Last month, we launched the SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club, as you know, and I was super excited about it. I so enjoyed choosing the colourways, tying the little bundles up… and when I sent the parcels off, I hoped — hoped — that all the club members were as excited about the yarns they received as I was.
I was nervous as the feedback started to come through on Ravelry but, to my delight, most everyone was absolutely tickled with the parcels. I am so pleased! And, where there suggestions were made, they were really great suggestions that I’m going to use to improve the club in the months to club.
But if I was anxious about what the members thought, that was only compounded when I spotted that Abigail of TAAT Designs and Karrie of KnitPurlGurl had post their reviews of the Mini-Skein Club on their websites. These were real reviews — I had no idea whether Abigail or Karrie would like what they found in their parcels, and I knew they’d both be very honest with their followers.
A little nervously, I clicked on the links to see, and… Well, do you want to see for yourself what they had to say?
First, here’s Abigail’s review. She includes some really photos of the yarns, showing how the parcels were packaged as well as the colourways, and a list of her thoughts for anyone thinking of joining the club.
And here is Episode 20 of the KnitPurlGurl Podcast, which contains her review of the Mini-Skein Club. If you’ve been wondering about joining the club, Karrie’s review is extensive: she discusses the whole parcel, goes into detail about each yarn, and even the way it’s packaged — everything you’d need to know. The rest of KnitPurlGurl Postcast is absolutely packed full of fibery-goodness (just check out the incredibly extensive show notes!) and well worth watching. But if you’d like to jump to ahead to her review of the SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club, then check out this excerpt…
Thank you to everyone who has joined the SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club. I am having an absolute blast choosing your colourways and putting these little bundles together! And I’m so grateful for your feedback, because your input means this club will just get better and better!
The InterStellar Yarn Alliance parcels went out last week and I think that excited me the most about it was that it included exclusive access to a beautiful knitting pattern created especially for the Alliance Members by the designer at Rock & Purl, Ruth Garcia-Alcantud. I’ve admired her work for a while now and it’s easy to see why.
(Ten points to the first commenter to guess my favourite out of these four! Hint: the answer is further down in this post.)
Her designs have appeared in Interweave Crochet, Vogue Knitting, KnitScene, Knit Magazine, and Yarn Forward. So when Ruth offered to create an exlcusive pattern for the InterStellar Yarn Alliance, I was absolutely over the moon. And I can’t wait another minute to show it to you! This is Medianoche, a pair of beautifully delicate gloves with an amazing, double-layer cuff: a flouncy, lacy outer cuff conceals a fitted ribbed inner cuff. They’re fabulous!
When she sent me Medianoche, Ruth took the opportunity to interview me for her blog, and I decided to ask her a few questions as well. Here’s our conversation, and don’t miss the exciting announcement at the bottom!
Ruth, I love your patterns. I am crazy for Moore. I am over the moon with Medianoche (can’t wait to cast it on!!!). Can you give a brief walk-through of where you grab your inspiration and how you turn that into a pattern?
Some ideas form perfectly in my head from the moment the yarn hits my
hands – Medianoche is a clear example of it! Before I got the yarn, I
knew I was going to transform it into gloves, but once I touched it, I
knew a lace cuff detail would be the center of attention and worked
from there.
Other times, like with Moore, it takes a little longer – Moore was
originally a scarf/wrap! It was the first garment where I applied the
sideways technique, and I’m quite glad I thought of discarding the
scarf idea now.
All in all, while I may have an idea such as “I want to make a
sweater” and want to pair it with a worsted weight yarn… I have to
let the yarn be what it wants to be!
So, when did you move from being a knitter to a knit designer? How did you know, in your mind, that you’d made that leap?
I was always a “Ms Perfection Knitter” – I took great pride in
finishing, perfect gauge, etc. I once knit this horrible jumper that
was completely off in the measurements area, the waist was
non-existent and the cross back was WAY too big for me. I reworked it
to my measurements, and I guess that was my first non-artistic move
into the design world.
Fresh out of a job a couple of years ago, I went a little bananas and
thought I’d jump in with both feet, but I wanted to explore the
knitwear design world before launching a venture that could have
fallen flat on its face – I researched yarns, swatched lots, read
everything I could on sizing, grading, fitting and eye-catching
details to ensure designs are one-of-a-kind.
