Hi y'all! Welcome to my first KC Designs blog post!!
Each month I'll create a post revealing which charity we've chosen to partner with for the month. If you check out our Crafts for a Cause section on the website you'll see all the fun crafts I've been working on. A portion of the proceeds from all craft purchases during February 2024 will be donated to HRC. This month is extra special because I'll also be donating 4 tumblers to the HRC North Carolina silent auction to help raise even more money!
Each month I'll also have a new product drop. February's drop is a bit unique because I have many clearance crafts as part of the drop! All of my previously existing inventory is on sale up to 50% off!! I've never done a sale like this before so if you see something you want, buy it asap because once it's gone, it's gone! The reason I decided to do such a huge cleanout of old inventory is because I've revamped the business a bit since reopening. Now that I'm offering therapy and parenting tools and adding children's books later this year, I'm going to keep with that theme for the crafts as well. My focus is on book, social justice, parent, and positive self-esteem themed crafts now.
You might be wondering, why HRC? Well, let me tell you a little about HRC and my history with the organization. HRC stands for Human Rights Campaign and they are leading the fight for LGBTQIA+ rights in the United States. (To learn more and/or get involved click here.) Back in 2019, a good friend of mine invited me to a volunteer meeting for HRC. We both decided to join the planning committee for the HRC annual dinner and silent auction in Charlotte, NC in February 2020. We were in charge of creating the swag bags. It was probably more than we realized we were taking on when we first went to the meeting (which is totally on us lol) but we went with it! We had such an incredible time volunteering and attending the event!
I donated these 4 tumblers to the silent auction that year and they were such a hit! All 4 sold for well over their retail value raising over $200 that night!!
HRC also has a special place in my heart because of my own journey as a queer person. I am nonbinary (use they/them pronouns) and omnisexual (having a romantic, sexual, or affectional desire for people of all genders and sexes - different from pansexual in that we're not blind to gender and gender does play a role in the attraction).
Growing up, I was always drawn to the LGBTQIA+ community and believed myself to be an ally. I was part of the LBGTQIA+ club at my high school and some of my best friends were part of the community. I think my coming out story happened so "late" in life (in my 30s) for a couple reasons.
1. I didn't have the language to describe my gender identity and sexuality for a long time.
2. I don't think I felt emotionally safe to acknowledge that part of myself. I went through a lot growing up. There were definitely some messages from religious individuals in my life that there was something wrong with being anything other than cis or straight. The other part of it is I was just so focused on surviving and always in fight or flight mode that my brain didn't have the ability to think about anything else.
I realize now that's why I was always so drawn to the LGBTQIA+ community - because it felt safe and was a place I could truly just be myself.
If you've read this far, thank you! I really appreciate you taking the time to learn more about HRC (and about me). Thank you in advance for helping me raise money for HRC this month. Last but not least, enjoy this picture of P's first Pride Parade!!
I'm so glad you're here and know that YOU matter.
- Kate (they/them)
