Today we’d like to introduce you to Caleb Hardy.
Hi Caleb, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hellooo! I’m Caleb Hardy, your favorite (if not, soon-to-be-favorite) chaotic crocheter!
Think back to your elementary school days, do you remember that one “artistic kid” in the back of the classroom…? WELL, I AM THAT KID haha. My business, crochetingworlds, is based around art because I LOVE ART!
A couple of years ago, I asked my aunt who I would later be visiting that summer if she would teach me how to crochet. Thankfully she said yes, and that experience started my obsession with fiber arts. I fell in love with the yarn and hook, and the tons of things I could make with it.
When I returned to school that following year, I started to teach my friends how to crochet with weekly classes during lunch, or after school. Most of them gave up haha, but we all had lots of fun learning.
But the first eye-opener for me was when people in my class asked for me to make orders for them! As an eighth-grader with no job, I was quick to take the offer! After this experience, my subconscious flipped into entrepreneur mode and started thinking about all the ways I could make money from my newfound talent.
I soon came to the decision that I wanted to start a small business and sell things like coasters, scarfs, etc. But unfortunately, I had no time to spare as the Class President of my eighth-grade class. A lot of my free time was being invested in school and keeping my status in NJHS (National Junior Honor Society), Fundraising for a class trip (and another class duties as President), and learning my part in the school musical (I was playing Young Simba for the “lion king Jr.”), and much more. I decided I would just have to wait!
Fast forward a couple of months, it was March 13, 2020. I was at the mall with my friends after we worked on props for our musical earlier that day. All of a sudden mixed emotions spread throughout the mall, and everyone was talking abt the “2-week quarantine” that was just mandated!
While some people thought that was bad, it turned into months of being quarantined! This meant that I had a lot more free time, all social events were canceled and I was stuck at home!
Somewhere around April 2020, I decided I was gonna learn a new crochet technique “Amigurumi”. By definition, “Amigurumi is the Japanese art of knitting or crocheting small, stuffed yarn creatures.” But in simpler terms: Dolls, toys, etc. that are crocheted. I quickly learned that I was more talented at “Amigurumi” modern crochet art like coasters, blankets, etc.
When it came to starting my business, I didn’t want to do what everyone else was doing, I wanted to put my spin on it. I thought about how I love plushies, and how I could turn regular Amigurumi into plushies!
I went to the nearest, “Joann Fabrics and Crafts” store, and searched the yarn isles to see what they had to fit my needs. I walked into an isle seeing tons of shelves full of blanket yarn (Bernat blanket by @yarnspirtations), and knew that this was perfect for what I wanted to do!
So I grabbed some colors, paid, and went on to create!
To start my shop, I only started with 3 simple things… a bee (pattern by: hookedbyrobin), a chicken, and a baby bee (which was a pattern I designed inspired by the one by hookedbyrobin, but it was my first time designing something!!!)
I have a deep interest in bees, and my Abuela has a deep interest in chickens. I thought, why not make something for myself, and a gift for her, and take a photo of them and see if anyone else wants to order one. At this moment, I wasn’t really into business mode yet. I read many blog posts, and they all said I would be lucky if I could even get a sale within my first month. So, I was just going in with the mindset, I’ll make something for myself, and maybe I’ll make another one if someone wants to order one”
I opened my shop in July.1.2020.
– First day: No order. I decided to get Tik Tok, and Instagram to see if I could post photos on there and get people to order. I remember going to bed that night thinking I just wasted a bunch of my time over the last month.
* Second day: 1 order. WHATTT!!! I was ecstatic. Screaming, running around, dancing like I was at a party! I felt accomplished, I felt seen.
* Third day: 22 orders!!! I was so happy! My shop of 30 total listings almost sold out on my 3rd day of starting a small business! This was so rare; I never thought these crazy success stories could happen to me. Turns out, that some of the videos I’ve been posting on Tik Tok have been getting lots of attraction.
That summer I worked hard on my new business. When I had free time, I would make Tik Tok for fun. I posted videos with tips, and of myself crocheting. The videos of myself crocheting did well… and I mean REALLY WELL!
I posted a video about me making a “strawberry cow” and it got over 1.5 MILLION views! That video and many others helped me reach over 100k followers by end of August 2022. This was when I decided I also wanted to be an influencer. I got to do awesome collabs with tons of brands (lion brand yarns, hobby, dash, and so many more) and even be noticed by big names brands (Joann’s craft store, Michale’s craft store, Yarnspirations, Furlscrochet, etc.)
