I’m Gemma, the owner of Concrete Gems!
I am a mum of 3 beautiful children and wife to a supportive husband. I have been a crafter on and off for as long as I can remember and always loved crafting as a kid. It makes me feel more me, and having a creative outlet is definitely needed in my busy life. I also enjoy running, reading and getting out and about with my family.
I love crochet!!! More than anything! I’m a certified crochet tech editor and crochet designer. I feel like I am living a dream right now, and I really hope you’ll stay for the ride.
My story started as all crafting stories tend to, as a child who loved to make things! I studied art and textiles at school and went onto do an Art Foundation course at college. And this was where I maybe got a bit disillusioned with the idea of pursuing a career in something creative. The competition seemed too much (probably because crochet hadn’t featured yet) and so I followed a more conventional path and studied English and German at university.
Fast forward a few years and I still hadn’t found my calling. By then, I had met my husband and had children, but I was still working as an accountant part-time. I started a small business making and selling concrete and then Jesmonite homewares, which I still do on the side. But I hadn’t found my passion yet!
One day a couple of years ago, my mother-in-law introduced me to the idea of technical editing, where a pattern is reviewed and edited from a mathematical and grammatical standpoint. As an English graduate and part-time accountant, this obviously struck a chord with me.
And so Concrete Gems: Crochet Technical Editing is born. I truly believe all crochet patterns should go through the technical editing process. Imagine buying a pattern and then finding that the stitch count doesn’t work, or the row numbers don’t add up, or there are abbreviations without definitions, or there are numerous spelling or grammatical errors that just grate! That’s where I come in.
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