Today we’d like to introduce you to Kateryna Hamlett.
Hi Kateryna, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I have always been creative, but fast paste busy life would often get in the way, so often would just create unusual pieces for myself or friends and family for different occasions, but then in literally one day everything have changed. On February 22, 2022, I have found out that my home country been invaded, I do still have a lot of family there. that have changed the way I started seeing things and life was not the same after I received phone call from my mother. My mother is the reason that all of this is started. We all learned so much from that, and I feel like it changed all of us forever, although we learned to trust the process it was not easy, but after 3 longest months that felt like forever, I was able to bring my mother to US. we were thinking that this is it… everyone safe and relocated, scattered all over the world but safe, little did I know that my mother, independent woman, who always was able to do for herself was not accepting the fact that now she was 100% depending on me. Everything here was different for her from the language she didn’t understand nor could speak to food, traditions, rules, laws and one time she even said that they sky seems to be different here. i have noticed that she is not taking this change well at all, and it was time to do something as it has started to take a stab at her mental health and simply destroying the woman that she was. some may not believe but I woke up one morning and took her for a coffee and a chat, we talked about things she uses to enjoy doing and she was good at, she has mentioned that would love to keep herself busy and if she had what she needed she would crochet. shortly after we ended up in Hobby Lobby, then Michaels and came home with bags full of stuff. she got so occupied with creating pieces for family and then friends, when we walked the streets, people would complement her shawls and i said what if you can get your life back, what if someone else out there likes what you do. many evenings we sat together working on projects she would crochet wraps and shawls and I would bead by her side. Our business I call “occupational therapy ” for both of us. First time we publicly appeared with our work Christmas of 2023 in the Artisan exabit in Reidsville NC and I feel like that was the beginning of “Beaded Heaven ” dynamic duo of mother and daughter that some are speechless after and some simply don’t understand. but the main thing we enjoy what we do and couldn’t be more proud that we get to share it with others.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not a smooth road at all, feel like we had to break people’s mentality here and a lot still don’t understand a difference between handmade and something you can get from the store (mass produced) We can’t compete with dollar generals Walmart’s etc. We are different and every single thing is made by hand at times take weeks, months to create.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I was born in Ukraine , but have been living in the US for 20 years now , I specialize in bead work ,where I have combined old Ukrainian techniques and styles with current, my mother specializes in shawls that she crochets, I have not seen nothing like that here at all , I feel like we are very different from anyone out there .
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
I personally like to read anything that help you find yourself. i feel like it’s very important to know who you actually are while society, life in general dictates conditions every day. people and their stories inspire me, there is really no podcast or blog that i would pick
Contact Info:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Createdbybutterfly
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/VKStudioDesign
