I suppose I should start with an intro about myself. I have been crocheting for over ten years. As a child with undiagnosed ADHD my parents realized I had a love of creating and encouraged that in me. Even though I loved all the arts crocheting was always my longest relationship I had with a specific art style. It was thanks to this encouragement from my parents that I was always attempting to create even if it wasn’t perfect. They instilled a love for creating that has taken me on a much bigger journey then I ever could have dreamed. From a kid that used the arts as an outlet for emotions and energy to turning my hobby into a small business. This has been a wonderful crazy journey that I am excited to be able to share in the form of a sort of DIY vender show business blog. Sharing tips and tricks to be successful at shows.

When covid lockdowns started like everyone else I was growing bored and a little crazy. Even though I hadn’t crocheted in a few years this lockdown and TikTok led me to picking up my hook again. I finally pushed myself to learn how to read patterns. Before this I was what they call a free flow crochet artist. I couldn’t read patterns, but I could create simply by looking at the item and trying new techniques. I soon was amassing a huge online library of patterns, and our place was full of finished items. Too many finished items. And it’s not like we had the room to house every new item that I made. Half of what I made that first year I have no idea if I even still use it or if I frogged it for yarn for a new project. This is a perk to crocheting. If you don’t like or need the project anymore you can always frog and reuse that yarn for a new project! Ultimate recycling!

Soon I was posting my finished items to Facebook, and I had a very dear relative reach out with some custom items for a newborn she wanted done. This was my first paid order, and I was so excited. I know some artists create just to create but I couldn’t help but feel accomplished for someone wanting to pay me for my items. They turned out so pretty and I will always be proud of them. This soon led to me being asked if I wanted to participate in the town’s community days as a vender with a table selling items. I was so nervous. I also had no idea what I was doing. My weirdest items had to be the cat sweaters I made. Because who in their right mind is going to wrestle with a cat just to put a sweater on it? My first show was a success to me. I think I made just over $100. But to me it could have been a million dollars. And believe it or not the cat sweaters were kind of a hit. People thought they were hilarious, and a few bought them for their small dogs. I had a lot of people asking if I did dog sweaters. The funniest thing to me was people wanting the dog sweaters for their goats. Those little goats get cold too I guess.

This first show opened the doors to more shows. And I was able to create my own pattern for different size dog sweaters. My dog sweaters became a hit and also were able to set me apart from the other crochet venders at the shows. My first year I had fun learning how to find shows in the area to sell at. My first year was in no means successful by a business standard. It was a hobby that was getting me out of the house and meeting new people. By my second year though I was officially registered as an LLC and moving up in my vender show circle. My second year I signed up for every show I could find. I was meeting other venders who just loved to create and attend vender shows. My dog, Brutus, was attending certain shows with me and gaining his own fans in the community. I was attending indoor and outdoor shows. I gained a whole community of likeminded people who enjoined the community of the vender world. And I learned so much from these people.

I also joined online crochet groups and vender groups through Facebook. I was able to offer support and encouragement to other “hookers” (crocheters are called hookers since we use crochet hooks to create) that wanted to get involved in vender shows. Most of them all have the same questions. How do I find shows? How do I take payment? How much should I charge for this? And other questions. I have decided to put all those college English classes to work and create a space where I can share my journey and advice to make it easier for those that also want to share what they have created. When I started out there wasn’t a lot of free resources online to help point me in the direction to start. So hopefully this blog will help someone in their journey of joining the vender community.

I can’t wait to build an online community to help us all grow in our craft. I have so many ideas to share and crafts that have helped me step up my displays while also not hurting my wallet. Having that community whether in person or online really helps you not feel alone. It can offer support and encouragement to get you creating and thriving. And even if you just like to crochet but don’t plan on jumping into the vender world, I do plan on having some blog posts with just patterns I have created and want to share because they bring me joy. Can’t wait to start this journey with you guys!

How one cat sweater started a business