I rarely had enough time for my first job (crocheting plushies), and now I would be adding on a new job. I spent the rest of that year posting videos on Tik Tok, and YouTube, just watching my success grow. Everyone who supported me on there also wanted plushies! I loved the support, but eventually, I just became burned out constantly, since I kept overworking myself day and night. (Which I still currently do but definitely don’t suggest lol)
From the end of 2020-Now (2022) I’ve been working super hard on my brand, and even adding new things every once and a while. I’ve made so many new crafter/small business friends and grown as a person. I focus mainly on my Instagram and blog.
Right now, I’m currently starting something new for crochetingworlds, which is pattern writing! I took a big leap end of 2021 and stopped selling physical products. I now devote most of my time to designing and writing original crochet patterns. You can find these on my blog for FREE (crochetingworldsblog.com) or my Etsy shop (crochetingworlds).
This ain’t a success story or a story about my downfall. This is a wip, aka, a “Work in Progress”. My brand isn’t even 2 years old yet, and I’ve already accomplished so much, WHILE being a full-time student. I just finished my sophomore year of high school and I’ve already participated and partaken in: the volleyball team, choir, select choir, high honor roll, teacher assistant, multiple clubs, been in a musical festival for handbells and choir, and more WHILE battling a pandemic. For this upcoming school year, I’ve already started a job at a matcha cafe shop and been elected into student government.
But with everything I go through in life, I will always make time for crochetingworlds. I am striving to keep crochetingworlds a brand where I can follow my hobbies, and do what brings me joy. Creating physical products no longer became fun, so I switched to something else. And when designing becomes a snooze, I’ll switch to something else again. As I grow as a person and a crafter, so does my interest.
Recently I’ve become fond of watercolor painting, so I already know I’m definitely going to learn that. “Doesn’t fit in with crocheting” some will say. Well boo hoo. I assure you that crochetingworlds will ALWAYS be evolving… so catch up if you can 😉
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Hahaha NO! Nothing about life is easy. I don’t even know what it’s like to own a business in a non-pandemic world. Some specific struggles I can think of are:
1. Over estimating/underestimating my abilities.
I always seem to jump on crochet-related things with deadlines I struggle to reach or hold off on creating something thinking it’s out of my abilities.
2. Not being realistic. While I like to do everything, I sure don’t have time to do everything. Limited time is probably the saddest thing I experience in my business because there are many things, I want to add to crochetingworlds but never have time for. So, I try to maximize my free time in this business because I know that the older I get, the less time I’ll have.
3. The last struggle (of many haha) I’m listing is comparing. As humans, we all tend to compare ourselves to others, and as a crafter on social media, it’s hard to not compare my artwork to someone else art work. This is a positive sometimes because it pushes me to do better, but it can very quickly turn into a down spiral of negative thoughts. For anyone else who deals with this, I try to remember that everyone interprets art in their own way and that no one artist is the same.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize mainly in amigurumi crochet, but recently have been branching out into trying all different types of crochet! On social media, and in life, I’m known for not putting on a filter just to seem cool. Meaning if I feel like being crazy, I am crazy (super funny when people stare at me too lol). I have a passion for yarn and letting your true personality show. This is why my fanbase is called either “yarn lovers” and/or “chaotic crocheters”. There’s no need to hide what you truly love doing!
One thing that always makes me emotional is just taking a moment to sit and just look at everything I’ve done. I get carried away in the stress often and lose sight of why I’m even doing all of this. But when I take a moment to look at all for amazing things I’ve done, all the people I’ve helped learn to crochet, and all the boxes I’ve checked, I become so proud of myself. I couldn’t name you a moment that tops the rest because they all are truly their own thing, and re-inspire me in their way.
I don’t know what sets me apart from others lol. I just do what I do, and if people like it they tag along. And tbh, I prefer it like this anyways.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
Any blog, video, or podcast, you find will always give you some sort of help. Everyone’s journey is different, so everyone will have different tips to give. I always suggest reaching out to other creators/brand owners on social media. A simple dm will do, and just ask them for whatever you need help with. Most of the time we will answer.
I will say this, if you have any questions related to doing crocheting, business, influencing, etc, PLS DM ME! I believe in community over competition all the way! When one succeeds, we all do.
And I want to say thank you to everyone and anyone who has helped my on this journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: crochetingworldsblog.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crochetingworlds/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCbTk2hgbBGDnSbNeiMosJcw
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/crochetingworlds?ref=profile_header
