By Firmain Eric Mbadinga
Belinda Yesum spends most of her time thinking of new crochet patterns that she hopes will be distinct in shape and colour combinations.
With her crochet hook and batches of wool in various colours, she sits in her shop in Yaoundé, the Cameroonian capital, determined to make another creation that will attract comments and shares on social media, as is already the case .
Indeed, the dresses, shoes, tablemats and other fashion accessories on display on her Facebook account have not gone unnoticed. During an interview with TRT Afrika, Belinda was working on earrings.
"I bought some earrings and crocheted them to give them a more unique look. These earrings can be customised in any colour the customer chooses," explains Belinda.
Belinda's work has won her admiration and an impressive following on social media. But crocheting was never meant to be her fulltime occupation, if her academic qualifications and educational background are anything to go by.
She graduated in 2010 with a degree in banking and finance from the University of Buea in south-west Cameroon. But for four years she never landed any jobs.
"I went to an interview and was told that I was the best candidate but at the end of the day I didn't get the job, perhaps because I hadn't followed up on 'certain extra offers'. So that's the most painful thing, knowing that you're qualified for the job, you're the right candidate for the job, and your interviewer confirms that you're the right person for the job, but at the end of the day you didn't get the job," she explains with a wry smile.
She eventually landed her first job but it was short-lived after she walked away owing to personal reasons.
In between job hunting, she learned how to crochet from online resources and set out to be independent. "I went on YouTube and spent every night watching videos on how to crochet," she says.
Finding capital to set up the project proved challenging in an environment where few believed in her ambition.
"My beginnings were very difficult. Finding the money to buy quality materials came at a price of a lot of personal deprivation and without any real support," explains Belinda.
The designer told TRT Afrika that she found crocheting therapeutic and stress-relieving, particularly when she had to deal with her burdens.
"Doing this activity has helped me to cope better with certain moments of depression. Designing patterns and making them real requires concentration and imagination. So you can't think about anything else when you're doing it," she explains.
While her outfits for children and decorative accessories are praised on social media, she complains about the low number of actual orders and the derisory nature of some of them.
‘’For a 'two-piece' (knickers and bustier for women) for which I have to buy several balls of wool of different colors and qualities, I received an offer of 5,000 CFA. Knitting such pieces takes at least four days' work," says Belinda, flashing a smile that says a lot about her feelings.
Belinda is hoping higher earnings will enable her to make a real living from her art.
''What I do is art. For some creations, it sometimes takes me weeks of work, and when the result isn't beautiful, I even have to start the work over again. But sometimes customers don't understand that in terms of price," says Belinda.
She has also been training people in the techniques of 100% hand crocheting, which for her is an old heritage that must not disappear.
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