In the meantime, I designed accessories, where the fit and the
modeled sample didn’t have to be perfect, until I thought I was ready
to move into the garment arena. My first garment acceptance came from
Shannon Okey (aka knitgrrl) who has since then become a very good
friend and mentor.
If you had to stop knitting — I know! It’s a ridiculous thought! — but if you did, what would your ideal job be? And how would your experience of being a knit designer
influence that?
Mmmmm…. I like jobs that have plenty of small pieces to fit into a
bigger one. I liked my old PA role in which I had to organize agendas,
trips, events and yet ensure that the day-to-day running of the office
did not go unattended. So I’d like a job with defined, visible, key
details.
Now, I know you grew up in Spain but now live in England. How is knitting in Britain different to knitting in Spain? Has your
style or way of thinking about the craft changed from one country to
another?
Wow, you’ve no idea how the internet and Ravelry have changed the
mentality of knitting over in Spain! Knitting groups have multiplied
and the one I visit when I go visit my parents used to be about… 6 people? They now have to ask permission to “camp” at Starbucks in
town, there’s that many of them!
My father works in fashion and his mum was also involved in it, so my
view about the craft has always been about couture, delicate,
made-to-measure pieces. I would like to think I transported those
ideas with me – as a good visitor, I always buy yarn when I go there
too! We get fantastic finds in bright coloured cottons and some
interesting wool blends for those who don’t have vicious winters.
If you were hosting a dinner party that included the most influential people in your life, who would they be and (more importantly!) what would you cook?
Difficult!! My dad, both my grandmothers, my husband-to-be Brian and
my aunt. I pride myself in my duck with lime sauce and coconut rice ..
would you like to try it when you visit England next?
Yes please! Ok, so, when you design, do you have a specific person in mind? Are you designing for someone, or for yourself?
I’d tell a lie if I said “nooo I don’t think about myself”. When I am thinking of a self-published pattern, I need to make it fit me as I’m the model for the photographs, but I also want to make sure it fits a
variety of bodies, so if I don’t believe it will fit anyone above a 38” bust the idea gets scrapped.
I have a funny story about it – I created Anchored with no intention of releasing it whatsoever as I thought people would think it too risque and flashy. In the end it’s been one of my best-sellers, so sometimes it’s obvious I’m not right!
What is the best bit of being a designer? What part of it brings you the most joy?
I love grading, calculating, adapting and playing with numbers – and
while I moan a lot about Illustrator and InDesign not doing what I
want them to do, I enjoy creating schematics and laying out patterns.
Publishing is such a thrill – will it do ok? will it flop? But nothing gives me quite as much satisfaction as seeing pictures of the objects people create with my patterns, and getting good comments on them.
Ruth, you and I are both expats, so I know we both understand the internal conflict that comes from having two places to call ‘home’. When you think way ahead into your future, where do you see yourself pulled to? Where do you see yourself living as an old lady?
I truly don’t know. My other half and I always joke about moving countries, and not just in Europe! But we’re so settled in our little home now that I’d be heartbroken if I had to leave. That being said, the warmer winters from Valencia (where I come from) would be a delight compared to the chill of Blighty!
And finally, I’ll ask the same great question you asked me… what
do you hope to infuse into knitters that work with your patterns?
There’s NOTHING you cannot achieve. I hope to teach you some tricks or
techniques that will make your knitting easier, or perhaps create that
one garment that will make you feel like the million dollars you
already are worth – but remember… it’s YOU who makes it, and you
should be proud of that and every single stitch you pour onto your
work.
It’s been such a pleasure for me, working with Ruth and getting to know her better. And so exciting to send out the InterStellar Yarn Alliance parcels, knowing that every one of the Alliance Members was getting her beautiful Medianoche!
And would you like to see what else was in the parcel? Well, the first thing in the box was the SpaceCadet’s Log, to explain the inspiration for the colourway.
And then there was the yarn of course! It was Izarra, an absolutely beautiful blend of 80% Superwash Blue-Faced Leicester (BFL) and 20% Nylon. It’s going to look fantastic as a pair of gloves!
And then, just for fun, I included a few holiday gift tags, specially designed to help the gift recipients to realise just how lucky they are to received a handmade gift!
