Blame the Macrame Owl…

I started crafting when I was maybe 10 or 11….(although my artistic ventures started much earlier, always drawing, drawing, drawing)  In girl scouts I was taught the basics of Macrame…. hmmm just dated myself there.

Macrame Owl

My first masterpiece was the requisite macrame owl – you know… you’ve seen it, drift wood as its perch?   Then I progressed to plant hangers..and my Mom, Barbie, was REALLY happy as I guess those were pretty expensive up in the AK… and mom had a lot of plants.   I also picked up some cake decorating skills in girl scouts.

Plant hangers and cake frosting only take you so far in life, and soon boys and cheer leading interrupted my creative endeavors.

But once crafty… always crafty… and that glitter and glue is sucked into your blood stream for life… Out of high school and into college I applied my craft to nails.  Nails? Acrylic Nails specifically.  We’re talking the 80’s LONG, pink or red drenched nails with diagonal stripes and crystals accents!   Barbi advised me to get my nail license (after seeing how much she paid for her artificial nails back then) and I quickly took to the craft and started “filling” and applying nail sets to my college girls.  Boring lectures were all the more annoying with the soft filing sound grating in the background.

Released with a degree I was soon living on my own, working my first real job.  I also kept the job I worked in college because it paid so well…  waitressing at the famous Club Lingerie.  Glam Rock was in full swing. Guns N Roses was king!   Big hair, mini skirts, black leather and white lace dominated the Sunset Strip!  My friends and I LOVED the fashion we saw in the store windows on Melrose Blvd and Sunset Strip.  But none of us could afford the high fashion prices.   After closely examining a $500 jacket, I came to the conclusion that all good crafters have come to, “I could make this.”   I took the quintessential Levi’s denim jacket and adding studs and ribbon roses! It was the perfect cover up for my bustier, big hair and mini skirted look! I proudly wore that jacket waitressing at Club Lingerie.  One of my customers LOVED my jacket and demaned to know where I got it.  Fellow crafters, you know what my answer was, “I made it!”  “Do you sell those?”  (ever the opportunist) “Why yes!”  Soon, the deal was made.  She allowed me to continue to wear the jacket the rest of the night (deeming my bustier too revealing to be worn just by itself (boy have times changed).  But it didn’t end there.  As I ran to tell the upstairs bartender my good news about selling my jacket for $100 bucks!  And ANOTHER customer overheard me!  He said, “You just sold that?”  And he handed me his card.  “Come and see me.”   He owned the store Playmates in Hollywood.  So I studded up some shorts and bustiers and jackets and brought them on down to show him.  And Cyberpunkjunk was soon gracing the racks in Hollywood!  And of course, making cool Rock N Roll clothing is a GREAT way to meet cool rocker boys!  And soon Cyberpunkjunk was making custom clothing for some of the local )(and not so local) rockers!