Meet the Team: Kristin Crane

Kristin Crane, our Director of Marketing & Communications, joined the Design Pool team in January 2020. She works out of her home studio in Providence, Rhode Island, and has experience in both marketing and textiles. She is an avid maker, travel lover, and Design Pool’s first employee! We asked Kristin Crane to answer our Meet the Team questions to get to know a little more about her.

Meet Kristin Crane

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
My grandmother took me to Radio City Music Hall when I was about 5 and I promptly decided I would be a Rockette if I was tall enough. If not, I would be a dancer on Broadway. Well, I ended up with the height and enthusiasm for show tunes, but sadly not the talent.

What is one of your earliest textile memories?
My mom was a home ec teacher and an incredible sewer. Thinking back on it, I grew up with a lot of textile-related toys like a tiny knitting machine called Knit Magic, a Fisher-Price loom, and of course a potholder loom. I took sewing all through high school and taught myself to knit. Honestly, I can’t remember a time in my life when making something with fiber wasn’t a part of it.

How would you describe your personal interior style?
I’ve always connected with the quote attributed to William Morris, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be beautiful or believe to be useful.” In my home, I try to keep our space functional, with objects that hold a lot of personal significance to us. My husband and I love to travel and try to incorporate items from our trips into our decor. For example, we have a series of prints by a Hawaii-based artist we love and rugs picked up in Turkey and Peru. Also, I’m a weaver, so any place we have ever lived has been dictated by my big floor loom.

Who is one of your favorite pattern designers?
I really love Vera Neumann. Growing up in the 80s, my sheets were colorful Vera patterns. We lived with my grandmother and she had a collection of silk scarves, many of which were Vera prints. I have them now and I swear they still smell like her room. (Fun fact: the dress in this photo is a Vera print.)

If anything could be an Olympic sport, what would get a gold medal in?
Folding a fitted sheet!

Fun fact?
I have a bit of a scarf obsession. I have well over 100 scarves, of every weight, fiber, color, size. Except for the height of summer, I am rarely ever without one. Even then, there is a good chance I have a light one in my bag.

Where can people find you on social?
I mostly hang out on Instagram posting about weaving, traveling, and all things Providence.

Cover photo credit: Andy Riley