I had a special little designer moment last week, as you can see. As of July 1, I am officially a proud member of TNNA, and it feels like I reached a great milestone.
For those of you not familiar with this organization, TNNA was created to provide professional help to businesses in the yarn industry, as well as to create awareness. It provides data and statistics and hosts tradeshows, but also helps the industry create passion and interest from the public through programs such as Stitch’N’Pitch. However, TNNA is not open to the public, and since it is an organization for professionals, it requires some work to join. There are different categories for the different professionals in the business – retail, yarn companies, designers, teachers, etc. Of course, I joined as a designer, and to do so required me to obtain letters of recommendation from the yarn companies I’ve worked with. The point of these letters is to show that I am indeed working as a designer and contributing to the industry. I also had to submit a few of my published patterns.
From the day I started working at my local shop, I was naturally inclined to want to contribute because I felt privileged to be working there! It was the easiest interview I’ve ever been on, and to be quite honest, given that I was inexperienced and hadn’t been knitting all that long when I started, I was actually a little shocked at the time that I got hired. There are lots of people who work at yarn shops, of course, but in general, we’re a rare breed of retail. As a designer, my heart and soul are in my work, and whenever I publish a design, I’m hoping it is something that will inspire and excite. Inspiring patterns are part of what help keep shops up and running, as they help people focus on buying yarn that will get used for something they’re excited to make. Inspiring patterns are also what make people want to keep creating and working with yarn, and to keep learning.
I am incredibly privileged to be part of this industry, and being able to join TNNA as a professional designer is a proud moment for me. My thanks to everyone who supports me, and thanks for celebrating this little moment with me!
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