Zipporah

While many view it as an elderly pastime, crochet has seen a revival in the fashion industry over the last few years and has become the cornerstone of my heart. What started as an anxiety soothing activity, has now become a full-time business for me and I do not see that changing anytime soon. So, in these lines I will detail my love affair with needle and yarn, and present the project I feel represents the culmination of my 2 years of learning this craft.

When crochet first found me I was a 12-year-old with an appetite for art. Among the many crafts my mother fostered in us, crochet was one that I did not think much of at the time, producing acrylic scarves for winter and tucking them away at summer's solstice. It wasn't until my sophmore year of college when we truly bonded, as it proved a comforter in my time of depression and anxiety. Crochet provided me an escape from the passionless life I lead in college (a venture I only pursued out of societal pressure) and eventually a side income. It was affordable, I could do it anywhere and it allowed me to bring my fashion designs to life in a unique way.

When I started I rarely ever followed a pattern all the way through. I wanted to carve my own path in the crochet community, engineering what people only deemed possible in fabric but with yarn. There were many designs: bathing suits, baby clothes, shorts, skirts, crop tops; however, the one goal I always envisioned was a crochet corset that contained the structure of a traditional one. I studied countless YouTube videos and articles on boning placement, width, materials. I experimented with different closures from buttons to hooks, before settling on zippers. I ordered multiple underwire types and studied deconstructed bra diagrams to learn how to mimic the construction. I drew inspiration for the hip covers from runway and couture pieces, as I always admired this detail.

5 prototypes, 2 years of crying and infinite nights of yarn burned fingers later, the Zipporah Corset was born. Because of my relationship with God, I felt called to name it after a woman of the Bible. Zipporah is an appropriate name meaning beauty or trumpet- I truly feel like this creation is God's sounding trumpet for me in my niche, exemplifying the beauty in the gift bestowed upon me. I feel like it is my signature. It is not perfection yet but it is an expression of my creativity, my patience, my intelligence, my dedication and so much more. To me my craft represents open doors for crochet innovation. To me it represents inspiration to other artists who are in the same boat as I was, someone who repressed their artistic nature for traditional routes because they were told it was unrealistic to make a career out of your art. To me it represents the path to financial freedom and generational wealth, the breaking of a cycle of financial instability.

My art does bring me happiness, but the bigger goal at hand has always been to pave the way for future creators, not just inspiration wise but financially. So, I feel this piece out of all of my creations is the true expression of creating your own happiness. Not only has crochet brought me comfort but it has also brought me the freedom to be uniquely me, providing me with a foundation to inspire others to do the same. When crochet first found me, I was a 12-year-old with an appetite for art. Now I am a 23-year-old who gets to satisfy this hunger every day and finds happiness in doing what I love.