Posts for category ‘Gatherings’

A week ago I was looking for donations of yarn, needles, and notions towards a charity event (see my last blog entry) in which absolutely no profit is made. I am pleased to announce that the owner of Kollage Yarns, Susan Moraca, is donating all the yarn. Her generosity is not going to be unnoticed, and I want everybunny around the world to hear how her gesture is a great example of one of “My 3 Words” for 2010 — CARE.

Inspired by Justin Steinman’s recent blog post, I must admit that I needed to take my reins back into possession and have done it close to ten days time. So for a slight moment I am popping up out from my rabbit hole to catch a breath of the gorgeous warm air that enveloped Blacksburg this past weekend. Spring became my favorite season back in 1999 when I walked away from a bad beginning to create a better life for myself. I hope others will do the same when the opportunity knocks.

Currently I have been involved in a quick and fast move of events. In ten days’ time I have gone from a car accident, to changing where I work locally, to moving into new living quarters. If anybunny ever wants to visit little me in the New River Valley area of Virginia Tech, I can be found volunteering at the Main Lee Art Gallery instead of the LYS. Being there with the artists and their clients gives me a vibrant glow, and I also will be assisting them in their social media areas pro bono. See you there or at the London Underground Pub! =:8

On our little planet known as Earth, there are multiples of races and ethnicities abound. We all look a little different and have various lifestyles, but the one bond we have is our desire to help one another in times of need. Recently the earthquake in Haiti brought out the best in many of our hearts. Now that Chile’s own destruction has happened during the weekend, maybe it is time we took another long look at ourselves and realize that being successful is not just about making money, but using our gifted talents for good in the process.

Such an opportunity plopped into my lap when I was asked if I was still willing to teach a group of teen-aged girls how to knit. I jumped at the answer and said “YES!!” without hesitation. In a week, I found a place that the girls can be surrounded without pressure at the Main Lee Art Gallery, and am now looking for donations of knitting needles, tape measures, tapestry needles, and both cotton and cotton/blend yarns to be used. If all goes well, I hope the love that I have for my passion shows through and becomes contagious. The coolest part about teaching these future ladies is that they will be making something for the folks in Haiti and now possibly Chile. In doing so they will be giving a piece of themselves in time, prayers, and hope to a world that is so opposite from theirs.

Here’s hoping that my calls for donations comes through. And if there is anybunny out there who would be willing to send us any of the needles or notions by March 11th, please let me know here, on KniTalk, or on Ravelry! =:8

Sometimes I feel like there is something “off” inside. It could be my mind, heart, or even my whole body. Whatever the case, a dose of comfort beckons me. Recently I found myself lunching at Hokkaido Buffet in the hope that their prepared foods would soothe my soul.

As I tasted my selections, I reflected on the various Asian restaurants that would have driven me to Hokkaido. The first thought was the obvious in my last visit there. When Rich came into town for New Year’s, we had popped into the restaurant after seeing the “Sherlock Holmes” movie. It was a quickly eaten meal; it barely made a small dent in satisfying our craving for Asian cuisine. The next thought was when I visited a former friend in Ohio this past summer. Throughout the meal he controlled what we ate and drank. Everything was his decision; I barely had a say even on how much to eat! Both the memories of Thai Star with Judy and Rihm Nam’s with Steve are hoppy ones filled with fabulous conversation and listening.

While pouring over these thoughts, I realized that ironically I could not recall the names of the two restaurants that triggered my stop. Memories of eating at both places give me warm feelings of fondness for my friend Rasha. We would often meet at one of those two places when we worked at The Corporation. I miss her Arabic accent-laden frankness and witty insight. Recently I found the silver and tiger eye choker necklace that she gifted to me for Christmas 2007. It might have been years since I saw her, but I know that when I wear it, I have her in my heart. Rasha, this memory is for you! =:8

Whew! Huge apologies to everybunny. I had looked at the calendar this morning and realized that I have not blogged for some time when I meant to do so each week. There have been a lot of events, some crazy some just plain fun, but all have been adventurous. I will do my best to provide a quick summary…

December 31st:
While my friend Jessica (@bumbl_be) and I were eating the pints of Jeni’s Ice Creams that just arrived, Richie calls me on my iPhone. He asks what I was doing, and I told him about Jessica and Jeni’s. His response, “Hmm… Maybe I’ll have some today.” I had a whirring thought that he ordered some, and conversed about some other topics. He then said, “Maybe I should have some Jeni’s NOW.” I stopped mid-sentence. I asked, “Where ARE you?” He responded, “In your parking lot.”
That cheeky bugger!! Of course with his visit, we ended up missing the Juniper Moon Farm’s Open House on New Year’s Day. At least we saw the Hokies spank the Volunteers (Let’s go TECH!!) and drove up to Mountain Lake to see the snowed in hotel where the movie “Dirty Dancing” was filmed.

