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GOOD READ
approacheda coupleofotherknitwear
vendorsandaskedif theywouldbe
interestedinstartinga localsipand
stitch...soonwehada largeandbustling
groupofladieswhometmonthlyto
crochet,knit,spin,and felt. I was sad to
leavethemwhenI
movedbacktomy
hometown,butwith
InstagramandEtsyit
didn’ttakemelongto
searchoutnearby
yarnloversandgeta
brandnewgroup
startedinHamilton.”
Instagramhasalso
beena realhelpinexpandingKelly’s
onlinecrochetfamily,“Itis byfarthe
largestbusinesstoolforknitbrooks,butfor
meit hasalwaysbeenmoreaboutthe
connectionswithothermakers,”shesays.“
I thinkToniofTLYarnCrafts(@tlyarncrafts)
is thefulltimecrochetbossweallwantto
channelwhenweneedtogetourhustle
on.I constantlyfindmyselfinaweofindie
dyerMadeleineofYamaFibreArt(@
yama_fibre_art).Shedescribesheryarnas
autumnalandrustic,whichI don’t think
couldbemoreaccurate.
“Thesupportrunsdeeponthe’gram,and
I’vealsofoundsomuchofit infellowhook
carvers Kristina of Miramar Woods(@miramarwoods)andRouxofRoux
Studios(@handcarvedhooks).Andshe’snot
muchintocrochetingthesedays,butAlison
ofLaReserveDesign(@la.reserve.design)is
prettymuchmyfavourite– sheis a talented
business owner andfriendI knowI can
alwaystalkthrough
new ideas with.”NEWHORIZONS
Kellyusedtolivein
Alberta,withthe
lastthreeyears
spentinOntario.
Forthenextcouple
shewillbeinNova
Scotia.“I’mreadytomaketheleapintothis
newchapter.Myjourneyhastakenme
fromthemajesticmountainsofthewest,
totheendlessforestsinthemiddleofthe
country,andnowtotheoceanintheeast. I
lookforwardtoseeinghowmynew
surroundingsinspiremywork.
“WhileI’mexcitedtodelvebackinto
crochetdesignagainaftera smallhiatus,
mynew-foundloveofhand-carving
crochethooksmayendupbeingmy
primaryfocus.Whereverthepathmay
lead,I knowit willbefilledwithnewways
tocombinethethingsI love.Andmaybe a
smallalpacafarm,whoknows!”
Written by Lucy Evans“I AMOFTHE FIRMBELIEF
THATTHE TOOLSYOUUSE CANBE
JUSTAS INSPIRINGAS YOUR
CRAFTING MEDIUM”
Hand-carvingherowncrochethooksis
nowanotherwayKellycancombineher
passions,“I grewupina familythat
collectedthings,suchasrocks,piecesof
woodandleaves,whichsetmeupfora
lifetimeofshovingcool-lookingsticksin
thetrunkofmycar.I amofthefirmbelief
thatthetoolsyouusecanbejustas
inspiringasyourcraftingmedium,and
hooks shouldn’t be excluded from that.”
WILDIDEA
Kelly’shooksaresupereco-friendly.“The
woodhasbeencollectedsustainablyfrom
a forestintheHamilton,Ontarioareaof
Canada.Oncethestickshavebeen
carefullyselected,theyareleftdryfora
fewweeks.They’repartiallydebarked,
carved,andsandedwithinaninchoftheir
lives.Andthensandedagain,toppedoff
witha mineraloilconcoction,sandedand
thenfinish-sandedonelasttime.Each
hookbaby,asI liketocallthem,is takenfor
a littletestrunusinga comicallydirty,
sawdust-filledcakeofyarnI keepinthe
workshop.Afterthey’vepassedtheyarn
test,they’rewoodburnedwiththesize
and deemed ready for release.”
COFFEEANDCROCHET
Offline,KellyhasembracedtheCanadian
stitchingscene,“Thenicethingaboutyarn
(besidestheobvious)is thatit soeasily
connectspeople.I’veformedsomany
specialandmeaningfulrelationshipsover
nothingmorethana commoninterest of
thefibrearts.WhenI waslivingin
Edmonton,I heardaboutsomethingcalled
a ‘sipandstitch’.Apparentlytherewere
groupsofcrochetersandknitterswhogot
togetheratlocalcoffeeshops.WhileI was
vending at a handmade market, I timidly
Afewofherfavouritethings
WhenKelly’snotcrocheting,youcanfindher...
“...watchingsomekindofcrimedocumentary,naturespecial
narratedbyDavidAttenborough,a cheesyArnoldSchwarzenegger
flick,orscarymovie.Anddoeseatingpizzacountasa hobby?”
Findoutmoreatknitbrooks.ca,orheadtoinstagram(@knitbrooks)
and follow Kelly’s Facebook page at facebook.com/knitbrooks.