Susi’s 2014 in Review

I had a big crafting year, but it wasn’t in the number of projects I logged, it was in the evolution of my journey. Participating in Project Runway gave me a certain amount of exposure and the repercussions of that have continued to have a ripple effect.  It went well beyond my fan base at the Noe Valley Whole Foods and spilled over into actual live commission jobs. Right when the show aired, October of 2013, we were in the process of moving. I knew all of my friends were watching the show, but it is hard to even fathom that people I had not yet MET were also watching. One such fan was the principal of my daughter’s school. We toured the school in preparation for the move and by the time the show aired,she had actually watched, seen me and was waiting for us to enroll.

The Evil Queen Costume from Snow White.

In the spring, she commissioned me to sew the Evil Queen, in the Snow White production. She was so happy with the costume, she let the head of the school/company know about the experience. They were thinking of offering a sewing class at the middle school and asked if I would be interested in teaching. I was thrilled with the prospect and started shortly after that. We started with some  “stitch camps” over the summer and set up the Stitch Lab by August for the start of school.

Some of my favorite projects in the crafting arena now are ones that I taught. I have a fiercely loyal following of ten-year olds. They are bright, bubbly and so enthusiastic every day.

The funny thing about the girls, is that they are strangely (beautifully) UNconnected to the crafting world that we share here. I am working with (and for) (little)  people that who do not have accounts on Facebook or Pinterest. They cannot access YouTube from school. (and rightly so). What this means is that I sift through all of these amazing channels for things that I think they would like to do or try and I bring the projects to THEM. If I say “Apartment Therapy” or “Craftgawker” they do not have any context. I have learned where they shop, what they like, and most importantly, what they are capable of. It is really a whole new WORLD for me to explore.

The lessons I learned more than a year ago have become stronger than EVER in my world. Be brave enough. For me that was “be brave enough to make a video about something you are passionate about. ” Before This experience, I would maybe not have gone to a party and said “oh yes, I design for barbie size dolls on our blog.” And now it is the thing that has opened the most amazing doors. So I say to you – go forth and craft! Craft your heart out. Knit. Sew. Fold. Glue. Glitter. What ever is your passion. Because all good things could potentially be on the other side of your passions.