In the Loop, August 2022
It’s “Back to School” in September, but we are holding onto summer for a few more days! We’ve really enjoyed celebrating the National Park Service’s 106th Birthday during August with posts on social media featuring National Park Service Ranger Hailey Burley’s inventive, humorous, and informative crochet patterns. Extend your vacation mindset over the Labor Day Weekend, grab your crochet hooks, and check out these links below, or visit nps.gov and search for “crochet” for a crafty perspective on the great outdoors:
Halibut Crochet Pattern — Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, AK
Walleye Crochet Pattern — Voyageurs National Park, MN
Lava Flow Pillow — El Malpais National Monument, NM
Triops Crochet Pattern — Wupatki National Monument, AZ
Each pattern features a park destination, and includes fun facts about the park’s history and habitat with links to images and articles of interest.
Farewell and Thank You, Heather!
Heather Hernandez is stepping down from CKC’s Board of Directors to devote more time to her growing career and family responsibilities.
Heather brought so much enthusiasm, collections development experience, and technical skill to CKC when she joined the Board in 2021 — she will be dearly missed.
Heather also documented many of her California family’s charming and beautifully handmade heirlooms and their stories in CKC’s Crowdsourced Collection, proving that one person’s efforts to preserve history really can make a difference for makers everywhere!
We will circulate an official announcement about the Board opening soon, but if you are interested in Board service, or know someone you want to recommend, please get in touch with us! Email Marilyn Huset, Nominating Committee Chair, for more information.
Member Spotlight: Susan M. Strawn
Congratulations to Susan Strawn on publishing Chapter One of her forthcoming memoir, LOOPY: STORIES FROM A KNITTING LIFE. Visit AgArts.org’s Blazing Star Literary Journal to read Susan’s poignant and resonant recollections of her first experiences knitting, and see her charming illustrations. While you’re there, take a few minutes to enjoy Susan’s slideshow exhibition “Hot Pot I Feel You Not: A Glimpse into My Pot Holder Collection and the History of American Pot Holders” — now available on the AgArts website.
Susan is Professor Emerita of Fashion Design and Merchandising, Dominican University (Chicago). Formerly the staff artist for Interweave Press, she is a textile historian, maker, and collector, and the author of numerous publications, including KNITTING AMERICA: A GLORIOUS HISTORY FROM WARM SOCKS TO HIGH ART (Voyageur Press, 2007). Susan is a noted speaker and a frequent contributor to scholarly and trade publications, including Knitting Traditions and Piecework Magazine. Susan stepped down from teaching in 2016 and now lives on Bainbridge Island, Washington. She was a featured speaker at CKC’s Founding Symposium in 2012.
AgArts.org is a regional and national creative nonprofit merging and documenting the practical, historical, political, and artistic importance of foodways. Check it out!
Do you have some news you would like to share with other CKC Members? We want to feature you! We will be spotlighting members so we can all get to know each other. If you are interested in being featured, of have some news to share, please click this link.
“Don’t Miss” Virtual and In-Person Events:
Attend a FREE Zoom Presentation on The History of Socks courtesy of Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk School and the Three Rivers Fibershed. Tuesday, September 13, 2022, 7-8 PM Central Time. Featured Speaker: Susan Kolstad. Register online or visit Vesterheim.org for more information.
Check Out New York Textile Month Virtual and In-Person Workshops and Presentations, running from August 31 – October 2, 2022.
Membership Corner
CKC’s July Membership Drive was a big success! Welcome to all our new CKC Members and thank you to our renewed Members. Thank you to everyone for your continued support!
Did you know?
Did you know that CKC has a video on how to upload items to our crowdsourced collection?
Click here to watch the video and learn how!
Just a few reminders!
- Don’t forget to volunteer! We need you! As a CKC Member, you can volunteer on various committees. Not sure what you want to do but would like to help out? Contact mscott@centerforknitandcrochet.org for more information and to learn about opportunities.
- Need a gift idea for a birthday or upcoming holiday? A CKC Membership is a great gift! Purchase a membership for a friend or loved one!
- Is your membership just about up? Don’t forget to renew!
Knitting & Crochet in the News
By Anne Lies
Back to School!
- Why Do Waldorf Students Learn To Knit? And why do I feel like having yarn in my classroom would have been a major distraction?
- The proof is in the pudding: Lessons Learned from Knitting – A Waldorf Senior Reflects.
- I’m Not ‘Good’ at Crocheting, and That’s Fine. Because you’re never done learning.
Old School:
- Back from the brink: Indigenous Vietnamese Group Works to Restore Yarn Art Form.
- THROWBACK THURSDAY: Gearhart Knitting Machine. Cutting edge, circa 1889.
- Oh, the power of a fork! Watch: Tanis Simpson works with muskox to produce qiviut yarn.
- ‘Knitting the Neighborhood’, Official Knitting Patterns From the Beloved ‘Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’. Iconic!
New School:
- New adaptive artificial muscles made of a single-helical woolen yarn. Is there anything wool can’t do?
Next Gen?
- Some young adults are swapping clubbing for crocheting. They call it their ‘grandma era.’ Something tells me their grandmas wouldn’t have skipped the club. Just sayin’.
- How knitting became cool. It was, evidently, a long road
- Arkansas Mom & Dad Modeling Daughter’s Crochet Clothing Take Internet by Storm. Family support is important… and also adorable.
Interdisciplinary Visions:
- Ritzi Jacobi, Maker of Mind-Bending Textile Art, Dies at 80. Forging a new path that many would follow.
- Rising Knitwear Designer Olivia Rubens Debuts “Photosynthesize” Collection.
Creature Comforts:
- Teen makes crochet jellyfish for infants, making a difference. Those tentacles!
- Make a couch for your cat with this vintage crochet pattern. Not that the cat will thank you or anything…
Your Voice Matters!
We encourage all CKC Members to contribute to CKC’s monthly newsletter. Please email your inquiries, ideas, and stories to newsletter@centerforknitandcrochet.org. We hope to hear from you!
Please visit CKC’s Newsletter Archive!
August Newsletter Contributors:
Anne Lies, Jennifer Lindsay, Marina Scott, Carol Slotkin.
