CraftSanity #112 1.27.10

This week my guest is Minneapolis based designer Rebecca Yaker. I’ve been wanting to interview Rebecca since we met at the Detroit Urban Craft Fair a few years ago and she did not disappoint. This episode traces Rebecca’s unconventional creative path to becoming an independent designer, artist, handmade business owner and published author. In 2005, Rebecca left the corporate world to start Hazel and Melvin’s Room, a custom baby bedding and accessories business that offers expecting parents a fabulous alternative to the mass produced products listed on many baby registries. Rebecca made a huge splash in craft circles when images of her unforgettable sock monkey dresses hit the web. She continues to make wearable sock monkey creations for people of all ages and takes custom orders for award winning sock monkey dresses. (Those must be an absolute blast to wear. I would love to run a road race wearing a sock monkey apron someday.) In February 2008, Rebecca and her pal Trish Hoskins had lunch with the president of Storey Publishing. A year and a half later, Rebecca and Trish where holding copies of their first book “One-Yard Wonders!”