We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Audrey Hines a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Audrey , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
Our mission at EMPRESSOFATLANTA is to get people to fall in love with the beauty of handmade items and to boost individuality, the artful eye and craftsmanship through crochet.
My Mom taught me how to crochet when I was 7 years old and a woman with one arm taught her. Only my Mom could tell a story like that. She taught me the two stitches she knew which were the single crochet and the double crochet.
With these two stitches I taught myself how to make scarves, blankets, sweaters, pants hats and purses. Over the years, especially since “YouTube University” started, I have fallen back in love with crocheting. I have learned to make so many new things. It takes awhile for some pieces but hats, footies, booties take very little time.
I started EMPRESSOFATLANTA in 2020 and I wanted to make something people really needed in their everyday life, so I made soaps and masks. When the soaps weren’t selling so well and the need for masks and begin to dwindle, I switched to crochet. It was familiar and I felt people could use crochet blankets, hats, and scarves.
I have noticed our society seems to have a lack of patience and a love for fast fashion. I would like to put beauty and appreciation back into getting dressed. EMPRESSOFATLANTA produces wearable art. I would love for people to wear my pieces and feel special when they put them on.
My Mom have me a love for art in general. Her main medium was paint but she would also sculpt and make jewelry. I had a love for clothing and wanted to be a clothing designer.
Now I am ready to share my love for crochet and clothing through my crocheted pieces of wearable art.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
My name is Audrey Hines and I am a 45 year old Atlanta native that enjoys crocheting and watching true crime. I have turned my hobby into a part time business that I am trying to grow currently.
I am attempting to solve the problem problem of cookie cutter clothing. Over the years I have watched crochet and crafts grow in popularity in general. I would love to be a positive light in people find clothing with individuality and boost their appreciation for wearable art and craftsmanship.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
I started EMPRESSOFATLANTA IN 2020. I was working at a retail shop that closed for about 2 months. Since I was at home I decided to open a business that sold items that were needed. I started out with handmade soaps and masks. The soap was slow to move, although I received compliments on them all the time. When the need for masks began to dwindle I decided to switch to crocheted items. I made this pivot because I wanted to continue making products to sell people and it was still handmade. I have stuck with the crocheted clothing and things are beginning to take off. Sales are still slow but my exposure is growing. To me it’s a plus when people see yarn and think of me. That means I am on the right track!
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
The best source of new clients has been social media with word of mouth as a close second. Social media has been like a virtual open social market where you type in keywords of what you are looking for and find many accounts that you can link with. I do have lots of friends that help promote what it is I am doing among their other friends by word of mouth and then those potential customers go onto my social media pages to see what they like.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://EmpressofAtlanta.com
- Instagram: EmpressofAtlanta
Image Credits
Audriano Hines