When she crochets, Lasett Duron prefers to sit in the hammock that dangles from a tree in her family's front yard.
It's also the 10-year-old's preferred reading spot, with a cloth book bag fixed to the tree and fairy lights that twinkle when the light fades.
"It's way more peaceful than the house," she says.
Makes sense. Lasett has four brothers — two older and two younger.
And she needs to concentrate. She's crocheting for some very important people.
This is where Lasett Duron finds some peace and quiet to crochet.
In November, Lasett plans to send 37 stuffed, crocheted bunnies to a girls home in the Dominican Republic.
She learned about the girls, many of them coming from abusive situations, from her parents Nick and Mayra Duron who are friends with Rob Wallace, a founder of the nonprofit foundation Power52. This summer, the Maryland-based nonprofit donated solar panels to the girls home Pasitos de Jésus and Wallace texted the Durons an update about the girls and their home.
Lasett wanted to share her talent with the girls she saw on her mother's smartphone screen. This was before hurricanes ravaged the Caribbean. The property didn't sustain any major damage.
"A lot of orphans probably don't think that a lot of people care about them, so I decided maybe they'll know that someone is actually thinking about them," Lasett says.
Lasett learned to crochet about two years ago, starting with a chain and eventually graduating to stuffed cats, bunnies, phone cases and anything else she can imagine. She taught herself through YouTube and with help from a family friend.
In June, she made her first sale — three bunnies for $40.
Mayra estimates that her daughter has made about 15 sales since then, running at about $15 a creation.
Her dad calls her an entrepreneur, Lasett says.
"I think it means a business owner or something like that," she continues. "Well, when I did my first order, it was at my dad's tattoo shop, and he explained to me what it means, and we were talking and in my mind, I was like, 'I'm actually hanging out with adults!'"
But that doesn't change the fact that there's school to consider.
On weekends, Lasett says she'll crochet for as many as five hours a day — but not really on school days, Mayra adds.
"I told her I don't want this to take over school, so I just let her know that it's like one project at a time," Mayra says.
Mayra Duron, left, and her daughter Lasett show off the bunnies they have crocheted as part of Lasett's new business.
"That's why I always finish my homework at school!" Lasett points out.
In the spirit of "one project at a time," Lasett stopped making sales when she decided to make one bunny for each girl in the Dominican home. She designed a special pattern just for these girls.
She'll get back to that entrepreneur thing when these bedtime bunnies are shipped. She's calling her business Stuffed Love and might start selling on Etsy or Instagram. Plus there are Christmas gifts to start on.
But first, she wants a massage, or maybe a pedicure — a reward for all this hard work. Her mom knows her demands.
After all, it takes Lasett about three hours to make one bunny.
"After about the fifth bunny, she was like, 'You're going to have to help me,'" Mayra says, laughing.
Now they have a system. When Mayra puts Lasett's younger brothers down for a nap, she joins her daughter to crochet.
She makes the head, the ears and the cap. Lasett takes care of the body and the details — the hard stuff.
A love note or prayer will accompany each bunny sent to the girls home. Anyone interested in helping can email a note of encouragement or prayer to duronmayra5683@gmail.com. Mayra says they also have the pattern available for any crafty crocheters interested in helping.
Mayra Duron hands a completed bunny to Lasset.
They're about halfway done with the bunnies. And Lasett is proud.
"I'm not like, 'Oh, Mom, I did a bad job.' No. I worked hard on these," she says. "They don't have to be perfect, they just can't look bad or look all sloppy or 'Oh, they're just for orphans.' No. Orphans matter. Everyone matters. It's not like you're more important than the other person. That's not true."
