older, I took up drawing, a little acrylic painting, and with the help of one of my friend's mother, cross stitching, which I absolutely loved. By the time I was a teenager, I was stitching complicated patterns that took months to complete - and an equal amount of my allowance to frame!

 

Luckily, I became friends with a wonderful woman who owned a framing gallery and shop in my Arkansas hometown that showcased and supported local artists. She helped me frame my art economically and when my grandmother taught me how to make jewelry using the same technique she used (and still uses) to make rosaries, she also encouraged me to display some of my work in her gallery.

 

Finding a new outlet for my creativity, I threw myself into it whole heartedly. I started putting my artwork in the county fair (and later the state fair, as well) and going to craft shows. My jewelry became my passion and I continued making it, off and on, even after I left for college, only selling and giving away enough to make me feel I was justified in spending a little more on yet another bead order. *smile*

 

Eventually I lost interest in my crafts, mostly because I had nothing to do with it all but let it gather dust and was frustrated with my lack of success in marketing it. I was relatively certain my friends and family were tired of me always giving them stuff I'd made by then - although I realize now that they were often reluctant to accept a gift that they knew I'd put so much time (and often money) into.

 

Then in 2004, I was deployed overseas with a Maintenance Company in the US Army (where I met the man I would later marry). While I was there, my mother mailed me some tiny little cross stitch projects and cheap jewelry making kits. I realized while I was there that I missed crafting and upon returning, I asked my mother to help me relearn something I hadn't done since I was probably ten - and absolutely hated at the time: crocheting. Of course, much to her frustration, I was trying to get her to explain it to me over the phone... But I was determined to learn how to make something other than a doily - which was the only project I ever finished when she first taught me how, and that was only because she made me.

 

I went on to make baby blankets, layettes, and even booties (probably the hardest thing I've ever crocheted!) as gifts, mostly because they were always small projects and terribly cute, to boot. A sweater or two, some scarves, and my favorite project thus far: the garter I wore on my wedding day.

 

After the wedding and our subsequent move to Colorado in 2009, I decided it was time to try to find a market for my crafts again. I discovered a whole new world online for handmade goods and I set up a studio through ArtFire. I spent most of my time crocheting, without school or a job to distract me, and quickly discovered a love for designing, which is a road I hope to continue to explore for some time. Much to my delight, I soon found Ravelry and an amazing community of fiber arts enthusiasts - and I've never looked back!

 

In the fall of 2013, I began teaching crochet classes at a Michaels store in Columbus, Georgia. It was a new challenge and I was nervous, but I have come to absolutely love it! I am now a Certified Instructor through the Craft Yarn Council and teach weekly thanks to a wonderful group of ladies who have become regular students! They constantly amaze and inspire me and I am blessed to have met each and every one of them. 

 

As an Army wife and only a part time teacher, I thoroughly enjoy being able to stay at home (even though housework isn't exactly my favorite way to spend time), and I am thrilled that I am able to really explore my creative side again. It brings me a joy and satisfaction that I've found no where else - although I am looking forward to the new chapter of our lives that is just about to begin: parenthood. O.o

 

Are you ready to join me on this journey?



Tag along and see where my artsy path takes me! It might be a long and winding road at times, but there's always a new adventure waiting around the next bend and I can't wait to see what it may be! Wait... baby right? Oh boy! :) 

 

Talk to you soon!

 

xo,

Connie