The InterStellar Yarn Alliance Gift Subscription
If you’ve been thinking that a gift subscription to the InterStellar Yarn Alliance would make the perfect present for a knitter or crocheter on your holiday list, then I have some great news. Later this month, we will be offering limited number of special Yarn Alliance gift subscription packages. We’re putting the details together now, and to be the very first to hear about it, make sure you’re on the Yarn Adventurers’ mailing list!
Here’s a Friday morning brainteaser for you… (because, you need one, right? You’re wide awake and raring for brainteasing this morning, right? …no? Oh, never mind, keep reading. It’s worth it.)
Right, here’s your brainteaser: how do you pronounce amigurumi? Yes, amigurumi. I’m hitting you with a word like amigurumi first thing on a Friday morning not because I’m particularly cruel and sadistic (although… umm… no, never mind) but because if you don’t know about amigurumi, then I have someone I want to introduce you to.
Ok, let’s back it up and make Friday morning a bit easier. How do you pronounce Fresh Stitches? How about Stacey Trock? Better? Yep, me too! I can’t say amigurumi to save my life. …Well, I can, but I have to slow right down and I sound like an idiot. I prefer to say Stacey Trock. Mostly, because I really like her.
Stacey designs crocheted amigurumi, which is a Japanese word meaning a crocheted or knitted stuffed animal. And so you know they are going to be cute, but Stacey’s designs are not just cute, they’re downright funky. I mean, right now, you’re thinking “teddy bears”, right? Nope.
I met Stacey at TNNA in June — she was unmissable, wandering around with a crocheted monkey on her back — and I quickly discovered she is an absolutely lovely person. During the Mother-of-All-Knit-Nights (imagine a room filled with every.single.one of your knitting idols, and that’s exactly what it was), Stacey and I got to talking and… we just kept going for a couple of hours! Isn’t it just the coolest thing when the people you’ve admired from afar turn out to be truly nice people in real life?
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Stacey, your amigurumi are so adorable! How do your design ideas come to you? Do you know what the finished project will look like before you start, or do you let the yarn and hook lead the way and just see how it comes out?
Aww, thank you! I have no idea how my ideas come to me… sometimes I think it’s just a little fairy in the night that brings them. In all honesty, I’ll just get ‘struck’ by an animal idea, and I know exactly how it’s going to look and how it’s going to be made. And more than often, I’m right. Once in a while, I go through a phase of experimenting with different shapes and techniques, and then a whole new batch of animals will hit me.
When did you make the jump from crocheter to crochet designer? What defined that change in your mind?
Ah, yes… you’re hinting at two different questions! The first one is: when did I go from crocheter to being a person who sold crochet designs. I did that one summer, when I was finished with school, and was tired of what I was doing. I asked myself, ‘what would I do if I didn’t have to worry about money at all?’. And I thought, ‘make stuffed animals’. And, I’ve been crocheting since I was very small, so that seemed like the natural method to make my animals. Then, I thought about it, and figured I really could make a living of it… so, then I just started designing! My first designs were a koala and a lion.
The second question, when did I feel like a crochet designer is slightly different. It took a while for me to really believe that this was my job and not just some pipe dream. I would say that after my first book, Cuddly Crochet, came out, I felt like I was really a designer.
It’s interesting, though- because I think of myself as a stuffed animal designer, not a ‘crochet designer’. I would jump to knitting stuffed animals before I would design a crocheted sweater. I guess I’m just obsessed with stuffed animals 🙂
When you design, do you have a specific person in mind? Are you designing for someone, or for yourself?
I always have one of two customers in mind when I design. Customer number one is a late-20s, early 30s woman who is crocheting a toy for her children (of course, in real life, it could be a grandmother, aunt or even a father… but marketing folks tell you to be specific!). She’s interested in a pattern that’s not overwhelmingly complicated (she has other things to do, after all!) and she’s also interested in a fairly mainstream, cute animal. The animal also will need to be baby-safe (crocheted eyes, no long strings, etc.). My Nelson the Owl pattern is a stereotypical example of an animal I designed with this customer in mind.
Customer number 2 is a late teenager or 20-something woman who loves crocheting and wants to make a funky and cute crocheted animal. She’s not scared off by trying a new technique, but the end product has to be awesome. She may be making it to make a statement at work, or crocheting a gift for a
friend (and wants a super-unique gift over something you can just buy in the store). Weird animals are totally okay… even suggested! Sandford the Squid is the best example of a pattern I’ve designed with this customer in mind.
