In the Loop, September 2023

September 2023

Dear CKC Members and Donors:

Fall is on the horizon, so grab a mug of something pumpkin spice and keep reading!  

We want to invite you our next Virtual Craft Circle Meet-Up on October 12, featuring guest speaker Tanya Singer. You’ll find program details and registration links below.  

We also bring you an update from Elizabeth Okeyele-Olatunji, a knitting teacher who is traveling across the African continent to teach children to knit and crochet.  

As always, we close with Anne Lies’ entertaining and informative knitting and crochet news from around the world.  

Enjoy!

Fall & Winter Virtual Craft Circle Meet-Ups

SAVE THE DATE: Thursday, October 12, 2023 

Time:  8-9:30 PM Eastern; 7-8:30 PM Central; 6-7:30 PM Mountain; 5-6:30 Pacific.  

Your Host:  Lori Winterfeldt, CKC Board Member

Meet Tanya Singer!  

Tanya Singer’s passion for knitting led her to research how makers in the Jewish community have used their skills as a means of resistance and renewal during and after WWII.  Tanya has investigated how knitting fosters creativity and joy in her community, as well as opportunities for remembrance and spirituality.  As General Manager of Tablet Studios, the podcast division of Tablet Magazine, Tanya oversees shows including Unorthodox, the world’s leading Jewish podcast, and Beautifully Jewish, which celebrates objects that enrich Jewish identity and observance.  Tanya holds a BA with honors from Wellesley College in Massachusetts.  Visit her website at www.tanyasinger.com.  

Bring a beverage, a snack, and a project to work on and share.  After the presentation there will be time to meet and chat with fellow CKC Members and supporters.  

FREE to all current CKC Members and Donors.

Stay tuned for future Virtual Craft Circle Meet-Ups on November 16 and December 14, 2023. Program details TBA.

Teaching Children to Knit 

Elizabeth Okeyele-Olatunji is a Craft Yarn Council-certified knitting teacher.  Her goal is to teach 20,000 students in countries across the African continent to knit and crochet.  In August of 2023, she partnered with Eshe Yarns of Nairobi, Kenya to deliver donated materials and to coordinate a group of volunteers who provided knitting and crochet instruction at five children’s homes.  Four of the homes she visited were orphanages; one was a home for teen mothers and abused girls. Elizabeth writes, “It feels right to leave them with an activity like knitting and crochet that can keep them busy, present opportunity to create items for sale, and hone their skills to support themselves and their community.”

Elizabeth Okeyele-Olatunji is planning to visit Uganda and Tanzania on her next trip.  You can follow her and support her with with donations of materials or resources on www.facebook.com/TunnizzeCreation. 

Farm & Fiber Knits — A New Venture

CKC Member Susan Strawn, PhD. would like her fellow CKC Members to know about Farm & Fiber Knits, a new venture of Long Thread Media, and a new digital community bringing together farmers and knitters.  Susan will provide us with advance news any articles she writes for the site, but in the meantime, check it out!

— Susan Strawn researches and writes stories found in textiles.  She is the author of Knitting America: A Glorious History from Warm Socks to High Art (Voyageur Press, 2007) and numerous articles for notable craft publications, Including Piecework and Interweave Knits.

Fall Collections Focus:  

There’s nothing like a pair of crocheted granny square slippers in warm fall colors to prove that granny squares can be used to make almost anything, and to bring on a serious urge for something pumpkin spice. Just imagine slipping these on to enjoy a slice of pumpkin bread, or pumpkin pie with whipped cream on top!

Marilyn writes, “An 8.5″ square makes the bottom of a slipper with two corners sewn together on top; two 4.5″ squares are crocheted onto the large square to make the top of the slipper and one 4.5″ square is attached at the back to make the heel.  A 3″ pom pom is attached to the top.  The yarn is a worsted weight and likely acrylic from the period.”

You can see more images of these fun slippers in CKC’s Crowdsourced Collection, here.  

