Today we’d like to introduce you to Heidi Gustad.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Heidi. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My grandmother taught me to knit when I was an anxious 8-year-old. I casually knit off and on until high school, when I decided I wanted to get really good at knitting. I’d knit my way through entire library books of patterns to up my skills, and since I only had a few sets of needles, I even tried knitting with chopsticks and pencils (to mixed success). I added crochet to the mix when I was 21, teaching myself in between retail shifts with YouTube, DVDs, and every single yarn-related book at my local library.
By 2010, I was looking for a new source of creative motivation, so I decided to start a blog. So many hours of my day were dedicated to combing through the internet for the latest craft patterns and tutorials, and I worshipped bloggers who made interesting, youthful, and unique projects I wasn’t necessarily seeing in magazines or books. These inspiring people made me want to be part of a creative space online in a pre-Instagram, pre-Pinterest era. When I began, I had no idea bloggers were making money blogging. I just wanted to put my stuff out there and share ideas with other folks on the internet, so I sat down, signed up for every social network around, bought a domain, and learned how to install WordPress. It was super hard starting from scratch, but as always, I liked the challenge.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The name “Hands Occupied” was born as a nod to the fidgety beginning of my knitting journey and my still-constant need to feel like I’m accomplishing something. Here’s the thing, though. Knitting might be where the story starts and ends, but it took me five years to sort out the middle part. First off, this whole blog project was really only supposed to be a sort of journal and a place to share photos with crafty friends on the internet. But then it grew. People were sharing some of my ideas, which was a nice little bit of validation for an anxious person like myself, so I kept going. I didn’t dare post too much about knitting or crochet back then, let alone a pattern, because I felt like I was so unqualified to do so. I shared wedding DIYs, gardening projects, the occasional recipe – I really was just documenting projects as I made them. Time passed, but I was still terrified to share my knitting or crochet.
When I (finally) got out of my own way and started sharing my knitting & crochet in 2014, the blog really grew and I found my core audience. Hands Occupied’s community is full of a fun mix of Millennials and Baby Boomers who, like me, are really eager to continue their knitting & crochet journey by learning more and trying more to up their skillsets. At this point, the hardest thing about running Hands Occupied is balancing all of the different tasks required of a solo businesswoman. The easiest part is teaching workshops, a lot of which are held in Chicago, because it allows me to get out of my studio and teach new folks about yarn.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Hands Occupied is a knit and crochet design business, blog, online shop, and creative workshop company. With the exception of a couple of sample knitters and crocheters, I run this whole operation by myself out of my home, doing everything from design and photography to invoicing and marketing. I’m known for my love of primary colors, my yarn craft tutorials, and my classic-made-contemporary knitting and crochet designs. Before I became a full time designer, I worked as a Librarian for almost ten years, specializing in teen services. I resigned from my job as a Librarian in 2016 to run Hands Occupied full time, and it was one of the best decisions I ever made.
What were you like growing up?
I’ve pretty much always loved crafts, books, and general introverted activities. I think my body knew from age 8 what I should be doing, but it took my brain a couple decades to catch up.
Pricing:
- Learn to Knit Kits $40
- Private knit & crochet lessons $30/hr
- Pattern PDFs range from $1-7
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.handsoccupied.com
- Email: heidi@handsoccupied.com
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/handsoccupied
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/handsoccupied
- Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/handsoccupied
- Other: http://www.pinterest.com/handsoccupied
Image Credit:
All images ©Hands Occupied, all rights reserved.
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