Michael Sellick aka Mikey of The Crochet Crowd

Michael Sellick, (he/him)  is known as Mikey of The Crochet Crowd to hundreds of thousands of followers through Facebook and YouTube.

Michael is Canadian and does all of his work from his home studio in Greenwich, Nova Scotia, Canada, with the co-creator Daniel Zondervan, known as Diva Dan. They are real-life life partners, and together, with the help of two additional team members, they make up the administration of The Crochet Crowd.

Free Crochet Workshop for Beginners + Tutorial

Press Kit

Mikey's Background

Michael learned to crochet in 1989, when he was 14. He learned how to chain and double crochet from his mother. He was intrigued by her speed and simplistic designs. She was able to achieve a full scarf in a matter of hours, which, in turn, was donated to those in need in the community.

Michael asked his mother to show him how to crochet one afternoon. One stitch led to another, and he was hooked on the hobby.

His father never spoke about him crocheting in his teenage years. It wasn't ignored, but it wasn't about being embarrassed that his son was crocheting.

While in the craft store, the cashier said boys shouldn't be crocheting. Michael wouldn't share with others that he crocheted at home to avoid embarrassment. Crocheting was giving him a sense of purpose. He wouldn't realize that it was therapy on its own until later in his adult years.

Learning More Stitches

His mother only knew how to chain and double crochet. Michael quickly returned to the craft store to buy a pattern book of stitches. From this book, Michael would play with different stitches and teach himself more stitches to work on. The Catherine Wheel Stitch would be his first project outside the straight double crochet, which he would do next. He was hooked.

Michael, who was not strong in reading skills or following instructions, gravitated toward crochet diagrams, much like he enjoyed reading road maps. He wouldn't do a pattern unless it had a diagram to show him the stitch work.

Until Michael's mid-30s

Michael continued to crochet at home, on and off, depending on the season and his emotional state. He clued in 2008 that he only crocheted when he was feeling at the end of his rope. He thought that if he crocheted more consistently, knowing that crochet is a healing mechanism, maybe he should crochet more often instead of when life is hitting the skids.

Pre-Crochet Crowd 2007 - 2008

Michael volunteered as a Pen Pal to a school in New York with a special needs class from 2005 to 2007. He volunteered for the same teacher at a Grade 5 Level where the kids would each write Michael a letter and Michael would write each student a letter back. The letters were monthly and were very rewarding. In the era of Tyra Banks having her Top Model Series, Michael came up with the concept that each kid was just as crucial as Tyra. The kids and Michael would have their first name and ending in 'mail' at the top of their letters. If you notice the YouTube Channel is http://youtube.com/mikeyssmail, the name of Mikeyss Mail is from volunteering with this class. Michael, simplifying his online name from Michael to Mikey, came to be with this class.

The Crochet Crowd concept was accidentally born in March 2008. He had lost his crochet book that he had had since he was a child. He went online and found a website called YouTube. At the time, he didn't know what it was. He saw people teaching online. Feeling bored and useless to society, he tried teaching a few courses online to show the world he has skills he can share.

He was getting up to 10 views per day and was super excited that he was teaching a few people each day. He realized that if he films more and puts more thought into it, he can teach more people. Michael is a statistics fanatic in measuring analytics and goal setting. In receiving 10 views per day, he set a goal to see what it would take to get 1 Million Views on YouTube.

His life fell apart again in 2008, when the relationship ended. Daniel would come along in January 2009. As a performing musician, Daniel understood what living life is like in the public eye. He would embrace the vision and continually encourage right from Day 1.

The Prediction

Daniel had gone 8 years without a relationship as he cared for his mother. Daniel had a friend who was a psychic and predicted 6 months prior to our meeting. The psychic predicted that a new relationship would come along and that his soul partner is a public figure, but the partner doesn't know he is a public figure yet. The psychic said the person is involved in an unusual field of work that is entertainment, but not in the sense of music performing. 

Upon meeting Daniel, Daniel concluded that YouTube involvement was early. Instead of dismissing this concept in free teaching, he encouraged it because he was curious to see what would happen.

Daniel's name, Diva Dan, is derived from the MSN Status Update left on his MSN Chat Box on the first date Michael and he shared. He stated he was being a 'Domestic Diva' in cleaning his house, waiting for Michael's arrival. Having a gift for word play, Michael instantly nicknamed him Diva Dan, which has become Daniel's online persona name.

Michael received his first million hits in just under the one-year mark of being on YouTube. Michael re-aligned his goals for five million which came quickly.

The Crochet Crowd 2010

In two years, Michael had earned 8 million views on YouTube. The mere hobby of teaching people began to absorb every waking moment of being a leader. Facebook had come along, offering communities/pages. The company was officially named The Crochet Crowd in September 2010. The name was brainstormed, and Daniel came up with the name.

