about the creator

Hey there! I’m Erica, the designer and creator behind Queen Carmen!

I’m a clay & fiber artisan residing just outside of Atlanta, GA. For as long as I can remember, since early childhood I have been a designer/creator. I was constantly creating things, taking pictures and building things. Both of my parents were the same way so of course I inherited the creativity gene!

Growing up I knew I was going to be a fashion designer but of course life happens and my dreams of fashion school were put on hold due to fear.

I ended up going to a technical school instead only to drop out later. Oddly enough I still ended up building a successful career in the IT field, but the passion for clothing and accessories never left me.

To satisfy my hunger for fashion, I started my blog Wander in Color but I was still hungry for more so I opened an online store. While that store was somewhat successful I imported most of my products like many boutiques do. This was not me designing something though. This was not me dream at all so back to the drawing board I went. Fast forward to 2020 and like most of the world I started a quarantine hobby….MACRAME! Both of my parents used to macrame in the 70’s and I knew I could try it out. I quickly became obsessed and knew this was something I loved. It was something made by me that I could offer to my customers. Each custom piece is lovingly crafted by me and some pieces take up to 16 hours to make each one. A true labor of love.

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Meet My Real Life Inspiration...

About Queen Carmen

How did I come up with the name “Queen Carmen”? If you know me in real life you can probably guess, but if you are new…Carmen was my maternal great-grandmother and she was THE Queen in my house growing up.

We called her “Mama Chu-Chu” but she was Carmen to everyone else. My great-grandmother was a feisty little 4’10” lady from a long line of strong Spanish women. She was born in Quibdo, Choco, Colombia in 1914 where she grew up before migrating to Panama and then to the USA.

She was beautiful and elegant, sexy & stylish! She was an extremely talented seamstress and always made sure my mom and her sisters were the best dressed kids around….even though they didn’t have a ton of money. When it came to herself, she never forgot her accessories! She absolutely loved her gold jewelry and never forgot her lipstick!

She was just a true queen to me in every sense of the word. She also took no shit from any man and was always such an independant woman, a trait she passed down to all of the women in our family!

materials we use for macrame production

the macrame process & materials

All of our materials are sourced ethically and purchased from suppliers within the USA. Our macrame cords are mainly cotton and for a few styles we use nylon cords depending on the finished texture we want to acheive.

All production also takes place and is done by the designer herself here in the USA. Please keep in mind though as we are a small handmade company with one person doing production, each bag can take several days to complete.

materials we use for clay production

the clay earring process & materials

Our clay statement earrings are made using the highest quality polymer clay and handmade here in Georgia.

All production also takes place and is done by the designer herself here in the USA. Please keep in mind though as we are a small handmade company with one person doing production, earrings can take a day or so to complete before they are ready to ship.