Made With Love Experiment by Eliana

It takes a lot of guts (and ovaries) to be 22 years old, traveling the world, and designing custom crochet pieces while completing a Graduate degree.

Eliana, otherwise known on Instagram as @KnitsSprout, has collaborated on Darn Good Yarn Projects for the past 2.5 years. (Some of her projects below for reference!) In this episode of Made with Love, Eliana and Nicole discuss Eliana's love for crochet and travel, and how the two intermingle. It's truly fascinating how Eliana makes the most of her time and resources to support her love for crochet and travel, and to learn why it all matters.

@knitsprout on Instagram

Listen to the Full Conversation Here:

For those who prefer to read VS. listen:

As a Graduate student at Binghamton University, Eliana makes the most of her time year-round. During the school year, she is going to class, studying, crocheting custom pieces and babysitting to save as much as she can for her travels. Each school break is spent traveling and seeing the world, with her current crochet WIP in tote. Eliana jokes that yarn and crochet hooks typically take up half of her suitcase.

Eliana is currently studying to support her senior thesis, which revolves around Garment and Textile Waste and Sustainability. Her goal is to see how makers and policy makers can improve the market to be more responsible.

Growing up, Eliana was surrounded by artistic women; one Grandmother taught her how to crochet, the other Grandmother made her own rugs, and her mother knits and dabbles in all sorts of arts. It was also during her childhood that Eliana caught the travel bug, as her family would travel together to see different parts of the world.

Eliana's crochet style is inspired by the yarn she's using. She is currently excited about working with a blend of linen and alpaca wool to make lounge shorts. Eliana displays yarn of interest around her room, so that she can connect with it, forming a relationship and becoming inspired for what to crochet.

When asked what the best advice she's ever been given, Eliana credits her Mom.

Eliana would do fiber work with her Mom, who would get really discouraged with her work if it wasn't coming out as she intended. Her advice to Eliana was that if you don't like it, take it out. The time you put into the project isn't wasted, it's time spent learning.

Time well spent, if you ask us. Here are a few projects that Eliana has designed for Darn Good Yarn.