My Other Talent: Maia Lee

The Winter 2022 issue of ONE MARYLAND Magazine recently arrived in the mailboxes of Terrapin Club members. ONE MARYLAND features stories of strength and perseverance, of determination and spirit. These stories define our athletics program, and this new magazine will allow us to share these stories with you. Over the next few weeks, we will be rolling out these stories on umterps.com as a preview of what you will find in ONE MARYLAND. To receive future issues of the magazine when they debut, please join the Terrapin Club. We hope you enjoy.

When she isn’t on the bars or beam, freshman Maia Lee can often be found crocheting some type of stuffed animal. From an avocado, to an elephant, to a nearly four-foot long shark, Lee’s collection is wide-ranging and impressive. 

From an early age, Lee was into crafts and creating big pieces from scratch. She started with Rainbow Loom, a rubber band craft kit, until that became too easy for her. 

“I always wanted something that was harder and less repetitive so I could challenge myself more,” Lee said. “I looked up how to crochet on YouTube because it’s kind of a similar technique and then I just started doing it. I just remember always knowing how to do it; it came pretty easily to me.”

Lee started with crocheting scarves—many of which she would then wear to school—before she progressed to making stuffed animals. Her first project was the elephant she made in fifth grade and she kept going from there.

“Ever since then, I kept watching YouTube videos for inspiration and to learn more,” Lee said. “And now, I know it well enough to come up with my own patterns and designs.”

Today, Lee’s collection is close to 50 pieces, many of which she has given away to family and friends. She continues to grow her assortment today—needles, yarn and other crocheting supplies are frequent gift requests for her as she continues to work from both her dorm room and her childhood home in Poolesville, Maryland. 

The piece she is most proud of is the shark, due to its nearly four-foot length as well as the fact that she made it completely from her own inspiration, without following a pattern. Her most prized piece, however, is the nearly exact replica she created of her dog. 

“That one has just always been my favorite because it looks exactly like him,” Lee said.

For Lee, her crocheting and gymnastics go hand-in-hand, pushing her to be better on both fronts. 

“It takes a lot of dedication to finish one of (the stuffed animals). I do have a lot of projects that I’ve started and I haven’t finished because it takes a lot of motivation to get to the end product. That’s really similar to how it is in gymnastics because you’re working towards an end goal where you need a lot of focus and motivation to reach that goal… I definitely see the connection there.”

Lee is currently in the process of turning her passion into a business with a new Etsy page called "OhMaiDesigns" and is excited for the opportunity to share her projects with the world.