We were lucky to catch up with Laverne Benton recently and have shared our conversation below.

Laverne, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard.

As a hand dyer in the fiber arts world, I am set apart from my peers in that I primarily dye plant based fibers. Most indie yarn dyers specialize in animal fibers such as wool, alpaca, silk, etc. I however found my way to cotton yarn through my love of amigurumi. I began creating dolls for friends; small, cute animals for my daughters and lovies to donate to the children’s hospital. As I learned techniques to improve my craft through “Pinterest University”, I noticed a crisp smoothness to the stitches I saw in many of the pattern images. I wanted to replicate that in my projects and after a bit of digging learned that cotton yarn, usually DK weight, was the base being used.

So fast forward to May of 2020, we were several months into the pandemic lockdown and a fiber friend mentioned that she was going to try dyeing yarn. I had no idea you could do that right in your kitchen!! So, I followed her lead and gave it a go. After a few failed experiments, I found a way to create bright, vibrant colors on the type of yarn that would make my amigurumi stand out. I was hooked and thought I’d see if anyone would be interested in buying my yarn. If not, I figured I would always enough yarn and colors for all the amigurumi projects my little hands could create.

Tencel yarn, however, found me. I had never heard of it before, but my cotton yarn supplier offered sample skeins that I could try. As soon as I had it in my hands, I fell in love with the sheen, drape, softness, and durability of the fibers. I did more research; learned that not many people sold tencel. It was also great to wear in the hot summers here in the southern part of the United States. Win, Win, Win…I had found my niche in the fiber arts world.

Laverne, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was taught how to crochet at an early age by my grandmothers. My godmother attempted to teach me how to knit, but I didn’t fare too well with two needles. So, when I picked up yarn, it was usually to crochet. After returning to college in my 40s, I found that crocheting granny square blankets was a great stress reliever. Studying for an MBA while working full time and raising two children as a single mom could be very intense. Crocheting was a way to engage my hands and mind in a soothing and rhythmic way.

Years later after relocating to Atlanta, Georgia from my hometown of Richmond, Virginia, crochet became a conduit for meeting like-minded people in a new city. I joined several local Facebook groups and found other stitchers throughout the city. As I explored Atlanta and attended outdoor festivals in the spring of 2019, I learned that there was a market for crocheted goods and decided to start BzyPeach.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

In the fall of 2021 I found myself embroiled in a bit of internet drama in the yarn industry. Often when placed in an akward situation, as a black woman, I have to very quickly do a cost benefit analysis on how, when and where to respond. So when placed on the spot in a YouTube interview by a popular knitting influencer, I had to think fast. Now to give a little background, I had a yarn collection of skin toned colorways behind me which we had been discussing. I explained how I had a moment of satisfaction dyeing a color way that matched my skin tone exactly, which led to an awkward segue. “So speaking race..” the interviewer stated…the look on my face was fleeting but very telling that I was assessing exactly WTF to say. I took to heart the words “When they go low, we go high” and gave a very politically correct answer. But this interaction wasn’t sitting well with me. After several other incidents surrounding race in the months following I decided that in order to change the inequities that Black creators often face in our industry I would have to take action. Hence the birth of BzyShowers.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

BzyShowers are the BzyPeach branded version of business showers! This venture was announced on My instagram Live show, Saturday Morning Shenanigans. Just about every Saturday at 10 am et I go live on instagram for about an hour and a half and hang out. I often have guests, we talk about yarn, fiber arts, what’s going on inn the world, etc. We learn and grow together. The Shenanigans show has helped tremendously with growing a loyal following of creatives who are just as eager to learn, listen and spread positivity. So this was the perfect forum for BzyShowers. So what in the world is it…just think baby showers but for new or emerging small black-owned businesses in the fiber arts community! We create a registry with the business owner and host a live virtual shower. We introduce the owner, their specialty and learn what is needed to help them get started or grow their black owned business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.BzyPeach.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/bzypeach
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/BzyPeach
• Twitter: https://Twitter.com/BzyPeach
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVOG1CfHa7T8cwubBfkEupQ
• Other: https://ko-fi.com/bzypeach

Image Credits
Laverne Benton