23-year-old Connecticut-based artist Anna Kallajian started crocheting back in 2020 during the pandemic. What initially began as a hobby to remain creative quickly snowballed into a business. 

“Right off the bat, I knew I didn’t want to exclusively sell crocheted and knitted items. Oftentimes, they’re expensive because they are such a labor of love,” Anna said. “Accessibility and creating art for other artists is what inspired me to officially start CrochetbyAK.” 

Anna’s initials are AK, so she just combined those with what she was doing – which at the time was mainly crochet. Since then, she has branched out to other craft forms. “My branding is very similar to who I am as a person, which is pretty feminine, and focuses on the crafts that I do.”

She started posting on her YouTube channel, of the same name, in May of 2020, but didn’t start selling her art until later that year. Now, Anna sells crochet and knitted items, patterns, and other forms of art, including stickers and prints. “Making stickers about being a fiber artist for other fiber artists and making art that could be sold at a more affordable price point is what inspired me to start selling my art,” Anna said.

Beginning the fiber arts journey

Anna has always loved art in general, but hadn’t specialized in one craft. Her fiber arts journey began when she was sent home during her freshman year of college due to the pandemic and wanted something to do instead of sitting on her phone. 

Anna’s mom found some old yarn and crochet hooks that some of the women in her family had used previously, and the rest was history. Anna posted a YouTube video about her first project and noted that she was “by no means an expert” when she first began. 

“I was just a girl who wanted to share something new that she was trying. I had no clue that my videos would take off and this would become a larger venture for me, which I think is what gave me the confidence to jump into a niche I didn’t know much about,” she said. “Since then, I have tried to learn a lot and become more of an expert, but I don’t think I’ll ever stop learning or consider myself a pro.”

Indeed, Anna’s parents have been most supportive throughout the start-up process. Anna’s mom is the one who got her crocheting in the first place, and her dad was the first person to purchase a sticker when she started selling them. “They believe in me everyday, and it reminds me to believe in myself.” 

The first year of Anna’s business went quite well, partially due to the fact that she was having a lot of success with her YouTube channel. Anna was getting a lot of views, which in turn led to a lot of people purchasing her products from her website. “I was very, very lucky in the beginning, and I am very grateful for it.” 

A creative approach

One of the most important things that Anna learned while starting her business is that the art needs to come first. “It’s so easy to feel like you have to monetize every single piece of art you make,” she explained. “This is so untrue, and it took me a while to learn that. You have to make art that is just for you, art that is bad, and art that is good but that you’ll never share. Otherwise, you’re just going to feel like a machine.” 

In a similar vein, the most challenging part of getting the business running was overcoming the imposter syndrome that she felt as an artist. “Oftentimes, I feel like I’m not a good enough artist for people to spend their money on or care about. Forcing myself out of my own head is a never-ending challenge but an important one to overcome for sure,” she explained. 

Work-life balance is also difficult, as Anna is a student and a barista on top of her CrochetbyAK work. When she has free time, it ends up going directly to filming videos or designing products. However, when she’s tending to her other obligations, she often finds herself missing the time when she can be creative, so she doesn’t particularly mind that much of her free time goes to drawing or crafting. 

For Anna, the best part about starting the business is that she gets to do the things she loves – knitting, crocheting, and drawing – and also make money from them. Additionally, Anna has made some of her closest friends from the fiber arts space.

If there was one thing that Anna wished she knew before starting her business, it would be that taking breaks, even when you enjoy what you’re doing, is incredibly important to prevent burnout. 

“You have to live your life and be a well-rounded person to be a good artist, and I definitely didn’t know that at the start. Just because you like your job doesn’t mean it’s not work, and you deserve to take time off to enjoy your life!” •

To learn more about CrochetbyAK, visit her website shopcrochetbyak.com, follow her on Instagram @crochetbyak, and stay updated with Anna’s YouTube channel youtube.com/c/AnnaKallajian.