This last Monday (08/10/2020) my guest was the Oink Pigments team.
This interview lasted about an hour and 25 minutes. Most of our conversation revolved around how they all met and how it evolved into Oink Pigments. This was the very first time I had four people on the air with me. I thought it might be a mess... but it wasn't. What impressed me most is how socially conscious this business is and how much they give/donate even under hard economic times. Please list to this great interview to hear from these amazing folx. About Oink Pigments: Established in 2010, Oink Pigments is a purveyor of small-batch, hand-dyed yarns in Vista, CA and Indianapolis, IN. Our owners (Alexa, Helena, and Julie) are a trio of strong-willed humans who love pigs, puns, and purls. They have over 140 bright and playful colorways, available on over a dozen yarn & fiber bases. Let me introduce you to the team... Alexa Wilson (she/her) learned to knit in 2009, and knew from the moment she picked up the needles that she wanted to build a career in the fiber arts industry. She started dyeing in 2010, and has been in love with adding a bit of color to life ever since. Alexa continues to work hard to grow Oink Pigments, along with the rest of Team Oink, embarking on an incredible adventure through the yarnisphere. You can find her on the couch starting another new project, or buried under doggos, but probably both. Helena Bristow (she/they) has been Vice Pigmentologist at Oink Pigments since its inception in 2010. She learned to crochet at age 4, and taught herself to knit when she started graduate school for the first time. She often jokes that “knitting stuck; grad school did not” -- Helena has now dropped out of two different graduate programs because she would rather be playing with yarn. Helena can usually be found driving all over the country in her yarn van, to fiber festivals and local yarn stores. Julie Gillespie (she/her) keeps things running as Chief Oink Operator and head of Social Media & Marketing. She started knitting in 2007 on a whim and has been collecting different crafty skill sets ever since. Julie first joined Team Oink at Stitches West 2015, and was immediately informed that she was never allowed to leave. She can be found manning the Oink Pigments social media accounts, surrounded by a grumble of pugs. Founder of Sparkle Saturday, she always encourages others to shine bright. Harper Hodes (they/he) has been a member of Team Oink for a few years now, and loves helping customers pair colors. They have been knitting since they were in high school and are strongly involved in advocacy for mental health issues, the LGBTQIA+ community, and disability access. Harper is a process knitter who enjoys color work, but much prefers petting and buying yarn to finishing projects. They can often be found in their wheelchair at the Oink booth reminding people to hydrate. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Here are the resource links to some of the things we talked about on the show...
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This last Monday (07/20/2020) my guest was Adella Colvin. Adella joined me from her home in Grovetown, GA. Adella’s pronouns are she and her.
This interview lasted an hour and thirty minutes. We had a dynamic conversation and we talked about a lot of things. We talking about Adella's family and her career. We talked about her culture shock... moving from New York to rural Georgia. We talked about how she got into the fiber arts world through her neighbor while her husband, Jimmy, was away in Afghanistan. We talked about how Adella got into dyeing and how she eventually made a business out of her passion for color and texture. We talked about the rebranding of her company using her daughter's name and why she did so. Adella shared some of her stories of racism. She shared her thoughts about where we are going in the fiber arts industry and in our country. She expressed her happiness that more people of color are getting into the fiber arts world. Of course, Adella and I talked about a lot more than these highlights (above)... so I encourage you all to listen to the show. I think you'll really enjoy it. Adella Colvin's Biography: LolaBean Yarn Co. (formerly Adella’s Crochet Cottage) began 5 years ago with a single stitch; that quickly turned into a thousand stitches as Adella contemplated on what she would do to pass time while her husband was away in Afghanistan. Adella first learned to crochet and knitting soon followed. She became obsessed with all of the different colors, textures and compositions of the different yarns she came across. One day, she came across a Youtube video of someone dyeing yarn, and she thought to herself… “Hey I should try this!” So she did. Dyeing came very naturally to Adella and she was encouraged by her friends and family to start her own business and sell her hand dyed creations. The rest is history. After the birth of her daughter, Adella realized that she had much more to live for and be grateful about. She decided to rebrand her company in honor of her little princess, in hopes that one day she would be able to pass something down to her daughter and keep the legacy alive. As a woman of color, Adella wants to show her daughter, and hopefully inspire others, that they can achieve success regardless of the circumstances. Adella looks forward to growing and expanding her brand, not only for her daughter, but for the future generation of independent fiber artists ------------------------------------------------------------------ Here are the resource links to some of the things we talked about on the show...