Join CKC’s 10th Anniversary Shawl-Along

THE DETAILS

Share your love of CKC by knitting or crocheting a shawl for yourself or a friend this fall.  Join us on Ravelry, Facebook, and Instagram from May 1 through December 14, 2023 to knit or crochet a shawl together to celebrate CKC’s 10th Anniversary.  And stay tuned for the release of an exclusive CKC 10th Anniversary Shawl pattern, coming soon!!  

— Choose any pattern

Visit CKC’s pattern bundle on Ravelry for ideas.

— Use CKC colors

Get inspired by the beautiful palettes below . . .

— Knit or crochet

— Make to keep, give, or donate

— Share something about CKC with anyone who asks you about your project!

Join us at the Virtual Craft Circle meet-ups on October 12, November 16, and December 14 to have fun and share your 10th Anniversary shawls-in-progress.  Help us encourage more people to follow CKC, use and add to CKC’s digital collections, and to support and expand CKC’s preservation efforts, by wearing your shawl and talking to people about CKC.  

We hope you will also add your shawl to CKC’s Crowdsourced Collection.  We will compile and share a list of organizations that accept shawl donations.  

Send a photo of your shawl-in-progress to [email protected], and we’ll publish your photo here next month.  

CKC Palettes: Some Tints, Shades, and Tones of Teal and Butter.

CKC’s logo colors are Teal, Butter, Black, Gray, and White.  Use any solid color or combination of colors from these palettes created by Rebecca Keyel, CKC’s Vice President, or variations on these colors based on what you have on hand or like to wear.  

Membership Corner

• As a CKC Member, you are vital to CKC’s success. If you are interested in volunteering, contact us at [email protected], for more information and to learn about opportunities.
• To those who already volunteer — Thank You! 
• Is your membership current? Click here to check that and renew!

Don’t Be Shy!  Share Your News!!!

• Have you designed a new pattern, written an article, been invited to give a presentation, published a book, started a new craft group or craft initiative, been promoted in your guild?  Do you want to engage other CKC Members in what you are doing or in an event in your area? If you are interested in being featured, or have some news or events to share with CKC Members, fill out the form! 

Knitting and Crochet in the News

By Anne Lies

What a Craft Can Mean

• Boy With 1 Hand Is Determined To Learn How To Crochet — Watch Him Teach Himself!   
• Life While Incarcerated Is Dehumanizing. Crochet Has Made All the Difference. “This is their transformation, on their own terms.”
• “Crochet is an art form that people underrate.” ‘That Crochet Guy’ busts misconceptions about crocheting.
  • Thatcrochetguy on Instagram.

Tracing the Thread from Craft to Fine Art 

• Luminous! A Group Of 50 Artists Crochet Giant Sea Urchins That Interact With Their Surroundings At Singapore’s Marina Bay.
• Meet the Female Artists Redefining Fiber Art. Women’s work, indeed.
• “Making things together creates a social relationship that is primal and very human.” The Deep Cultural Significance of the Art of Felt.

Community and Connection

• ‘Absolutely treasured’: grateful recipients on their heirloom homemade knitwear. Invaluable inheritances.
• ‘I’ll probably do it forever’: four crochet enthusiasts on their all-time favourite projects.
• Crafting is better with friends. Tracing the yarn: Local artist fosters community through knitting and crocheting.

Sharing Their Talents

• 1,500 strong! Cosby Yarn Bomb: Hundreds take part in ‘stunning’ yarn bomb display.
• Douglas church hopes flower tower will encourage visits. “There’s lots of woman-hours in that… sewing and that crocheting and that knitting.”
• Crochet fan makes postbox tribute to Pixar film. Adventure is out there!

Design & Inspiration

• Crochet Couture: Rachel Hughes threads the needle on runway-ready garments.  
• Sweater Weather! Heather Nolan takes knitwear inspiration from Newfoundland’s landscapes.
  • Speaking of sweater weather, here’s a September classic!

Your Voice Matters!

We invite YOU to contribute to CKC’s monthly newsletter.  Please email your ideas, stories, and announcements to [email protected].  We hope to hear from you!

Please visit CKC’s Newsletter Archive to see past issues!  

September Newsletter Contributors:

Katie Daugherty, Anne Lies, Jennifer Lindsay, Susan Strawn, and Suzann Thompson.