Crochet's Cultural Evolution

Crochet is more than a feverish fad. Its presence transcends the 'grandma core' and 'boho' trends that dominated its early adoption with newer generations. It’s a subculture that has boldly carved out its own niche while simultaneously digging its hooks into previously untouched spaces, especially that of streetwear. No one knows that better than Hanna Cuomo and Damir Balo. 

For Hanna (Lil Crochet Baby) her passion for crocheting unfolded when she was only 13. Her mom and grandma taught her the basics of the craft and from there she continued to learn with the help of Youtube. Over the years, she ventured into more technical templates, designed unique clothing inspired by vivid colors and the natural world, and established a store on Etsy to sell her pieces. 

Damir is the founder and lead designer of Hades. A Milwaukee brand gaining momentum after appearances in local fashion shows, including the immersive Metamorphosis show that took place last year. He’s always been creative by nature, with much of his background in the music industry as a rapper. The symbiotic relationship between fashion and music naturally allowed him to pursue his interest in clothing as he was looking to create his own merch. 

When Hanna and Damir started dating, they were able to feed off each other's creativity and push each other to think differently - elevating their brands. Together, they helped each other develop new skills and techniques in crochet and sewing, a fresh take in an age where the art of crochet is traditionally passed down from grandparents.

“She knew how to knit, sew, and crochet, and I was like in order to be better and make better products I should know how to do those things.” (Damir)

The evolution from granny squares to balaclavas to, now, intricate pieces merging contrasting materials, textures, and colors, only touches the surface of the emerging nuances found in crochet streetwear.

Neither Hanna nor Damir has any technical background or formal education in fashion design, allowing them to bring a fresh, uninhibited approach to cutting, sewing, and crocheting that traditional training might otherwise constrain. Their collaborative brands have been built on the mutual understanding that uncertainty in the creative process will allow authenticity to flourish, letting each piece reveal itself rather than drawing out the designs from the start: "we’re very open to and trust that process” (Damir). They're fueled by the inspiration they find along the way; the challenge of meshing delicate pink fabrics with flannel frameworks, the feelings the colors on a quilt evoke, the inexplicable pull to contradict the careful composition of soft crochet with a pair of frayed denim jeans. “It allows for different fabrics to come into streetwear” says Damir.

There are no rules when it comes to merging streetwear and crochet. They are two forces that fundamentally contradict each other. Streetwear at its most untamed: rebellious and anarchal. Crochet at its most pure: whimsical and structured. Damir and Hanna capitalize on the paradox and use it to define a space in the Milwaukee fashion scene that is all theirs: “Once we realized you can cut it [crochet] and sew it back together it was like the sky's the limit”

For Damir, that space is even more opportunistic with crochet generally personified by the 60+ year-old white grandmother stereotype. 

“When I was creating my brand, I was looking for something really different besides a basic hoodie or touring t-shirt, so the crochet element allowed me to do something other people like me weren’t going to do… I’m in a lane of my own.”

Inspired by icons like Pharell and SZA, and cultural media including anime, Hades and Lil Crochet Baby apply abstract concepts to repurposed materials - breathing new life into previously tired silhouettes. Their co-created AMATERASU collection, which was on full display at FashionFestMKE and Metamorphosis last year, showcases their ability to blend free-flowing pattern work with complex, dimensional textures in each design.

The expansion of the Milwaukee fashion scene is somewhat of an anomaly as small, local brands across the Midwest (excluding big cities like Chicago) often struggle to gain traction. Here, the people of Milwaukee are championing the industry and, to Damir, it’s a little unexpected but in a positive way, “I think the city’s going in a good place. We’re doing a lot of fashion shows which was surprising to me.”

As Hanna puts it, “people just want to create” and in the context of Milwaukee and independent designers the potential for expression is endless. The practices, forms, and modalities of clothing design are continuously evolving, irrespective of construed stylistic boundaries - as seen with melding streetwear and crochet - and is only indicative of the nature of designers to come. Hanna and Damir’s collections create a narrative that challenges to disrupt the imagined limitations to local clothing brands and subconscious assumptions of what crochet can be. There is no doubt that for Hades and Lil Crochet Baby, they will continue to carve out their space in Milwaukee’s streetwear scene.