Coriandr Express

Tomato Tea

1. Please introduce us to who you are and tell us a bit about your craft.
Hi everyone! My name is Katrina and I live down in the south of the UK in Dorset. Going by the name of TomatoTea always seems to intrigue people, but quite simply its down to a love of home grown tomatoes from the garden and a good ol' cuppa!
I love all things to do with textiles and wish I could do so much more, just like any crafter. It all stems from when I learnt crochet back in 2005, which progressed to knitting in 2007, which then lead to dyeing yarn and now to spinning it! Somewhere in amongst that I learnt embroidery and sewing.

2. How would you describe your style and how did that style evolve?
To be honest, I tend to go with the flow and how I'm feeling. Some days I want to make something bright and colourful, other days this will be the opposite and i'll either want to create something pale or natural in colour. Some days I like to play with buttons and embroider random motifs to purses, others i like to knit... it constantly changes but this seems to feed my crafty appetite!

3. Who/what inspires you?
Like most crafters, the what is everything around me. You seem to look at the world differently noticing odd colour combos that work well together, this is particularly true of flowers but a lot can be seen in town too. I love texture as well, cracks, stones, walls, wood, sand, the sea - theres not only a world to look at but a world to touch.
As for the who I would have to say all crafters inspire me. Be it that they do a similar craft or something completely different, it is really inspiring knowing that there is a massive community of people going back to their roots and making things themselves instead of buying mass produced.

4. What do you do if/when you have a creative block?
I tend to browse other peoples blogs. Its the positive energy when they are writing about what they have done that day, be it crafty or otherwise, gets me excited and wanting to do my own things again. However this doesn't always work! I find going out for a walk or simply chilling out with a book or playing a game on the DS can clear the block.

5. Where do you see yourself being in a year’s time?
This is a difficult one as there are a few cards on the table for me at the moment! My friend (Nicole of Hearts and Skulls) and I are working on building up a network of handmade artists here in Dorset called oOak. There seems to be a huge gap in the handmade crafts market, particularly in Bournemouth and we want to get some local events such as workshops and affordable craft fairs going with similar success to the likes of the Handm@de Fairs! I'd really love for this to be up and running next year.
On the other hand I have been looking at returning to New Zealand for a Working Holiday. With unemployment being extremely high in the UK at this moment in time and with me being out of a job, I feel some drastic measures are needed!


6. What do you like about being a seller on Coriandr?
As most sellers have said, it has to be the wonderful Mathew. He is such a dedicated admin and he bends over backwards to make sure he can make Coriandr the best that it can be. He is quick to answer any queries and is super friendly! I also love the community. Everyone is extremely helpful and supportive. It can only get better!

7. Which other Coriandr Sellers do you like?
Being on the Coiandr Express, I am biased towards all 19 of you! I love DigTheEarth's cards , LottieLodge's recycled stationery sets and Heart and Soil's baskets, particularly the bread basket - I can see some hand spun yarns in there! I have to mention Robin too, her handmade buttons are fantastic! Also, I don't mind telling you that its because of Kev's interview on the Coriandr Blog with Hen that I decided to join Coriandr!