Sage is an amazing knitter, sewist, and creative thinker and we are so lucky to have her at Harmony! Read to learn more about her fiber art roots, current projects, and creative inspirations.
What role has creating played in your life?
"When my kids were young it was a way for me to have fun with caring for them. It was fun to make things for my kids and it felt like it was a way to fulfill that creative part of me while also having something to clothe my children in. As I've gotten older and it’s shifted, I’ve done way less creating for others and more for myself."
"I would say it’s turned into a means of self expression. It’s become a way to express how I feel on the outside and show up in the world the way that I want to show up."
Where do you find creative energy?
Harmony has been a really big inspiration to Sage. Before she worked here, she would walk over with her kids to find inspiration.
"I remember the first time I bought Noro yarn and being like 'oh my gosh! This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen!'"
Sage loves to be surrounded by beautiful things, and that is where she finds a lot of creative energy. She also gets a lot of inspiration from the sewing and knitting community on Instagram. Sage says:
"I get a lot of inspiration from Instagram which is a double edged sword. There’s a lot of great things and a lot of terrible things about social media, but I do really like the community of sewists and knitters and the way that it’s connected a lot of people. Especially during covid, I really felt like it kept me connected and kept me inspired by seeing what everyone was making."
What brings you inspiration?
"Right now I feel most inspired by physical aspects, like seeing fabric and touching fabric, seeing yarn and touching yarn, being able to dream about the actual physical item. I get inspired by a fabric and I’m like 'I have to have this, what am I going to do with it?'"
What is your favorite thing you've made?
"This summer I made a lot of skirts and shorts and I felt like that was really fun. They’re so fun to mix and match, and just throw on, but I don’t know if I have a favorite favorite. My favorite knit project I finished recently is the Fennel Seed Jacket that I made in the spring and wore everyday on our family trip to London. It was such a classic staple piece that I can see myself using a lot."
What project are you most excited about?
Sage is currently making a king sized quilt. She has made a handful of quilts throughout the years, but says she definitely has to get into the right mindframe to want to pick it up. Recently she was working on her quilt with a friend and found a lot of excitement in the way the colors were coming together.
"I’m excited to get to the point where I can lay it all out and envision the finished product."
Where do your creative roots lie?
Sage has a deep family history of creativity. A lot of the crafts she most loves now she learned from her mother's side of the family, but her father's side is very artistic as well. As a kid, Sage and her family would drive up from Texas to visit her grandmother in southern Utah every year. On these trips, Sage and her mom would visit Ace Hardware and choose out a sewing project to work on. She would then spend part of her vacation sewing on her grandmother's featherweight singer, which she now has in her sewing studio (shown in pictures above and below). She has lots of beautiful pieces that her grandmother wove on her loom such as a rug, placemats, and pillows, as well as beautiful embroidered pieces done by other women in her family which she hangs in her studio.
"My aunt, my mom’s sister, is the one who taught me how to knit. It’s been really fun to connect with her. She taught me on a trip after my senior year of high school. My mom and her two sisters and I did a little family history trip in England and Wales. We were just sitting in the car and trying to figure it out, and we picked up some wool and needles at a little town somewhere and she taught me how to knit and it’s been the greatest gift. It’s been so fun to grow and learn and check in with each other."
Where have you been finding comfort recently?
"The shift of the season is always a little tricky for me. I love the fall but I’m such a summer summer summer person. Comfort for me is usually sun on my skin and being in the water, so lately I have to kind of psych myself up for the darker days that are coming. That means finding a knitting project I’m really excited about, something I can just sit and cozy up with. I like to get under blankets. I like a warm cup of something. I have to kind of battle the constant urge to just wear sweats all the time. I find comfort in sweatshirts and cozy socks. Slippers, I’m a slipper lover. Cozying up."
