There are moments in your life that stick in your memory forever. While I don’t remember learning to knit at age five, I do remember hating it. Crochet, however, was different. At six years old, sitting on the brown plaid loveseat in my grandparents’ living room, my grandma gave me a skein of pale green scratchy acrylic yarn. Why she chose to start me with a hat... and not a scarf, I’ll never know, but there we were. We did a couple of rounds together and off I went, crocheting the whole 2.5 hour drive home. Despite my enthusiasm, I wasn’t doing something right... My “hat”, which had been started from the bottom chain to fit the circumference of my head, was now too small to fit on my wrist, even though it was the same number of stitches! Little me had forgotten to yarn over and was grabbing the stitch and stealing loops without pulling yarn through first! Fast forward a month or so and back at grandma’s. She quickly straightened me out, and this time started me on a dark green scarf (she learned from her mistake) and “poncho” for a little stuffed parrot toy. Finally, I made progress. I blew through the ball of yarn and have been hooked ever since!

Aside from crochet, I am passionate about combating climate change, promoting environmental conservation, and making and advocating for decisions that lead to a more sustainable lifestyle. With a background in prairie and woodland conservation and environmental education, I always look for ways to incorporate these experiences into my artistic pursuits. From recycling bicycle parts to make baskets and mobiles, to crocheting both invasive species and endangered species, to making paper from invasive plants and other found items, to making origami from recycled candy wrappers, I always strive to leverage my creativity to communicate the plight of an endangered species or spark an environmental conversation.

The SaviSquirrel Nest is designed to share all of this creativity with you! Please enjoy, learn, ask questions, and create your own creative journey.

Love, Sav