The Magic of Making: Alisa Le of Sick Hoops
A New Series Exploring the Artisans and Makers of Buffalo and WNY
By Anna Gagliano
(Above: Alisa Le of Sick Hoops at the Queen City Market, 2024. Photo by Mark Duggan)
The age-old saying is “Idle hands are the devil’s tools/playground/workshop/whatever your mom used to say.” Often used to shame relaxing youths into turning that phone/computer/TV/radio off and getting up, it holds more weight in 2026.
According to TIME, a whopping 90% of Americans have a hobby, but forgo participating in theirs of choice in favor of 2+ hours of screen time daily. Imagine all the beautiful, creative moments we’re missing out on because we’d rather look at things that stress us out or provide momentary gratification.
In this new series, I hope to shed light on the power of passion by highlighting folks in Buffalo and across WNY who have emphasized their hobbies and have found a way to pour into themselves by doing what they love and loving what they’re making. Hopefully, you’ll find the maker in yourself along the way, and one day we can chat about how that’s changed you for the better.
The first interviewee of the series is Alisa Le, a Buffalo transplant originally from Poughkeepsie, N.Y., who found a passion for creating mini-masterpieces out of the hard times of the 2020 pandemic.
Anna: What made you want to start embroidering?
Alisa: I actually saw a friend embroider, at first, and it really inspired me. I started embroidering during the height of the pandemic, and then I started embroidering things that gave me joy, like nostalgic TV characters and quotes from shows I like, that’s why I got started. I decided to turn the hobby into (my small business) Sick Hoops, to raise funds for BLM in 2020. I raised quite a bit of money for protesters.
Anna: That’s so awesome. What got you thinking about actually making it your side gig, for lack of a better term? It’s so cool that you started selling to raise money, but what made you feel inspired to make that a second source of income for yourself?
Alisa: Well, it’s always nice to have some extra money. And I was embroidering a lot because I had so much free time, and it was like: “I can’t possibly keep all of these.” I wanted to share them with people, so that’s why I started selling them. Then people started requesting designs, so I started facilitating the process of doing custom commissions.
Anna: What was it like starting to attend arts and crafts shows and markets?
Alisa: I’ve always loved going to vendor markets and seeing other people sell their craft. The Lucky Flea in Rochester was a really good entry point for me. It was very low pressure, so it was really good for me to get some exposure there. I also saw how happy my embroideries made people! They see their favorite characters from Studio Ghibli and the like; Bluey makes kids really happy too. Seeing that is so cute.
Anna: What has been your favorite market to date that you’ve attended?
Alisa: I love doing the Viciously Crafty market in Rochester, and in Buffalo I love doing the Queen City Market. Everybody’s so nice there, along with the space and vet organizers.
Anna: On that subject of everyone being nice, how is the local maker space in general? Do you feel like it’s pretty welcoming, or was it kind of hard to break into?
Alisa: No, it’s super easy to make friends in the Buffalo maker space. Like I go to craft nights at Lumpy Buttons every month, and I make a lot of friends there. At vendor markets you get really friendly with your immediate neighbors, too. So when you’re just sitting there during slower times, you start chatting with people. I love that.
Anna: In the sense of community and everything that’s happening with artists right now, like the rise of AI and how actual original artistic work is being devalued by some people, how important is it to have that kind of community of artists that you can interact with and lean on?
Alisa: Oh, it’s super important. One artist in Buffalo that comes to mind, that really brings the community together, is the Buffalo Pothole Bandit.
Anna: I knew you were going to say that!
Alisa: They are, you know who they are! They’re filling up the potholes in Buffalo with artwork. And while that in itself, is like, so practical, it just brings a lot of joy to people. It makes people stop and look and appreciate what they’re literally stepping on. I think it’s great that their mission really does bring the community together, make them pause, and I really appreciate that.
Anna: When you create, is it more therapeutic? Or can it feel more like an act of protest?
Alisa: For me, it feels more therapeutic, like an escape from the news. I like to embroider because it keeps my hands busy, and it keeps me off my phone, keeps my screen time down and prevents doomscrolling. I love to just sit down and craft and keep my eyes off the world.
Anna: Would you say that your crafty personality is kind of like an opposition about how you might normally behave? Embroidery is intense work, it requires a lot of precision, patience and time. If that’s helping you get off your phone, do you find that you’re different when you’re just living life?
Alisa: For sure. I’m pretty tech oriented. I went to school for engineering, so while I’m very technical, I love just getting off the screens to sit down and create.
Anna: Is there any part of that technical brain that comes into your embroidery at all?
Alisa: Yes, I’d say in how I like to streamline my processes. I’ll try to figure out something like “How can I make this like character into a pattern? How can I do this process faster, but also still look really nice?” Embroidery takes a long time. I could spend 8-9 hours on one of them, but I like to see if I can speed up the process while still keeping the quality.
Anna: What is something that you think the maker-small business community in Buffalo is missing right now, if you had to say?
Alisa: This is kind of weird, but since I did my taxes a few months ago, I would love to see somebody in the community who has more financial literacy host a workshop. They don’t have to be artsy, but if they’re really financially literate, or have a relevant degree, I need some safety net to know I’m doing it right. I wonder how many people have had an idea [for a small business] and then not done it because they’re like, “I don’t know how I do my taxes!”
Anna: What’s been your favorite piece you’ve made to date?
Alisa: [Suki] one of the Kyoshi warriors from Avatar. It’s a crazy one. And also Muriel from Courage the Cowardly Dog. Oh, and some from Over the Garden Wall.
Anna: What do you have planned next?
Alisa: I don’t have any upcoming events, but people can keep an eye on my Instagram for updates!
Anna: Are you currently working on anything right now?
Alisa: I just finished a couple Kiki’s Delivery Service pieces! I recently went to a craft exchange by Lumpy Buttons. It was a free exchange, and I got some frames you can put your embroidery works in. I got one, painted little bakery items on it, and put Kiki in.
Anna: Is there anything that you’ve seen change in yourself since you started embroidering and as you’ve developed Sick Hoops?
Alisa: In terms of Sick Hoops, I feel like the values have changed a little bit. There was a point where Sick Hoops was doing really well at markets, and I felt like I was creating pieces just to sell. I was making a bunch of little embroideries that just said, “Fuck,” and I was just sick of making them. I wasn’t creating things I loved. I want to put out art that I’m really proud of, and not that, I don’t know, will just sell well. And so, I really pulled back on the volume of things I’ve been making to just really hone in on my skills and make things I really care about. Hopefully other people will like them, too.
You can find Alisa’s embroidery business, Sick Hoops, on Instagram here, and submit a request for a custom commission here.
Know of a unique, important or otherwise amazing maker in Buffalo or WNY? Comment below and tell me who I should speak with next!
In the meantime, take some time away from the hustle and bustle of whatever your daily life looks like, and make something or support someone who’s making things you like. Either way, do what you can to make sure those hands don’t stay idle.
