We were lucky to catch up with Claudia Carpenter recently and have shared our conversation below.

Claudia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

I have always said that I have carried Crochet in my soul for as long as I can remember. I grew up in a multi-generational home in San Salvador, El Salvador with my great-grandmother Maria who was a beautiful and talented crocheter.

When I left my native El Salvador at eight years old to be reunited with my mother in California, I lost access to the one person who could teach me to crochet. I spent many years trying to learn on my own without much luck. It was only when I tuned in to YouTube with its wealth of talented crocheters sharing their skills and knowledge that I was finally able to learn to crochet. That was about ten years ago and I have not stopped since.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have always been a creative person. For as long as I can remember, I have explored ways to use my creativity for self expression. This ultimately led me to a Bachelor’s degree in Art. I spent time learning invaluable skills at both a traditional art school as well as finalizing and obtaining my degree at a small private school in Southern California. The years spent surrounded by fellow artists helped me to discover what kind of artist I wanted to be. I love color and do not have a particular one I am most drawn to. For me, how colors play together is what interests me, whether it is in a painting or a crochet shawl, color plays an integral role in the outcome of what I make. That is why from the very first crochet project I completed to today, I am always on the lookout for colorful yarns and combinations that appealed to me for that next crochet project.

Crochet became what I turned to as my creative outlet and my passion. With crochet, I didn’t have to worry about solvents and oil paints getting in the hands of my then small children. It gave me a freedom to be creative and to bring together my love of color and working with my hands that I had not experienced since my early days in art school.

It was never my intention to turn my love for crochet into a business. Crocheting products for sale does not hold much appeal to me as I prefer to challenge myself and build my skills by trying out new crochet patterns, yarns and techniques. Instead, I found a small niche that I felt at the time was underserviced in the crochet community.

When visiting yarn shops or attending Fiber Festivals where vendors sell an amazing assortment of yarns, notions, and tools used to crochet, knit, embroidery, etc., I found a lack of crochet representation in the products offered. Whereas you may see a pin-back button proclaiming a knitter’s love for knitting, there would be little for us crocheters to join in the fun to proclaim love for our craft. There would be cups, pins, T-shirts, and all manner of products for knitters but the offerings for crocheters were very limited.

It was after attending these festivals, searching Etsy, as well as other online shops and not finding cute, fun, affordable pin-back buttons that I decided I wanted to change that. In 2017 I started CrochetLuna on Etsy. I began by designing a few pin-back buttons that were made specially for crocheters which received an amazing response. My pin designs are meant to be fun and to promote crochet in the best possible way.

My little business grew and I was able to sell my pin-back buttons online, at yarn festivals, and as part of collaborations with yarn dyers in the fiber arts community. It makes me proud that crocheters enjoy displaying my work via my pin-back buttons as designing my buttons is something that brings me a lot of joy. I am always writing down and sketching ideas for that next button design.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I feel strongly that we are all creative beings. How we express that creativity varies from person to person but it is part of being human. I feel that people are weighed down by their expectations or perspective as to what being creative means.

For me, being creative and nurturing that creative life is about giving myself permission to play and explore the materials of my chosen artistic expression. Too many people treat their materials as precious. They don’t want to use the “good” paper or the expensive yarn because they are “saving” it for the perfect project or the perfect technique. Creativity does not demand perfection. Some are reluctant to pursue a craft or some other form of artistic expression because they are afraid of it not being good enough. I would invite anyone who wants to start any form or artistic/creative endeavor to just start. Play with your materials, have fun, make ugly things, it’s okay to not be perfect. The artist in you will love you for it.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

What I love most about pursuing a creative life is that the opportunities for artistic expression are infinite. It is in the process of making where I find the most joy and where I feel most true to myself. Working with my hands, problem solving, and seeing an idea come to life are what fuel my creative spirit. To me, there is no better place to be than in my studio, surrounded by materials that inspire and ignite my creativity.

What I would want most of all is for everyone to discover their inner creative. To find joy in making in whatever form that takes and to not be bothered with set notions of what that creativity should look like but to enjoy the journey and all the beautiful experiences along the way..

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/claudiacarpenterdesigns/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CrochetLuna
• Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CrochetLuna

Image Credits
Image credits: Claudia M. Carpenter