Instead of posting my latest design today, I have decided to lift up the voices of other designers. Specifically, wonderful and talented black designers. I have been doing some introspection lately and thinking of ways that I can be more actively anti-racist. One really small, actionable thing I thought of was seeking to add more people of color to my spheres of influence. Without realizing it, up til now my crochet circle has been mostly made up of people that look like me. This was certainly not intentional but I know that I can do better.
I highly recommend you check out these blogs:
Littlejohn’s Yarn – I have had the pleasure of working with Alysha on a few recent blog posts. She has both free patterns and instructional posts on her blog for aspiring crochet designers. Oh and did I mention that she has a youtube channel too? This girl does it all!
Loopingly Made – Rose is an amazing crocheter with a ton of great ideas. She likes to crochet a lot of the same stuff that I do like tapestry crochet, C2C and amigurumi. All her designs are so bright and colorful!
Creations by Courtney – Courtney specializes in garment design. In my opinion, garments are the hardest things to design. It takes a lot of work (and math!) to design things to fit well for a range of sizes. Courtney’s designs are amazing!
TL Yarn Crafts – Toni has a little something for everyone: wall hangings, blankets, garments, coasters and more! Her blog is honestly my new happy place complete with free patterns, amazing photographs and designs with an eye for color and style. I love her whole aesthetic!
Jonah’s Hands – Jonah always makes me smile with his positive outlook. He is an incredibly talented (and fast!) crocheter and at such a young age too! I am excited to see how he changes the world of crochet and inspires the next generation.
Talking to my Daughter
Another thing I have done recently is talk to my daughter about racism. She is 7 years old. I am realizing that it is my privilege that has allowed me to wait as long as I did to talk to her about it. It was awkward and uncomfortable and I probably didn’t say all the right things but I’m glad I was able to talk to her about it. She surprised me with her knowledge of black history and with her vehement childlike anger. I am pretty sure she taught me as much as I taught her.
Educating Myself
Another thing I have decided to do is to start educating myself more and to challenge what I think I know about racism. I have started reading a book called White Fragility that has been very eye-opening so far. I would appreciate any book/movie/podcast recommendations you have found helpful too.
It’s Not About Me
I don’t really think it’s enough to sit back and say well I’m not a racist so this doesn’t have anything to do with me. Racism is complicated and messy and you can have racist thoughts or do racist things unwittingly. Racism is not something that only “bad people” do. Unfortunately, racism is something that is built into the structure of society, whether we realize it or not. We have to work to actively dismantle it and challenge ourselves and our actions and our thoughts.