Meet the Artisans: Power Word Yarn

J (he/him): What can you tell us about Power Word Yarn?
Liz (she/her): Power Word Yarn is my way of financing my own nerdy hobby. I made a couple of items for my best friend and she convinced me that strangers would pay money for such things. I expected her to be wrong but, per usual, she was right.

J: How did you get started in crochet?
Liz: When I was pregnant with my first son, I had this vision of a newborn photoshoot (it was 2013… those were fairly new and very popular) with different adorable crocheted hats of varying fandoms. After looking up a few to purchase I decided that my wallet could not handle this costume budget so instead I used YouTube tutorials and taught myself to crochet. It did not go well at first… I had an on-again-off-again affair with this fiber art for the next several years and in 2019 I started making amigurumi creations which re-invigorated my enjoyment of the craft.

J: What are some of your favorite items to bring to life?
Liz: I love looking at something and making a crochet version of that thing. I love when I get a custom order for a character with either a description or a drawn photo and recreating that in doll form. Even if that project needs to be redone in part or full, that end result is my favorite.

J: What was one of your biggest challenges in bringing Power Word Yarn to life?
Liz: Time! I started this as a side hustle to help fund my yarn hobby (and my children’s demands of new creations) and accidentally created a very popular item. I still have my paid 9-5 job and unpaid mother-of-two-human-six-fur-kids jobs that are consistently at odds with the time I need/want for crocheting more creations.



J: What projects are you looking forward to in 2021?
Liz: I am hoping to get into pattern writing a bit. I found it difficult to keep up with the holiday orders for my COVID ornament so I am hoping to create some items that I can offer in the store as a finished product and as a pattern download.

J: Any advice for others looking to start their own side hustle?

Liz: Stop over-thinking it and just do it! I finally decided to create my Etsy shop because I figured, “I can give myself $2 to spend on listings and, if nobody purchases anything after 4 months, then this may not be for me.” Boy was I surprised. I had a lot of self-doubt in my abilities but, honestly, your abilities are fluid and changing every day (whether you realize it or not) so get into the mindset that your personal worth is not directly tied to the success of your business.

 

J: What is a charity/non-profit would you like to signal boost?
Liz: Honestly there are so many! Here are a few of my favorites

• Camp Sunshine: a retreat for terminally ill children and their families.
• Give A Dog A Home: a dog rescue owned/operated by an AMAZING woman in Maine that is part of a network out of San Antonio.
• Lucky Dog Animal Rescue: a rescue that I got 3 of my 6 puppers from. They are based in the DC area and rescue animals from high kill shelters with volunteers who work SO HARD.
• United Way of Action-Boxborough: a chapter very close to my heart that recently stepped up to help members of my community who lost EVERYTHING when their apartment building burned down.