Welcome to Charm and Strange Crochet!

Well hello there! I am Kate, the owner of Charm and Strange Crochet. Allow me to introduce myself and my business!

I live in the Metro Detroit area with my fiance Mark and our cat Beef Stroganoff.

         

I learned how to crochet in 2015. Near the beginning of the year, my sister told me she was pregnant with her second child. A few weeks later, I saw a crochet pattern for some baby flip flops and I really wanted them for my future nephew. "I wish I knew someone who crocheted!" I thought to myself. Then I realized, "I'm unemployed! I could LEARN how to crochet and make them myself!" So I did just that. And as they say, the rest is history!

I still make this pattern by Whistle and Ivy for new babies!

I started selling crocheted goods on Etsy in 2016. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing in terms of running a business. I made maybe two or three sales per year. And I was massively underpricing what I did sell. At the time it was fine, because I was unemployed and had nothing better to do with my time. But when I was working a full time office job, the amount of money I was selling my goods for was barely even worth the effort to me. I quit my office job in the spring of 2022 to pursue a freelancing/gig-based career in my #1 passion, filmmaking. With my time between gigs, I decided it was finally time I start taking my crochet business more seriously!

The first step in relaunching my business was picking a name that I actually liked. My Etsy shop used to be called "Kate's Crochets" and it just never vibed with me. It felt like the shop was run by someone's granny who makes itchy blankets and sweaters that are too small. I wanted my brand to reflect a part of who I am. Since 2018, I have loved a band called Ripe. Their Facebook biography used to include the following statement:

"[Ripe] are here to look at joy with the same depth as most people look at sadness, to find a happiness that is heavier and more meaningful than simply a distraction from the negative."

That statement resonated with me so deeply that I knew I had to name my business after them some how! So I spent an afternoon reading through their lyrics to find two words that fit together. I finally settled on Charm and Strange, and added the word Crochet for clarity. "Charm and strange" comes from their song Downward, which is one of the first songs of Ripe's that I listened to.

With a wink, he says, “These things cut both ways”
When you spend your nights chasin' charm and strange
And I know that there are no straight answers to
What should I call this thing I feel?

A close runner-up for my business name was Knot a Passerby from their song Passerby ("I will not be a passerby / there's simply too much love in life / for simply a quick goodbye"), but Charm and Strange got more votes in my Facebook post without the context of the song lyrics.

Anyway that is a really long way of simply saying "my business is named after some lyrics to a favorite song by my favorite band!" I no longer feel like someone's granny making odd crocheted stuff that nobody asked for.

(Not that I've never made something nobody asked for...)

Instead, I make practical goods to help reduce waste in and around the house. Flimsy plastic produce bags that can't be reused for anything? Goodbye! Using three single-use cotton balls to remove a face of makeup? Not any more! Spending $15 to be able to dust-mop your floor four times? So last year! Washing your body with a plastic loofah that falls apart after two months but starts to grow an odd mildew that you try to ignore after one month? Not in my house (anymore)! My reusable crocheted household goods are made from a yarn that is 15% new polyester, and 85% recycled cotton - which saves the manufacturer 1,500 liters of water for every 75 gram ball of yarn compared to using 100% new cotton! So they're just about the most environmentally friendly way you can bag your groceries, wash your body or your dishes, or sleeve your coffee cup.

However, it wouldn't be right to be called Charm and Strange and offer zero whimsy! My all-time best-selling product, hats for cats, is still available in many different styles and shapes. I am also considering selling Pride Poops, because who doesn't want to show off their LGBTQIA+ Pride with a crocheted plushie poop?

It also wouldn't feel right to be a crochet business based in Michigan and not sell anything warm and cozy. My favorite hat and sort-of matching scarf will be available year-round, as well as the ear warmer headband that I love making and wearing.

Okay, this is starting to feel way too long for an introduction. This is turning into a Wikipedia page! I will wrap this up for now. In case you couldn't tell, I am an open book, so if you have any questions about me or my business, shoot me a comment and I will be happy to answer! I'm sure you'll continue to learn about me and my family as I continue this blog. Thank you for reading!