Designer Studio Spotlight: Melissa Horozewski

Amy · November 7, 2011

Designer Studio Spotlight: Melissa Horozewsi

Crochetville User ID: hooksnhappiness

The next stop on our tour of designer studios is the workspace of crochet designer Melissa Horozewski. You may have seen Melissa's designs on her Stitch Scene website. You may also have seen them in numerous crochet magazines, such as Interweave Crochet , Crochet World, Crochet!, and Inside Crochet.

Melissa is also the author of the recently-released AUSTENtatious Crochet.

Here are just a few photos from the book to whet your appetite:

Click here to read Crochetville's review of her fabulous book. Click here to view a page on Ravelry with thumbnail photos of all designs from the book.

Now let's take a look at the space where Melissa creates her fabulous designs.

Crochetville: What are your favorite things about your studio?

Melissa: There are so many things I enjoy about this studio as my last was a windowless room in our basement. First, I love that I have windows! The view is of our front country drive, so if anyone visits I am aware. Second, the room is open to the rest of the house through two pass through doors and a set of windows with a view of our dining area. (In the photo you can see my daughter in the background doing her homework). I love that I don't feel so closed off from my family while I am working. I am very accessible to them and they love that too. The first door leads to our front hall and the second door leads to the laundry area, and since my life seems to be laundry, it is nice to have it so close at hand plus its convenient for felting which I love to do.

Crochetville: Why did you choose the items in your studio?

Melissa: Because they were free or cheap! I am not a frugal person by nature, but necessity. We moved to this home 7 weeks before these photos were taken, so the studio is still a work in progress. The sewing table is the bottom of a drafting table the landlord left for me to use. The pink chairs were my 9 year old daughter's pick as she uses this as her crafting space almost as much as I and often reminds me , "THIS IS MY ROOM TOO!" Many of the items are built-in to the office already and since we rent our home, I can’t change them. The desktop and cabinetry are built in. I would like it if more of the items reflected my personality, but I have done what I can on my budget and over time more will come.

Crochetville: How do you have things organized?

Melissa: In my previous design studios, I always had my fiber organized by brand, weight and fiber. Since this studio is very visible to visitors when they walk into our home, I chose to organize my yarn by color for a greater visual impact. I'm unsure whether I will be able to find what I want that way, but I'm going to give it a go purely out of vanity since the studio is such a visible part of our home and I don't have the room in it or the storage space necessary to have it organized by my usual brand, weight and fiber. Also, it is a 10x10 room – not that large considering many elements of the room are unmovable, so things are placed based upon where they fit. Under the desks are 3 rolling carts and several boxes that hold various craft and sewing supplies. I store items under the sewing table as well. I generally organize by purpose so all my fasteners and velcro and elastic will go in one cart drawer, beading supplies in another, actual beads in yet another, unusual fibers like jute, straw and raffia, in yet another, sewing patterns in one box, design ideas in another. My daughter's art supplies are up in the cabinets. She also has one basket of yarn that she knows she can use without permission. The large basket in the corner holds fabric I think I will use soon. Anything that doesn't fit, goes in the basement in plastic totes. But those things I am very unlikely to use. I am a very visual and tactile person so if it isn't in front of me, it is forgotten most of the time. I also have a very poor memory, so I will often forget I have something and end up buying more of the same thing!

Crochetville: How do you use your studio?

Melissa: For everything! It is used as our home office, my design studio, our family crafting area and computer space all in one. So I do all my designing, bill paying, lesson planning, and crafting in the studio, as does my nine year old daughter. But for actual crochet, those office chairs aren't meant to be sat in long term so I am generally in my living room for that.

Crochetville: Are there any things you'd like to add?

Melissa: There is no more space to add anything! But if I could, it would be nice to have a small closet to store crafting supplies. And if I am dreaming, I am going to dream big so a seating area with a nice big comfy chair or two for me and people visiting to sit in and do our crocheting together or for my family members to be able to relax in a comfortable chair and tell me about their day. I also need to add a new yarn swift and a new sewing machine. My last one broke on the very last project (sewing the purse lining) of the Regency Handbag in Austentatious Crochet. I am temporarily borrowing my younger sister’s machine while she is off at college until I am able to save for another.

Crochetville: Is there anything you'd like to change about your studio?

Melissa: Most definitely the color - its very white and brown. But since we rent, I am limited in what I can do. I am only 7 weeks into this office, and I am certain as I continue to live in it, I will be able to inject more of my personality and more color somehow!

Crochetville: Now let's take some time and get to know Melissa a little better. Melissa, when and how did you learn to crochet?

Melissa: I learned to crochet when I was 8. My sister and I were raised by a single mom and after school we had to wait in the small breakroom of the hair salon where she worked for hours until she finished up each evening. One day, the owner's mother took pity on my sister and I and began to give us crochet lessons in her home. We were never bored sitting in the breakroom after that as we always could crochet!

Crochetville: When and how did you become interested in being a designer?

Melissa: I have always loved to make my own things for myself and my family and friends. But I was always too nervous to submit. I remember being in my 20's and putting a submission package together for Interweave and then never sending it. It wasn't until I was in my 30's that I realized crochet for me is as much art as craft, and art is very subjective. As a result, I gave myself permission to be okay with whatever rejection came my way as a result of submitting. I also had a fear of not knowing all there was to know. I think when we reach our 30's we realize we will never know all there is to know and we shouldn't let that stop us from moving forward.

Crochetville: What are your favorite items to design?

Melissa: It always seems to be the next one and as a result I have a ton of finished and half-finished projects where I have never bothered to finish drafting the pattern as I am so anxious to move on to the next. But I do seem to design alot of garments. Most of my ideas naturally flow toward garments as I have always loved clothing, but it seems that my patterns that sell the best are the simple easier ones to both design and make.

Crochetville: What are your favorite fibers to work with?

Melissa: I LOVE THEM ALL! I don't think I will be able to explore all the facets of fiber within my lifetime especially since new ones are being developed all the time. For example, I have read about but have yet to try corn yarn. Very interesting!

Crochetville: What are your favorite crochet hooks?

Melissa: Again, I am not frugal by nature, but by necessity, so I use what I have already have. Actually I won them at the last Chain Link conference I attended. But I have fawned and drooled over many of the new ergonomic and interchangable sets out on the market.

Crochetville: Melissa, is there anything else you'd like to share with our readers?

Melissa: Austentatious Crochet was really a growing project for me. I learned a tremendous about various aspects of the industry. I don't think any one other thing helped raise my pattern writing abilities as that book did. Also, Running Press hired me to do the production as I really had a strong vision of how I envisioned the book turning out. It was an incredible experience being able to hire a photographer, choose models, scout locations and select the style of the coordinating clothing, garments and accessories to bring the dream of Austenatious Crochet to light. It was also a ton of work, but very rewarding because often as designers, we don't get to choose how our designs get styled.

I hope you've enjoyed this tour of Melissa's studio and the opportunity to get to know her just a little bit better. We hope you'll continue to join us as we spend time with other designers during the coming year.

Designers, if you'd like Crochetville to feature your studio in an upcoming article, please send me a PM or use our Contact Us form to let us know of your interest. I'll send you more information about what we'll need you to send us.

Until next time,

Amy

Suggestions for future studio spotlight articles:

If you have suggestions for other designers whose studios you'd like to see, please post your suggestions here.

Directory of Studio Spotlight Articles (alphabetically by last name)

Tracie Barrett

Edie Eckman

Melissa Horowzewski