Classic Elite Yarns is
happy to introduce the newest member of our team, Claudine Monique. Claudine
will be our social media face, as well as have other day-to-day responsibilities
at CEY. We sat down with Claudine to find out a little more about her…and her
knitting.
How long have you been knitting?
I learned to knit as a
child, but put my needles aside shortly thereafter. I had wanted to pick them
back up off-and-on thought out the years, but never seemed to manage to find
the time.
I relearned to knit in
1999 after asking my mother to make me a sweater. She explained that she would
be happy to make me a scarf, but didn’t want to knit a whole sweater. My reply
was ‘if I wanted a scarf I could make myself a scarf.’ When I went home for the
holidays that year, I asked my mother to remind me how to cast on. As soon as I
got the needles back in my hands, the muscle memory kicked in and I knew what I was doing.
I thought I might make
myself a scarf (pictured below), maybe a hat. Little did I know that I was
starting a new hobby that would become a passion.
What is on your needles right now?
I also have a Fair Isle
cowl, a cardigan, a pair of socks for my brother, and a mitered square blanket
(my long term project).
Do you have a favorite type of project?
I tend to make a lot of
socks. When I lived in New York City, they were a great subway project, as long
as I kept the pattern simple. Unfortunately for me they are usually gifts for
other people.
I also love to knit
top-down sweaters. I love that you can try on the sweater as you go.
Who is your knitting hero?
Can I choose more than
one?
I adore Elizabeth
Zimmerman. I love her style of writing. Not to mention that she was a total knitting
genius. Her use of simple stitches to make fabulous finished objects is astonishing.
I am also in awe of
Barbara Walker. Her stitch guides are pretty
incredible. I can’t imagine doing all of that chart work by hand.
I am also inspired by many
of the knitters that I have met through the years. No matter their skill level,
everyone has taught me something new - even if it just another way to see
something, that I have taken for granted.
What is your professional background?
I hold a Bachelor’s of
Fine Arts from Savannah College of Art and Design, majoring in Fashion. I
started my career working for in the garment center for a private label dress
company as an assistant. I did everything from cutting the samples to sourcing
fabric and buttons. I held other positions in other private label companies,
all with varying types of assistant work. I think my favorite title that I have
held was Shopper. A big part of that job was to go to local store and see what
our competition was doing and research trends. It was a lot of fun.
After about 8 years in
the fashion industry, I decided that I wanted to make a change and started
looking for positions that would combine my skills with a new direction. I
stumbled upon a small private college in New York that taught the business of
fashion and was looking for an assistant in their Institutional Advancement
department, which includes Marketing, PR, Fundraising, Development and Alumni
Affairs. It was a perfect fit.
I also worked part-time
at Annie and Company Knitting in New York City for about 4 and half years. I
loved being able to connect with other knitters, see what they were working on
and helping them with their problems. I think my favorite part of that job, was
seeing someone have their ‘light bulb moment.’
I have also had a few
patterns published and am hoping to contribute some to Classic Elite Yarns.
About 8 months ago, I
started assessing my life and I came to the conclusion that I wanted a smaller
life and slower pace than New York City could offer me. I grew up in the
Midwest and the hustle and bustle of the big city was never an easy fit for me,
I was ecstatic when the position at Classic Elite Yarns was announced.
Do you have any other hobbies, besides knitting?
Wait, there are other
hobbies besides knitting?
In all seriousness, I
love doing anything that is considered creative or crafty. I currently have a few
needlepoint projects that I am working on. I used to be an avid sewer and am
hoping to get back to that. I am also hoping to take a weaving class in the
near future and maybe even a pottery class.
What are you looking forward to most working for Classic Elite
Yarns?
I
am really looking forward to being in a creative environment. I had my first
CEY photo shoot last week, and while it was very cold out, it was really
exciting.
Connecting
with all of our customers and getting feedback from them is something else I am
really interested in. I am hoping to increase our presence on Twitter,
Facebook, Ravelry and other social media platforms in the coming months.
And
being surrounded by yarn all day long…that’s not half bad either.