Sometimes, I lose sight of my customer, and design an animal ‘just because’, and these usually end up being flops. Like, I designed a cheetah… he was cute, for a cheetah. But, what’s the market? You don’t give a cheetah to a baby. And, people looking for funky designs aren’t drawn to cheetahs.
It’s been a lesson… even though I’m completely passionate about what I do, it’s still a business, and I need to keep in mind that I’m designing for my customers.
Are there any special skills needed for amigurumi that are different from other crochet projects?
The main thing about amigurumi is that they are worked in the round. You don’t need any special stitches (it’s the same single crochet, increasing and decreasing that you see everywhere), but starting off can be tricky for folks… it’s getting the piece going in the round. I use the sloppy slip knot (a technique that I made up by accident) because it’s quick an easy. The magic ring is another popular choice.
Attaching the pieces (arms, legs, etc to the body) also takes a little artistry. It can be tricky when you start, but using some locking stitch markers to position the piece (and see if you like it) before sewing it on is a great tip. Alternatively, Dawn Toussaint is an amigurumi designer who attaches all of the pieces as you crochet- so there’s nothing to attach afterwards… that can make the whole attaching-thing easier!
What is the best bit of being a designer? What part of it brings you the most joy?
The thing I love most is the flexibility. I get to work from home and make my own schedule. My partner (Tim) is Australian, and we go back to Australia for 3 weeks every Christmas. I’m the studio manager at my yoga studio, and I attend classes at 5pm. Tim is giving a talk at a university in a few weeks, and I get to just go along. I don’t think I could do any of those things if I worked a normal 9-5 job.
Now, that doesn’t mean I don’t work a lot of hours… but the flexibility is priceless to me!
It’s funny you ask the 2nd question… because the best thing in the world happened to me this morning- that makes my job super-awesome. One of my customers emailed me and told me that she was going through a very hard time in her life (due to family illness), and that what had gotten her through was making my stuffed animals for her grandchildren! I couldn’t believe someone would say such a sweet thing to me! Making others happy brings me the most joy!
What is your favourite amigurumi design that you’ve done? Which one makes you smile every time you see it?
I’ve got two. One is Nelson the Owl… I’m not sure if it’s because owls are insanely popular right now, or what, but I make a lot of them, and they’re adorable every time! It doesn’t matter what color combo you use- he’s adorable! The second is Milton the Snail from my new book, Crocheted Softies. I have a total soft spot for snails… and I love Milton!!!
What do you suggest to knitters/crocheters who are nervous about using hand-dyed?
Who’s afraid of hand-dyeds? I’ll go have a talk with them! I think what most people don’t realize is that you can use hand-dyed yarns in almost any pattern that calls for commercial yarns! Crocheters and Knitters seem to get really caught up on using the yarn recommended in the pattern… but as long as you’re substituting a similar weight and fiber yarn (i.e. a worsted weight wool for another worsted weight wool)- you don’t need to think very hard about doing a substitution! And, there’s so much more variety in the hand-dyed market. A commercial yarn company produces thousands of skeins of each color… so they’re pretty tied to producing yarns and colors with a broad appeal. But, since an indie dyer produces yarn in small lots, they can really let their creativity shine through. I’ve gotten some amazingly colored skeins from indie dyers that would have never been available commercially! Also, you can’t beat the colors and love that goes into hand-dyed… so I say, rock on!
I got some great news last month: SpaceCadet Creations yarn has been chosen for two designs for two upcoming books! How cool is that?!? Seriously, I am so excited!
And I want to introduce you to the designer, Amy Maceyko. Not only because she turned out to be a really nice person, but also because it’s really interesting to see as she how she applies her experience as an architect to her fiber arts. So I asked her a few questions…
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I know you are an architect, a knitting teacher, and a crochet designer. How do these three parts of your creativity influence each other?
Good question. They are honestly even more intertwined than I expected them to be back when I started knitting. The way that I work as an architect definitely influences my process when I’m designing knit or crocheted pieces. Just as an architect draws 2-dimensional plans of a 3-dimensional building, I tend to draw 2-dimensional “plans” of my designs in yarn. I even add notes and dimensions the same way I do it for buildings. It is entirely possible that an architect could look in my knitting/crochet notebook and understand my creations better than a fellow designer, but I haven’t had a chance to test this theory yet.