In the two years prior, we realized that we had developed a very social and interactive online community. Our name reflects the community spirit that we share online.

Mikey and Diva Dan appeared for the first time in public at the Creativ Festival in October 2010.

In November 2010, they visited the Spinrite Factory Outlet, where the store manager, Michelle MacDonald, knew who they were through gossip. Michelle, Michael, and Daniel instantly bonded. They realized they have a commonality: a sense of goal-making and an undeniable drive to succeed. Michelle was instrumental in helping Michael and Daniel understand the behind-the-scenes workings of the craft and yarn world.

Michael also started working on making tutorials for AllFreeCrochet.com. He got involved in blogging, where the mentors at Prime Publishing, owners of AllFreeCrochet.com, taught Michael the value and concept of blogging. The learning curve was steep on blogging, but the hard lessons were invaluable and are one of Michael's engagement outreaches to his fans.

Growth of The Crochet Crowd

The Crochet Crowd experienced a steady pace of growth. While some believe it sprang up overnight, it has been a series of progressive steps that involved working for free or little income for four years while in development. Both Michael and Daniel had full-time jobs during the growth period, and income from their other jobs subsidized the operational costs of running The Crochet Crowd.

Michael gets a personal thrill out of recognizing everyday crocheters. He is an everyday yarn crocheter and loves to share in the celebrations of others around him. The Crochet Crowd's mission is to give recognition and meaningful interaction to as many people as possible.

The Crochet Crowd has exponentially grown to a population that is hard to believe. Although Michael cannot personally respond to every comment, email, and communication that the fans expect from him, he tries his best. His major role is to keep the inspiration flowing with free tutorials and ideas through free patterns.

As the Crochet Crowd grows, so does Michael, who learns just as much from the community participants. Today, the Crochet Crowd is driven by raw passion. His sense of working hours is combined with the desire to help others and the strong excitement of playing with yarn. He is living his creative passion.

Major Goals Accomplished

• YouTube Channel of the Month for July 2012
• Michael maintains one of the top 3 channels on YouTube in Canada.
• Leader in online teaching and instructional videos in presenting, editing and social reaching.
• Facebook is the most engaged and fastest-growing crochet community.
• Development of the Annual Retreat known as Crochet Cruises
• Development and maintenance of a weekly free magazine called Mikey.
• Maintains the most engaging and interactive showcases at the semi-annual Creativ Festival.
• Lead Online Instructor for Red Heart Yarns, 2013 - 2014.

Working Schedule

Michael works every day. There are no weekends or holidays. Self-employed people understand this concept more than anyone. The unit of measure is based on the output of interaction, tutorials, and articles.

The Crochet Crowd would have never been successful if Michael had stuck with a 9 - 5 pm mentality. His goals for success drive him to work obscene hours.

Michael works a minimum of 12 - 16 hours a day. He does not understand weekends or holidays. He crochets in the evenings unless time allows.

Michael's Role

• Encourage creativity in others through established communities.
• Work directly with sponsors for campaign building, concept launch and follow-through.
• Plan, produce, edit and make crochet tutorials.
• Produce content for the Mikey Magazine and the guest blogs he participates in.
• Write articles targeting crocheters, sharing about fun finds of free patterns.
• Work with guest bloggers and assistants of The Crochet Crowd for a cohesive workflow.
• Give crocheters choices and alternative suggestions when it comes to creativity.
• Interact and engage the community.
• Michael is an expert in Social Media; he consults for Social Media from time to time.

What is Michael?

• Content Producer
• Online Community Leader
• Crochet Designer
• Yarn Artistry Crocheter aka Free Form over Established Shapes
• Editor
• Video Host & Educational Teacher
• Public Speaker
• Social Media Director / Consultant
• Product Demonstrator

Michael's Boundaries

Michael maintains his voice and opinions on products, services, and ideas. He has developed the concept of transparency with his loyal followers and will not compromise his views or statements for a paycheck. He is not a company spokesperson but merely a socialite of ideas and community sharing that allows him to maintain his authenticity.

If Michael makes an error or something goes wrong with his website programming, Michael is the first to admit when he is at fault and keeps communication open with his members.

Michael's Personal Life

You don't hear Michael talking about visiting friends or family very often. Off camera, Michael is quiet and keeps to himself. However, his online personality and when in public as Mikey, the Crocheter, make him the life of the party. He loves yarn and ideas, and it shows.

Michael doesn't watch TV or keep up with current events happening in the world. In social settings, he has no idea what is happening around him to be able to comment or add an opinion on current events. He will stay quiet and listen but rarely offer an opinion on a subject where he has little or no information to form an opinion.

Outside of the public persona, he is introverted and reserved in person. He doesn't surround himself with very many people. Most of his relationships are strictly cyber, with no interaction in person. He is not one to call people on the phone to chat, have anyone over, or visit anyone.

Happy hooking and enjoy the wonderful world of crochet.