Why did you start Pretty Shiny Ware?

I really like working with my hands and making things like jewelry and various crocheted items. I don’t need 50 million hats and necklaces floating around, no matter how shiny (or) soft they are.

 How did you start?

I started out making sheet metal jewelry in jewelry class during freshman year and I’ve gotten into beading as well. Most of the stuff I have for sale so far is beaded and crocheted. I taught myself how to crochet at the beginning of my sophomore year. The internet—YouTube—has lots of good beginner’s crochet videos, and they’re the perfect place for people trying to learn.

How do you find the time to make all your items?

I am crocheting almost all the time. Any single person in any one of my classes can tell you that. I tend to go through phases of activity in my jewelry making, though.

Do you prefer crocheting or knitting more? Why?

In my opinion and experience, crocheting allows you to do so much more with what you’re making and it’s easier to fix mistakes. If you decide you don’t like a part, you can undo it and then start again, while in knitting it’s very difficult to go back and undo a part.

Why did you choose jewelry and crocheting?

They are just two mediums that I like working with and that I’m able to work in at home. They are both easily adaptable and I can make a wide variety of things with them.

What has having your own business taught you?

Definitely more about money usage, and it’s caused me to stop making so many freaking hats. I have more hats than I know what to do with and I need to sell them, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet.

What are your hopes for your business in the future?

My original hope had been to be able to have this be my main source of income when I grow up, but I realize now that if that’s going to happen, I will need to structure myself more and generally stop slacking off. At this point jewelry making and crocheting are hobbies that give me too much stuff and I’m trying to sell the excess.

Why did you braid your hair with yarn?

I’ve been wanting to have long hair for a while, but every time I get to a certain point, I get sick of the way it looks and I get it all cut off. Yarn braiding my hair is a way(Other than hair dye) to color my hair and add personality to it while also pretending I have long locks for a couple weeks. It’s also a really great conversation piece.

  What’s the weirdest comment you’ve gotten about it?

People asking if I put them in every morning.

When did you start braiding it with yarn?

I first did it in the spring of 201. I had it in for two weeks, and then I took it out. Then I did it again around November of 2013, and I had it in for about a month.

How often do you change the yarn?

Most of the time my hair is natural, straight and various colors. Yarn braiding is only an occasional thing. When I put it in, it’s like that until I unbraid my whole head, unless I’m doing a redo of a braid because something went wrong.

How long does it take you to put it in your hair?

It takes just about a whole weekend to braid the yarn past where my hair stops and then another week working in class and in front of the tv to braid it to the end and put in beads and charms.

How do you put it in your hair?

I take a strand of bulky yarn and a strand of normal weight yarn and I tie them together in a knot in the middle. Then I put the two normal weight strands together, pretending that they’re one strand, and I treat each half of the bulky strand as one strand. I separate out the section of hair that I want to braid and I put the yarn against it so the knot is against my head. I split the bit of hair into three strands, one for each group of yarn, and start braiding the three yarn and hair strands together.

How do you wash your hair with it in?

The same way you wash normally. You don’t need to wash them every day, definitely not as often as you shower. Just wear a shower cap to keep them dry, because if they’re four pounds dry, they’re heavy as anything when wet.