I started crocheting at the age of 11 and crocheted pretty regularly for most of my life. As with any hobby or things we enjoy doing, life has a habit of getting in the way. You get busy living that, and sometimes the things you enjoy doing get put on the back burner. Crocheting took a hiatus in my life.
At the dog daycare where I work, we do a secret Santa exchange every year. A couple of years ago, I decided to make my present. The person I drew had chihuahuas. I decided to crochet a chihuahua and searched the internet for a pattern. I found one called Lucky the Chihuahua by Doris Yu on Ravelry.
It was so very cute. On the scarf, I embroidered Hua (Hoo-ah) because that is what we call them at work. After it was opened, everyone loved it, and I heard a lot of “You should sell your stuff on Etsy.” I had heard of Etsy but didn’t really know anything about it. I did some research on it, liked what I saw and thought why not give it a try.
I crocheted a few things from pattern books I had from my mother. I listed them and waited. Nothing happened. I had heard writing and selling patterns was a popular way to go on Etsy. I had always followed everyone else’s patterns and thought, “I don’t think I could I actually make one myself.” I remembered what my mother once told me. “You never know what you can accomplish unless you try.” The first pattern I made and wrote was a turtle pillow for my son.
It wasn’t an “Oh my god, that is the most awesome thing ever”, but it was my first attempt, and I was proud of it. My son loved it and that mattered more.
My 2nd pattern was a Hooded Tiger Blanket. My son modeled it for me to take the picture, and he enjoyed doing that. I listed it in my shop. Then one day, I had set my phone down and walked into another room.
Next thing I knew, I heard “Cha-ching” and I was, “Oh my god, I think I just had my first sale on Etsy.” I had no idea it was going to make that sound. I ran to my phone, and sure enough someone bought my Tiger Blanket pattern. I’ve heard the Cha-ching sound many times since. I will never get tired of hearing it, and I get just as excited as that first time.
My most popular item in my shop to date is the Hua Headwarmer aka a chihuahua hat. Also inspired by a co-worker who sent me a video of a chihuahua wearing a knitted hat. She said, “With your rad skills, you think you can crochet this?” Boom! The very next day I brought her a hat, and we put it on her dog, Banana.
modeled by Banana
And since then, I have added several different styles of Hua Headwarmers including Hua-Corn hat, Ribbed design, Puff Stitch design, and Double Pom Pom. I have recently started a line of wildlife edition Hua Headwarmers. Giraffe and Shark are my first two. I am and will be selling the patterns for these hats as well as made to order hats for some of them. I also have patterns not related to dogs.
Giraffe Hua Headwarmer 
Shark Hua Headwarmer
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading about how I got my start. I hope you will enjoy the content and free patterns I will be providing. Have a happy day and as always Happy Crocheting! If you would like a promo code of 25% off anything in my Etsy shop, click here: Promo Code