This last Monday (07/13/2020) my guest was Heavenly Bresser. Heavenly joined me from her home in Warrenville, IL.
This show lasted an hour and forty five minutes. And we talked about a lot of things. We talking about Heavenly's career and her family. We talked about how she got into the fiber arts world. We talked about some of her work that has been published in various magazines (please see the links below). We talked about Heavenly's propensity to collect spinning wheels. We talked about her teaching career. And we talked about the things she's doing online... including Tour de Fleece. We also talked a little about the work she will be doing with STITCHES at Home (our upcoming virtual events). Heavenly also shared a disturbing story of her first experience in a yarn shop. Of course, Heavenly and I talked about a lot more than these highlights (above)... so I encourage you all to listen to the show. I think you'll really enjoy it. Heavenly Bresser's Biography: Heavenly Bresser is a self-taught, well-rounded fiber artist from Chicago. She has over 10 years of experience with crochet and knitting, but also loves dyeing fibers, hand spinning, weaving and repairing spinning wheels. Working from fleece to project is one of her favorite things to do. Her passion for fiber arts and the joy of seeing others grow in their craft is part of her motivation as an instructor. Heavenly’s goal is to uplift, inspire and encourage those around her and challenge them to think outside the box and to do things they’d never imagine could be done. Outside of her fiber adventures, her time is spent caring for her husband, two young boys, and Morkie named Samson. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Here are the resource links to some of the things we talked about on the show...
This last Monday (06/29/2020) my guest was Karida Collins from Neighborhood Fiber Co. Karida joined me from her studio in Baltimore, MD.
If you’ve been to a #STITCHESWest in the past couple of years, you might have met her and seen her wonderful work first hand. This show lasted just about and hour and twenty minutes. And we talked about a lot of things. Karida told us about going to school and deciding she did NOT want to be a lawyer. She talked about her time in Columbus, OH. She talked about coming back to Baltimore, MD to take care of her grandmother who was dying of cancer. Karida talked about her first TNNA show and the growth of her business--admitting that she made some mistakes early on in her career as an entrepreneur. Karida talked a lot about racism within the fiber arts industry as well as racism in America. We talked about the her activism and the way she's used her voice to talk about these important issues. We talked about her amazing GoFundMe campaign and how quickly it grew. Karida let us know that GoFundMe had made her a 'GoFundMe Hero'. I asked Karida about her outlook on our progress, as a people. She continues to be optimistic... especially about the fiber arts world. As she says... "Knitters get shit done!" Karida is incredibly busy. And she was very generous with her time. She was also wonderful to talk with. I hope you'll listen to the show so you can hear Karida's word yourself. Karida Collins' Biography: Karida learned how to knit immediately after finishing college, and fell in love. Hard. Enamored with knitting, she set out to create her own hand-dyed yarn business in 2006. She taught herself how to dye yarn and thus, Neighborhood Fiber Co. was born. Karida's love of saturated and vibrant colors is what gives her yarn it's signature style. Stirred by her surroundings, Karida set out to provide the world with hand-dyed yarns inspired by and named to reflect the natural beauty and diverse neighborhoods throughout the nation’s capital. Since then, she has added many more colors to reflect a multitude of neighborhoods, both inside and outside of DC. Now based in Baltimore, MD, Neighborhood Fiber Co. continues to offer vibrant, one-of-a-kind colors inspired by urban landscapes. ------------------------------------------------------------------ During the show we talked about a lot of things. Here are the resource links to some of those things...
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