As for the other way around, I think the way that my yarn endeavors influence my architecture is a bit more subtle. Crochet and knitting gives me a way to play with color and texture in a much faster medium than architecture. So all of the time I have spent putting different colors of yarn together, playing with proportion and looking at ways that textures react to different 3-dimensional shapes has improved my work on the interior design aspects of the job.
And lastly, there is a lot of similarity between teaching and working with a client as an architect. Most people who are building a building have never done so before (with the exception of the head honchos), so there is some teaching that goes along with working with any client. In general, all teaching that you do makes you a better teacher, so I felt ready to jump into teaching knitting and crochet quickly even without a lot of past experience.
What came first for you, crochet or knitting? Has that influenced the way you design?
Technically, I learned to crochet first because my mom taught me when I was little. But it didn’t stick and I only cross-stitched and sewed for many years before coming back to yarn crafts in my late 20’s. I learned to knit first and then to crochet (again) about 4 years later. I think my brain probably tends to swing more toward knitting designs because at this point I’ve been knitting about twice as long as I’ve been crocheting and I’ve made so many more knitted objects. But since there don’t seem to be as many independent crochet designers out there, I am trying to force myself to keep thinking about crochet designs to build an audience. I also think there are some things that knitting does better and some things that crochet does better, so when I think of a particular look I want to achieve I try to imagine which fabric will serve the purpose best.
Hmmm…that kind of sounds like the famous Louis Sullivan quote “Forms follows function.” Apparently my architectural influences are everywhere…
When did you make the jump from knitter/crocheter to knit/crochet designer? What defined that change in your mind?
Some of it was gradual and some of it was much more sudden. Even since I first learned to knit I have made up patterns as I went, and whenever I followed a pattern I always altered something about it. At least the yarn, probably the gauge, maybe the edging, etc. It is just in my DNA to try things differently. I had a student who wanted to learn a free online hat pattern a few weeks ago, so I knitted one the week before the class to ensure that I could teach her all of the skills she needed. As soon as I finished, I cast on another that removed all of the garter ridges and added 4 columns of cables. I just couldn’t stop myself!
But in all of these years I haven’t actually written my made up patterns and shared them with anyone. I have thought about it. But by the time I really felt confident enough to do it I had a 2 year old and a baby…and not enough sleep to do pattern writing after they were in bed.
And then a year ago I was laid off from my architecture job. After the first optimistic 6-8 looking for a job, I started talking to my local yarn store about part time work and looking at design submission requests on ravelry. Within a couple of months I was teaching classes, working some part time hours in the shop and had three designs accepted for a series of crochet books! I am still looking for full time work, but now that my kids are older and I have “established” myself a little, I plan to keep up some teaching and designing even if (when) I find another position as an architect.
How do you approach hand-dyed yarns that’s different from the way you design in commercial yarns? What do you suggest to knitters/crocheters who are nervous about using hand-dyed?
It is somewhat easier to design with commercial yarns because you can tell the knitter or crocheter exactly what to buy, and I’ve found there are lots of crafters out there who even want to use the same color that’s used in the sample. There are people who want to see exactly what they’re going to make before they make it.
There is so much potential in hand-dyed options and so many people spinning their own yarn, it is really an important market to consider designs that go beyond the workhorse commercial yarns. I’ve been thinking about this a lot because I have some yarn in my stash that I have acquired at wool festivals. This is yarn that few, if any, of the people buying my patterns could acquire. It is also yarn that I *really* want to design with, so I’ve been thinking a lot about the best ways to go about it.
One thing I have been thinking about is including a picture of the yarn in the hank as a part of the pattern when I use something unusual or hand-dyed. This would give the knitter or crocheter a sense of what I started with to help them in the shopping process.
But in the end, it is really all about swatching. I can look at a skein of hand-dyed yarn and have an idea. But until I swatch I don’t know for sure if it will work. The more I work with variegated yarns the better sense I have of what will and won’t work before I swatch, but not well enough to describe it to other people yet. 🙂
My advice is that if a hand-dyed yarn has caught your eye and you can’t stop thinking about it…buy it! Yarn is not a precious commodity, it should be used. Buy it, wind it, and swatch it! In the worst case, if you don’t like what you try making, you can undo it and try something else.
