Caran, the Stitchy Frood

About Caran, the Stitchy Frood

Crochet was recommended to me in 2017 as a coping mechanism for my generalized anxiety disorder and agoraphobia. I’m not a crafter and not from a crafting family, so it seemed like an odd recommendation. However, I found I can put all my stress into the tiny, tight stitches of amigurumi. On good days I can make the big, open stitches of mandalas for parasols and shawls. Once I realized I could crochet well I found a new stressor in choosing colorways, but my queer little heart sang and I began to put pride flags on everything. Every. Thing. Pride llama. Pride cat. Pride spider. Pride frog. Pride butterfly. Pride anal plug. Pride parasol. Pride festival tops. Pride octopus. Pride dinosaur. Gay pride, bi pride, pan pride, agender pride, bear brotherhood pride, lesbian pride, transgender pride, asexual pride, Sapphic pride, demi boy/girl pride, aromantic pride. All of it. Everywhere. 

I am particularly proud of my parasols because the math required to form a mandala around a bent umbrella frame was a struggle. I make both 8-rib and 10-rib parasols there’s more math when I change a pattern to fit. One of these days I mean to automate the process with Python.

It has taken me years to call myself a fiber artist because so many people have a non-negotiable delineation between art and craft in their minds. After gathering opinions and deliberating, I’m pretty sure what I make is art. If my final product being a useful physical item restricts a person from having an emotional response to it, maybe that’s on them.