Interview with a Creative: Katrina Perdue
This month, we’re chatting with Katrina Perdue, of Heart String Hand Stitch. She is a textile artist and maker in Memphis, TN, is a Craft Yarn Council certified knitting instructor, and was selected to be a textile studio assistant at Penland School of Craft for a summer 2019 mending workshop. She has been perfecting her craft for over two decades.
Katrina, aged 3, with her great-grandmother
You have been knitting and mending for 20 years,
what/who influenced you to start?
I have a Blankie that my great-grandmother crocheted for me when I was born that I like to credit as the reason for my love of textiles. I have this photograph of me standing in front of her when I was about 3 years old while she is fixing a hole in Blankie. I like to call this moment the Source.
I also remember my mom sewing in our laundry room when I was young. She made the best Halloween costumes for me. She bought me my first sewing machine and taught me how to use it when I was 19. I learned by making pajama pants -- every person in my family had their own pair (or multiple pairs) of pajama pants made by me (whether they asked for them or not!) After that I tried sewing just about everything. I worked in a high end fabric store in Baltimore and took apparel design classes. I taught myself to knit from one of those generic "I Can't Believe I'm Knitting" books from Michael's. I don't remember why I wanted to learn how to knit, but once I started I couldn't stop. I made some really awful looking stuff, but I just kept going until eventually it didn't look so awful. I took a few classes here and there, but mostly it was just me figuring it out by experimenting and practicing and messing up and trying again.
I have been hand stitching in some way or another for about 20 years, but the mending didn't start until about 7 years ago. I went through a really rough period of time in my personal life and I'm convinced that my desire to repair the small things came out of my inability to repair the really big things. Those skills I had been practicing for so many years became so much more to me at that point... I began to recognize that there could be a bigger purpose to my work.
You create original knitted pieces, but you also focus on mending services. What is your favorite piece you mended? What was the hardest or most unusual?
Favorite piece I've mended is a tough question! Definitely the sentimental items with storied pasts, especially if they have been previously repaired. There was a great bag I mended for a Memphis musician -- it was being held together by a shoestring, a leather strap, and a zip tie. I find it so endearing to see those practical and resourceful repairs -- they are Art, to me. I almost hate to "fix" them. I think this is why I really favor a highly visible mend. That wear and use should be highlighted, not hidden.
The hardest has definitely been my Blankie. I'm still not satisfied with any of the mending work I've done on it. I've started and restarted at least 3 times now! It may be TOO sentimental to work on. I still haven't decided if it should be mended, even though it is full of holes and *should* be the ideal thing for me to mend.
What is one of the biggest challenges in your business?
Definitely the "business" part. Pricing, figuring out taxes and licenses, and making sure everything is legit. I spent so much time looking for answers to how to set everything up the right way -- it definitely is not easy when you don't fit in a standard "business" category. Those grey areas are really frustrating to navigate.
Blankie
When you have to source unusual materials
what is your biggest challenge?
In terms of sourcing materials, it is definitely a struggle to find some things locally. I want to be able to keep as many of those purchases "local" but it's just not available. Basic thread and needles and notions are only available at big box stores, so I have to order things online. That is very hard when I need to match a specific color or fiber. And sometimes I only need a small quantity, so ordering online can be wasteful and/or cost prohibitive. I would LOVE to open a Haberdashery... it's on the big goal list ;)
Disclosure: Katrina Perdue and her business are not affiliated with Independent Financial Group (IFG).