Not many can lay claim to turning their hobby into a money-making venture, but that’s exactly what Caymanian Martina Watler has done through her online business CrochetedbyMarty.
Watler, 21, is an aspiring fashion designer and student at the University of Florida who taught herself to crochet through YouTube tutorials. Now, her handmade designs are growing in popularity locally.
Watler said when she started crocheting, she did not plan on turning her passion into a business.
“It was a hobby that I just initially enjoyed. I started crocheting maybe about two years ago, just a little after the pandemic in 2020. But a friend actually mentioned to me… ‘maybe you should start selling these things’. It just kind of like sparked a huge motivation in me,” she told the Cayman Compass in a recent Zoom interview from Florida.
It all started with a crop top
She said her first design was a crop top for herself and it morphed from there into the thriving business she now runs in her spare time, when she is not studying for her accountancy degree.
“I wanted to wear something different when I went out, and I thought that it would be really cool to make something handmade, not just out of fabric, but something that actually had an intricate design and detail to it,” she said.
Walter said she would look up online patterns and practise every day to hone her skills.
“It was just a passion that I had, and I slowly developed skills over time as I practised more and did more research,” she added.
She said one day she would like to host a fashion gala with intricate design pieces, and showcase that “young Caymanians can also do big things”.
Her theme, she said, is unity and it comes through in her designs, which also highlight everything Cayman.
“I know a lot of people feel either broken apart from their communities or from their families… there is power in being united with your community, especially back home in the Cayman Islands,” she said, adding she wants to carry that theme in all aspects of her work, from videos to designs.
Watler said she started an Instagram page as a way to document her work and showcase her designs.
She also said, at first, she thought “maybe nobody would want to support it or want to buy from it just because it’s so time consuming and could be costly”.
However, since launching the page, she has sold dozens of her handmade designs and has a growing waiting list for more.
Not your granny’s designs
Watler said she knows crocheting may be seen as a “granny” thing, but she said it is so much more than that.
“When I first started crocheting, I always said in my head that I would make designs that gives crocheting a different name. I think a lot of kids think crocheting is for tablecloths, or just random granny squares… For me, I’ve had such a different outlook on what crocheting could be,” she said.
Watler said there is so much scope for crocheting in fashion as it could be used for many “younger designs,” which she has shown through her creative bikini and crop top designs.
“There’s so many more unique ways of crocheting that could be used in daily fashion or in like runway fashion… Many people may be a bit startled when they know that I’m young, but I think that my designs definitely reflect the younger generation,” she said.
As a creative person, Watler said she loved the idea of designing unique products and, though time-consuming, she said, it is rewarding to see her designs come to life at the end of the process.
She said, depending on the product, it can take anything from 30 minutes to 20 hours to create.
“It is a pretty long process, in my opinion. Most of the time though, I do kind of eyeball it. I don’t always follow a recipe or I don’t always follow strict guidelines or rules. So, a lot of it is just with my intuitiveness with crocheting and developing a pattern as I go,” she added.
When a design goes wrong, she said, it can be frustrating as she has to start all over again.
However, she said, she embraces those challenges when they come.
Watler also does playful designs like stuffed animals which are available for sale at local store Goodness in George Town.
All her designs are made to order and, given the length of time it takes to create them, Watler said she has to take orders during certain time periods.
She said orders will be opening up in May for summer styles and delivery.
Watler said she has an order list, but whoever orders first and pays their deposit goes to the top of the line, similarly if someone pays an express fee their product is prioritised.
She also had some words of advice for her fellow young Caymanians looking to start their own business.
“It’s just a matter of starting, and I think that’s something that a lot of people struggle with,” she said, adding that it does not need a huge, detailed plan to get off the ground.
“You learn as you grow,” Watler said.
Related Videos