How many projects do you have on the go right now? Is there such a thing as too many projects or too much yarn?
2 baby blankets (One of those babies just turned 1 – oops!), 1 Babette blanket, 1 sweater for class and for the book series – 2 blankets, a girl’s cardigan and a girl’s jumper. I also have a small pile of hand knits that need mending or sweaters that aren’t quite right.
I did find that when I had an infant I really had to keep my number of projects low so I wouldn’t feel overwhelmed by my projects. I also don’t tend to have WIP for years and years, Babette being the one exception because I tend to work on it in fits and starts. That list above is really everything that I have in progress. I don’t have a bin of items that I abandoned. Although I do have a number of bags with yarn and an index card with the description of the item that yarn could (should?) become. But since I haven’t actually started them yet beyond the idea, they aren’t WIPs.
What can you tell us about the two designs you’re doing in SpaceCadet yarns?
The first is a wrap cardigan in girl’s size 4, 6, 8 and 10. Although someone saw me working on it at my LYS this week wishing I would make an adult pattern. The cardigan has some flower motifs along the front, but most of the fabric is worked in double crochet through the back loop. It has been a little tricky to figure out, but I think it will be pretty straightforward for the crocheters to make.
The second is a very textured blanket. I’m actually making two versions of it for the book, one in Space Cadet yarn and a second in Berroco Vintage, one of my favorite commercial yarns. My initial goal in making two is to show the amazing opportunity to play with the yarn choice – from high contrast to something more subtle and variegated.
I’m very excited to see how both projects come out!
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Both of Amy’s designs will appear in the Fresh Design Crochet series from Cooperative Press: her cardigan will be in Fresh Design Crochet: Sweaters, coming out in Spring 2012, and the blanket will be part of Fresh Design Crochet: Home, in Autumn 2012. You can check out Amy’s blog, Structured Stitches, to follow her adventures in fiber arts design.
There’s been a fascinating conversation going on over on Twitter. It started with a question that the ladies at Lorna’s Laces had been discussing, and it seemed simple enough. In fact, when I heard it, I thought instinctively that I knew the answer… Of course I knew the answer! It’s an easy question!
…Until I really began to think about it, and then I realised, I had no idea what the answer is. And it’s not easy — not at all. The question is:
What is the difference between an indie business and a corporate business?
Particularly when it comes to the crafting/creative industries, where is the line that separates the two?
Now, you’re probably doing exactly what I did, and thinking, “I know an indie business from a corporate business! It’s obvious!” And, maybe it is, but… I’ll tell you what, it’s a bloody hard thing to define when you actually try to do it.
When most people think of a corporation, they instinctively think of large office buildings or big factories but, in truth, almost any kind of business — even tiny ones — can be incorporated. All it really signifies is the way the business is structured for financial and legal purposes. A corporation might as likely be run out of someone’s spare bedroom as out of some glass-and-steel skyscraper.
So, I started out thinking that maybe it was the terms that were confusing, and I tweeted that maybe the difference was really between ‘professional’ and ‘amateur’… or was it ‘professional’ and ‘hobbiest’?
But that wasn’t right because, really, the nature of an indie business is that it’s… a business. And anyone seriously running a business, even a small one, is going to be beyond amateur, beyond hobby.
M.K. Carroll and Cathy (@glamsmitten) tweeted back with “Indie vs Industry?” and Ruth at RockandPurl suggested, “Mass-market vs Personal Touch”. And then M.K. asked, “At what point is something ‘mass-market’?” at the same time that I tweeted, “Is the keyword, ‘handmade’? Can something be both mass-market and handmade?”
I really thought I’d hit the nail on the head. I was feeling pretty pleased with myself, actually. Yep, the key was ‘handmade’!
And then M.K. replied, “Mass-market crochet items are ALL handmade. There is no machine-made crochet.” Damn! She was right! And further, “Couture uses a lot of handwork (e.g. ‘petits mains’) – it’s not mass-market.” And there was a picture of a Chanel dress being carefully stitched by hand.
Chanel is definitely corporate, at least in my mind. At one point someone asked if was about the ownership of a company… the difference between private companies and publicly traded ones? But then someone said that Lion Brand is a family-owned company. And I thought about a company I used to work for back in my “corporate” days — a huge, multinational company with tens of thousands of employees… which was entirely family-owned.
