A couple of months ago, I saw a picture go by on my Facebook of an adorable little crochet chemistry set. I immediately stopped what I was doing and went hunting all over the web for more info about it and the person who created it. I just knew that anyone would you make a crochet chemistry set (
A CROCHET CHEMISTRY SET!!) was someone I needed to know more about.
I'm so glad I did. As it turns out, the creator is Lauren Espy, and the chemistry set was just one of of her many wonderfully whimsical crochet creations! All which she sells through her Etsy store
A Menagerie of Stitches. Understandably, every item in her shop sells out within hours, and she has to give her loyal followers a head start to get their orders in.
(Hint: After taking a month off, her shop will reopen this afternoon.)
Lauren was kind enough to chat with me about her creative process and the inspiration for her crocheted cuties!
SRPS: First of all, can you tell me a little bit about yourself? What's your background? What inspires you?
LE: My name is Lauren Espy and I run A Menagerie of Stitches. I was born and raised in California but I now live in Elizabethtown, Pa with my husband Carl and our two pups, Thunder and Storm. In May of this year I decided to take my shop on full time and now spend my days crocheting cacti and other super cute things. I get inspired by cute kawaii characters and anything colorful. I'm most inspired all my maker friends who run shops too. It's so neat to see friends doing what they love and showing support to each other. It's a great community to be a part of and to be inspired by.
SRPS: When did you learn how to crochet? How long have you been creating amigurumi creatures?
LE: I taught myself how to crochet back in 2008 after I begged my grandma to buy me a book on amigurumi. She bought me two skeins of yarn and my first hook set, which I still have and use daily. Those first projects I made were not my best! I laugh when I see some of them at my grandparents house because its so funny to see how far I've come since then. It wasn't until a couple years later that I started drawing up my own critters and then writing up the patterns for them.