All
About Lisa G
A lot of people
have been curious to know just how Lisa G started? Allow me to
take you
on
the
glorious journey....
In May 2002 a
good friend at work showed me a cushion cover she was knitting
for her sister.
I had been looking for something to do and
when I saw that I thought “I can do that”. At lunch time
we immediately headed to the craft store to pick up some needles and
yarn. When we got back to work she showed me how to knit and I’ve
literally not stopped since. I’ve always been a “crafty” “creative” person.
Someone who loves making things. Loves looking at things and thinking
I can make that and then working out just exactly that. When I was
ever down or stressed I always seemed to reach for the paint brushes,
the sewing thread, the material, and the list goes on.
I’d spend a bunch of time in lots of yarn stores and was always
on the look out for a new store. Always looking for something new to
knit or some newly released yarn. Soon the stash grew to huge proportions.
And then kept growing! During the winter of 2002 I was desperate to
knit a particular scarf on 10mm needles but I couldn’t find them
anywhere. That initially got me thinking “if I can’t
find these needles where are others finding them?”
My mum has been
involved with the Fibre Industry as an Embroiderer for as long as
I can remember.
Because I was always aware of fibre
and different things to do with fibre I was finding I was quickly
becoming bored with the mainstream yarn. My sister lives in Melbourne
so I was
frequently visiting the yummy yarn stores there. I also had a lot
of contacts through mum – wonderful knitters, crocheters, spinners
and dyers. Along came another question “where can I get this
in Sydney?”
For a while those 2 questions just seemed to sink into my mind.
That same year I turned 30. I got to thinking that there must be something
more for me out there. I had been working in the Information Technology
field since 1995. I had a fabulous job. But I also knew that I needed
a change. All I knew was that I wanted to make things and of course
all I wanted to be doing was knitting! I would be sitting at work thinking
of my current project and longed to be working on it.
In the summer of
2003 I came up with the idea of selling scarves at a local market
in the
following winter. I set to making a bunch. I
quickly realized that I was not fast enough and that it’s difficult
in this day and age to recoup the time and money. I did at least enjoy
the knitting I’d done.
I then remembered
the original scarf I wanted to make on the 10mm. Off I went in search
of the 10mm
needles again. And again. And again.
They were no where to be found. Remember I said I love to look at
things and work out how to make them? Guess what I did next? I
set about making my own knitting needles. My first pair took
me a little over
3 hours just to shape! That’s passion! To get the right angle,
the right finish. My partner and dad came home from a game of golf
and
saw me sitting there sanding them by hand. Both are Engineers. Both
said “there’s got to be a quicker way to make those”.
We all had a laugh but that’s where it all started and the
idea for the market stall took a drastic change.
Knitters in Sydney
didn’t have easy access to the wonderful
world of handspun and dyed yarn nor did there seem to be a ready supply
of knitting needles – particularly the larger sizes. I remembered
my 2 questions – ”if I can’t find these needles where
are others finding them?” and “where can I get this gorgeous
different yarn is Sydney?” I realized the answer to both was
that I simply couldn’t. Well if I couldn’t that meant that
others couldn’t. I knew I had the contacts and I had now worked
out what I needed to do. I’d make the needles and bring the
yarn to Sydney and set up a market stall. And so it all began.
I asked Dad if
he could help with the needles. He’s now my Production
Manager! We make them together sometimes but really he’s the
main man in that department.
The yarn
was sourced and for once I was not feeling guilty about adding major
stocks to my stash! What a great feeling!
I had my first
market stall at North Sydney (2nd Saturday of the month) in
May 2003 and
wow what a response! It was fantastic. I’d
set my expectations realistically as I knew that people didn’t
really head to the markets to buy yarn and knitting needles. I wasn’t
expecting a huge day. I also knew that I was willing to stick it
out for the Winter so that the word could travel. And travel it did.
I
have one lovely customer that travels all the way from Lake Macquarie
to visit me.
That first market
was great and all since then have been even more so. I love getting
out and
meeting the many wonderful and extremely
talented knitters that visit me. Thank you all for your wonderful
support. I love hearing all your wonderful comments including “I just
love your knitting needles. I’ve replaced all my yucky plastic
ones!” “Oh how funky, I’ve got to have a set”.
I’ve since set up at Mosman markets (1st Saturday of the month)
and the response there was stunning. You all seemed so please that
I was there with my goodies. And believe me I was just as pleased.
Don’t forget to pop past with your knitting and finished projects
as I asked! I just know you’ll receive a whole bunch of encouraging
and complimentary ohh’s and ahh’s.
The wonderful world
of Lisa G has opened my eyes to many a glorious thing. I must admit
that
I feel so grateful for this opportunity. I
feel humbled to be experiencing such a wondrous thing – the people,
their talent and their passion. It’s a special “industry” to
be involved with. Recently I was speaking to a gorgeous lady who owns
a fabulous yarn store. We were talking about the people we’ve
meet through knitting. We both agreed that we had not come across one
nasty person. How special is that? I told her my story and she listened
intently and simply responded “welcome home”. I certainly
feel that way too.
I love knitting
as a medium to make the material / garment and felting to embellish
it. Crocheting
a flower or two for a cute bag is also
fun! Try it you’ll love it. I can almost guarantee it. Oh and
remember if you drop a stitch don’t worry, just sew a bead onto
it to make a feature and just pretend it was always meant to be there.
It’s what makes it your very own creation. Go on, experiment,
it’s wonderfully empowering!
I’ve been working hard to bring you all some new needles ranges
and new materials for the bags and needle rolls. I’m also going
to bring you some more goodies like accents for your scarves and bags
and even handspun yarn. I’ve been dabbling in felting, spinning,
dying, knitting and crochet. So you’ll soon be able to see what’s
been happening. I’ll be releasing them soon and will send a newsletter
to all those who have requested a copy. (If you’d like a copy
please email mailinglist@lisag.com.au)
So for now it’s
happy knitting and wondrous adventures to you all. Thanks for all
your
continued support.
~ Lisa
I’d love
to hear your comments and ideas. Even if you'd just like to say
"Hi", email me Lisa.
