HANNAH CROSS
We chat to Hannah Cross about life as a full-time designer.
Hannah Cross has been one of our go-to designers right from the early days of Simply Crochet magazine. With a mind buzzing with sumptuous designs in irresistibly colourways, she’s become a vital part of our creative team.
It all came about thanks to a chance connection. “A local lady found me on Etsy years ago and asked me to make some items for her independent makers’ shop that she owned,” Hannah remembers. “She then recommended me to Simply Crochet as the magazine was just starting out. I came along to meet the team and initially, I thought I might be asked to make samples for the photography. It never entered my head that anyone would want me to design! I came up with some little jam jar covers for issue two and have been lucky enough to be in nearly every issue since then!”
Hannah first discovered crochet in her mid-20s after having an operation on her knee. “I couldn’t walk for a few weeks,” she says. “I’m not very good at sitting still so I asked my mum to teach me to crochet.”
BEAUTIFUL BLANKETS
At the time, Hannah had lots of friends and family expecting babies, setting the tone for her crochet output. “I made loads of blankets and they are still my favourite thing to design and make,” she says. “I have got better though – I made my first blanket entirely with the stitches back to front without realising!”
Creating her own crochet patterns came about more by default than intention. “However hard I try, I’m not very good at following instructions,” she admits. It was only a matter of time before Hannah started ignoring the crochet patterns she was following and coming up with her own instead. “It wasn’t a conscious decision to start designing, it just happened naturally.”
Before long, Hannah felt ready to share her original crochet patterns with the world, and she began to wonder how best to do that. “A friend of mine was selling handmade knickers on Etsy and knew I had started designing crochet patterns so suggested I open a shop to see what would happen,” says Hannah. “It was such great advice, as it was successful really quickly!”
Hannah named her new brand HanJan, taking the first part of her own name, and
the first part of her mum Janet’s name. “I figured I should give her credit, seeing as I wouldn’t be able to crochet if it hadn’t been for her!” She opened her next store on Craftsy, followed swiftly by a shop on Ravelry. “I now sell on LoveCrochet and The Makerist too. It’s quite something to keep them all up-to-date and in order!”
The major challenges of this include the planning, formatting, checking, listing and maintaining of the patterns in all her stores. “I absolutely love designing and would happily spend every day concocting new creations, but I have to be strict with myself and get them out there.”
All sorts of things inspire Hannah in her creations. “Very often a colour palette will be my starting point, especially with blankets,” she says. “Or sometimes it will be a new stitch pattern or texture that I try out, and the rest builds from there.” With a taste for designs with a hint of the retro and classic about them, it’s something of a surprise to Hannah that she’s currently on-trend. “I’ve never been one for following fads – I always feel I’m a bit behind the crowd!”
EMBRACING NEW CHALLENGES
The pleasure of running her own business never ceases to make Hannah smile. “HanJan has brought me into a world I didn’t know existed,” she says. “I’ve not only designed things I never thought I would or could, but I’ve built my own website, learned how to do accounts, worked with some amazing people and made loads of wonderful friends too. It is much more than designing now, it’s about the community it’s led me to.”
Her latest challenge is of an altogether noisier and wrigglier variety, as Hannah recently gave birth to a baby boy. So how does she manage to fit it all in around having a newborn to wrangle? “I’m not really sure, and that’s the honest answer!” she exclaims. “I suppose it’s a good job I love being busy but Elliot is a wonderfully contented baby, too, so that really helps. I also have the most amazing husband who supports me every step of the way.” With baby-friendly makes high on the agenda, Hannah is currently favouring super-soft yarns. “I just love Sublime yarns at the moment, especially for baby blankets,” she says. She’s also begun mastering tapestry crochet. “I’m just discovering the possibilities of this colourwork technique – it’s really quite addictive!”
Part of Hannah’s success is down to her willingness to give pretty much anything a try, when it comes to crochet. “I firmly believe that everyone needs to make mistakes and have disasters to make them a better crafter,” she says, then adds with a grin: “Well, that’s my excuse anyway.”
ANYWHERE AND EVERYWHERE
When it comes to settling down to work on new designs, Hannah is impressively adaptable. “I work absolutely anywhere I can on my designs, but it very much depends what the project is and how far along I am,” she says. “If it’s something really repetitive and I’ve got into the rhythm, then I can happily sit in the garden or take it to a coffee shop, and I always take a few projects on holiday with me. If it’s a technical or fiddly design that requires more brainpower or physical space, then I sit at my desk – aka the dining table.”
She has plenty to look forward to: “I’m so excited for the future! HanJan keeps coming up with amazing opportunities. I’ve got lots of magazine commissions in the pipeline and I’m also busy with more blankets to add to my free Yarn Stash series; I’m working with a company to design some crochet gift packs due for release soon, I’ve always got a pile of my own designs on the go and I’m a busy bee on social media.” She pauses, then adds brightly: “And, of course, there’s the endless washing and dirty nappies.”
It’s the latest chapter in a very happy life. “Aside from the fact it enables you to make beautiful things, crochet has pushed me to be braver than I ever thought I was, to start a business, to believe in myself; it has given me new friends and reunited me with old ones. It gives me joy, peace, calm, stress and constant challenge – and that’s what I love about it.”
“EVERYONE NEEDS TO MAKE MISTAKES AND HAVE DISASTERS TO MAKE THEM A BETTER CRAFTER.”