From Fleece to Fiber: August 9 Meeting Preview

There are lots of steps involved in turning fiber from friendly sheep (like little Manchester) into fluff and then into yarn. At this month's meeting, you'll get a chance to see and feel fibers in all states of preparation - raw locks to roving to single-ply yarn to multiple-ply yarns - and a chance to actually try your hand at spinning.

The whole focus of this meeting will be hands-on experience. So the instructors won't just talk about how fiber looks when it's a fleece straight off the sheep - you'll get a chance to feel and touch wool that's still "in the grease".  The instructors won't just demonstrate and explain the whole spinning process - you'll get a chance to draft fluff and try your hand at spinning if you'd like. The instructors won't just show you hand-spun yarn - you'll get a chance to try crocheting with some samples and give feedback about what you like and don't like about the yarn.

All materials will be provided at the meeting - so you don't need to bring any special materials. (And they'll be other fibers for folks who are allergic to wool.) However, if you do own a drop spindle, you can certainly bring it along.

The meeting will be Saturday July 12 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the Textile Center of Minnesota (3000 University Ave SE, Minneapolis) with Open Crochet from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

We hope to see you there!

Roving Crochet Reporter: CGOA's Toast to Twenty

Today was another fun day here in New Hampshire. Classes were in full swing and we each scattered to our own schedules. At the end of the day, we got a pleasant surprise in the "Serenity Lounge" (a special area of the lobby set aside for knitters and crocheters) - and met two knitting sisters from the Twin Cities area who had flown in for the classes, shopping, and sight-seeing. Image traveling half-way across the country only to meet fiber enthusiasts who live next-door!


This evening was full of festivities - starting with the annual CGOA member meeting which included a Toast to Twenty, CGOA's twentieth anniversary.

The winners of the annual CGOA Design Contest were also announced at this evening's session. Two of our members had entered designs: Carol's Unsquare Granny Cardigan and Maxine's Purple Majestic Vest. Maxine won third prize in the Fashion category so we were all excited for her achievement.

Roving Crochet Reporter: Live from Chain Link in Manchester NH

This is a record year for our chapter in many ways - one is that five of us decided to travel to Manchester NH for the Chain Link, the yearly conference of Crochet Guild of America (CGOA). Two of us flew and three travled by car (well actually a big, honkin' truck) and this picture shows our tired but happy faces yesterday evening after we had all arrived.

This year marks CGOA's 20th Anniversary, so everyone seems in a really festive mood. There were several workshops today - Crochet Geek, Professional Think Tank, and Crochet Your Way to the Masters. Classes start tonight and get into full swing tomorrow.


One special event this year is that CGOA and TKGA (The Knitting Guild of America) members have yarn-bombed the hotel (with permission from event organizers and hotel of course). Even those of who are not necessarily yarn-bomb fans were amazed by the creative and clever yarn bombs planted around the hotel!

Signing off for now, we'll report back later in the week!

4th Saturday Meetup: July 26

Meetup time is coming up again and for this one, we'll be back at one of our favorite spots, Bruegger's Bagels Southtown in Bloomington. Mark your calendars for Saturday, July 26 - any time between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM.

For those of you who are new to the blog, meetups are very informal - a chance to crochet and chat and (if you want) grab coffee and something to nibble on. You can come any time and leave any time.

At this month's meetup, we're focusing on charity projects - so we hope you can plan on spending at least a few minutes of your meetup time helping out with one of charity projects: Warm-Up America squares (7x9 blocks in any simple stitch) or hats and scarves for the Harriet Tubman Center. Carla will have lots of suitable yarn and instructions to help with these projects - so all you need is to bring your helping hands and a hook.

We hope to see you there!

Meeting Highlights: CAL Sweater Workshop

We came, we talked, we crocheted.

Our meeting on July 12 at the Textile Center was very relaxing. Joan led the meeting and asked us all to answer a very interesting question as we introduced ourselves: How did you find out about this group? We had members who have been with us since the beginning and others we have just joined the group in the last few months so responses were quite varied!

Several people brought their CAL sweater in progress (or completed) - while some of us are still at the swatch stage. We had several really nice projects at show n tell - a lovely large doily from Joy, a snazzy wrap from Erin (a great big granny square in colorful leftover yarns), and a cute baby flip-flop by Lori - to name a few.

Carol had been to the Art at St. Kate's event earlier in the morning and she reported on that event. The Textile Center is one of the sponsors of that event and several members were at their booth, crocheting and answering questions about the Textile Center. This picture shows some of the items that we had displayed and a peek outside our booth.

Finally, we closed with a few announcements about upcoming events - 4th Saturday meetup (July 26) and next month's meeting (August 9), both listed on our Calendar page. Watch the blog for more details!

CAL Sweater Workshop: July 12 Meeting Preview

It's still summer and in keeping with the season, we're planning another light and carefree meeting. This month's meeting will be another workshop, this time a chance to work on and help each other with our CAL (crochet-a-long) sweater - or any other project if you aren't doing the CAL.

If all you've done is the swatch we can help you get started. Or if you've gotten further along and just need time to work on the sweater, that's OK too. And if you aren't making the sweater, this meeting is the perfect opportunity to work on another projects - or maybe practice some of the new techniques and tricks from last month's meeting!


The meeting will be Saturday July 12 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the Textile Center of Minnesota (3000 University Ave SE, Minneapolis) with Open Crochet from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.. To get the most out of this meeting, you need to bring:

• Your project (with appropriate yarn, hook, and other tools)
• Your questions

We hope to see you there!