Huh! This was turning out to be a much, much more difficult question than I had first thought! And though the Twitter conversation continued on for some time, not one of us was able to come to a satisfactory answer. Was it the size of the company? Does having employees mean you’re not indie anymore? Or is it the amount of money a company makes? Or is it the intent of the company? What is ‘intent’ anyway, when almost all companies — large or small — are in business primarily to make money?
So, even though it feels like it would be an instinctively easy question to answer, it isn’t. How do we define the difference between corporate and indie? It’s much more thorny than it appears.
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That Twitter conversation was yesterday and, all day today, the question has simmered gently in the back of my mind. While I was in the studio dyeing, I pondered it, and it percolated while I packed up orders to go out. And at some point today, an answer bubbled up that started to feel a bit right. I’ve turned it over and over in my mind and, so far, it still feels right…
Is the difference between ‘indie’ and ‘corporate’ the extent to which the owner is involved in the making?
I’m thinking that a company stays indie so long as the owner or founder is regularly in the studio creating — even if it’s only for part of the time. When the owner moves out of the studio completely, and leaves the making entirely to employees… maybe that’s when a company crosses the line from ‘indie’ to ‘corporate’…? Can you imagine a company of 150 people where every single person spent as much time creating as they did in the office — would that make the company feel ‘indie’ even with so many employees? When the owner was right there in the studio with her sleeves up alongside everyone else? Maybe a company moves over to ‘corporate’ only when it allows most of its focus (and time) on the business side of things rather than the creative side.
So far, that answer feels right to me. But then, every answer I’ve come up with so far has felt right, and then turned out to be wide of the mark. What do you think? How do you define the difference between corporate and indie? I’d love to know, because I’m amazed by how difficult it really is!
Did you get to go to Sock Summit? Because I didn’t and I was just soooooo jealous of everyone who did. All weekend long (all weekend? no, for four days), it seemed like everyone I follow on Twitter was at Sock Summit… and having the time of their fibery lives… and tweeting mercilessly about it. Mercilessly, I tell you! Oh, how I wanted to be there.
Well, not me, but my colours. And not just there, but actually there as part of the winning submission in the Design for Glory competition! Ok, a tiny part, but a part… About a week before Sock Summit, my friend Abigail emailed with the news that she and her knitting partners at TAAT Designs had submitted the winning entry, a sock called At The Summit. The design requirement was for a sock that could be knit modularly — in pieces and then assembled at the last minute — by a team in the Fleece to Foot Challenge.
And, for their entry, TAAT Designs chose yarn hand-spun from SpaceCadet Creations fiber! When Abigail gave me the news, I sqeeeeeeeeeed so loudly, I think I scared the neighbours! I remember when she bought that fiber and… well, just to think that braid of wool had risen to such heights in the sock stratophere, it kinda blew my mind!
And while At The Summit is a beautiful design and the good ladies at TAAT — Tesia Walker, Allison Janocha, Abigail Horsfall and Trisha Paetsch — are clearly a very talented bunch of knitters… I have to admit, I like to think it was the gently undulating shades of SeaFoam that really made the difference in the end.
Congratulations to Abigail, Tesia, Trisha, and Allison on their beautiful design. Thanks for choosing SpaceCadet colours! And congratulations also to Meridith Todd, who spun such a fantastic yarn.
And congratulations to that braid of SeaFoam fiber. Every single time I pack up an order and send it out, I wonder what that yarn or fiber will become. Never did I think anything I’ve dyed would become something so… Glory-ous!
First, here’s Abigail’s review. She includes some really photos of the yarns, showing how the parcels were packaged as well as the colourways, and a list of her thoughts for anyone thinking of joining the club.
And here is Episode 20 of the KnitPurlGurl Podcast, which contains her review of the Mini-Skein Club. If you’ve been wondering about joining the club, Karrie’s review is extensive: she discusses the whole parcel, goes into detail about each yarn, and even the way it’s packaged — everything you’d need to know. The rest of KnitPurlGurl Postcast is absolutely packed full of fibery-goodness (just check out the incredibly extensive show notes!) and well worth watching. But if you’d like to jump to ahead to her review of the SpaceCadet’s Mini-Skein Club, then check out this excerpt…