January 8th:
I had a fabulous belated Christmas celebration with my parents and sister’s family. The handknit presents were a hit, except for the hat that was too small for my brother-in-law. That’s more than okay; his Mom, the wonderful Edith, took it off his hands. My niece loved her Twinkle scarf, my sister loves her Pretty Thing, and my Mother loves both her red dress hat and Little Parade. My Daddy’s Koolhaas was quickly snatched by my Mother. Note to self: Make Ma lots of hats!

I had lunch with my BFF Anita and her son Aidan in Kelly’s Tavern at Pembroke Mall. Afterwards we visited my friend Brett at Artistic Creations Gallery. It was a nice time catching up with them!

January 13th:
Now that my darts are back (they were in my Civic), I popped into The London Underground Pub to see if I can challenge Ron (@ronaldb) to a game of Cricket. He was not there, but Sara his teammate was. Twisting my arm, she talked me into participating in “Luck of the Draw” on that Saturday. Little did I know how darts would change my social life in Blacksburg! I met so many folks since then, my time is a whirlwind.

January 21st:
Since I have joined two darts leagues, I decided to practice one day after work. Doing so, I met the delightful Patsy and Eva, part of the Martinettes. These women are in a group that welcomes lady newcomers to the New River Valley area. I attended my first meeting that Saturday (the 23rd) and am awed by their cheerfulness and excitement with life. Already I have been asked to display some of my fibery goods and to teach a workshop on knitting. I love these daring ladies! They refuse to keep still and take life by the horns.

Another cool bit? During my usual Friday night stop at Lefty’s on the 22nd, I met some of the fun and intelligent folks behind “The Plaid Avenger” of John and Katie Pritchard. John created the Plaid Avenger to keep folks abreast of what is going on with the world’s society. He teaches various geography classes at VA Tech. The one that caught my ear was his “Wines of the World” class. Boy, that would be fun to participate in those tastings discussions!

January 26th:
Today I start a fun adventure. I get to chat about STITCHES on my blog “On the Road to STITCHES” at Knitting Universe’s KniTalk Community!! The topics I will be discussing would be what knitterly items I want to make and wear for the trip, the classes I will be taking, the events I am lining up to see, and of course all the goodies that the Market is offering! As for Bigsock, no worries! I will be there too, so make sure you find some time to help the attempt on breaking the current Guinness Book World record for the largest handknit sock!!

If wondering about the Boys, they are alive and well. Caesar is as hungry as ever, and Julius is as mischievous. I have learned that if Julius is in my bedroom in the morning, I best get out of bed ASAP. Why? If I do not, he (ahem) will use my laundry basket as a litterbox. Crazy bunnies!! =:8

Okay, I did it. I wrote a guest post on Handshake 2.0 titled, “The Business of Knitting” and hope the 300-words-or-less challenge is met in a positive light. The yarn manufacturing industry continuously has the stereotype of an elderly woman knitting while seated in a rocking chair with cats at her feet. Hello, but though I may be fabulously forty, I am by no means “elderly” and have no rocking chairs in my house. The crafters (weavers, spinners, knitters and crocheters) of both genders are hip and young at heart no matter what their age. So do not dare say I am old!

To note, the social network of Ravelry has brought together what online groups, e-lists, blogs and podcasts have started. Crafters have been communicating online worldwide, and Ravelry now offers a single resource that combines them together. Only on Ravelry can a person in Denmark comment how much she likes one of my projects, and where I can also participate in a worldwide group on specific techniques used in Scandinavia.

The community of yarn has brought different races, religions, and politics together. Currently I am looking forward to the 2010 Knitting Olympics. Here is when teams of crafters around the world will start a self-chosen project when the torch is lit, and in 16 days time finish that project when the fire is extinguished. Most of these projects can generally take months or even years to finish, but the bragging rights of participating are immense. My project of challenge will most likely be either a complicated lace ensemble (shawl or stockings), or an intricately cabled covering (coat or jacket). Either way, I am rising up with the other folks who are techies like myself and are not afraid of admitting their craft. Are you? =:8

Gratitude and appreciation are often overlooked and taken for granted. Gina Bonomo Dugas of the Mosaic Yarn Shop in Blacksburg, VA was determined to remind everyone how luckily blessed we are. She conceived an idea to host an event that benefited not one, nor two, but three local charities: libraries, the local food bank, and the homeless. Her idea came to fruition on December 5th during a snowstorm that kept folks further in distance away, but for the folks who did attend, the event was a hit!

Here are the details of this charity event:
The $10 admission included a buffet lunch, exclusive buying at the featured vendors, chances to win door prizes, and a goody bag full of various items from all over the fibery and local businesses. Each table had a literal pile of yarn that might be mistaken for a centerpiece, but was in fact a selection for the knitters and crocheters to make hats. At each seating was a pattern varying from a newborn to an adult male. The crafter would first decide which table (I sat at the purple yarn table though the orange yarn table tempted the Hokie in me) and then sit in the chair of whatever pattern interested her/him.

With so many colors to select, it was difficult to choose, but since I brought in the purple yarn from the Land’s End event, I decided to make as many hats as possible with it. To make the day more fun, I taught two women how to knit. Both had learned a little, but needed more coaching. By the time all three of us were finishing up the day, I had not only enabled them, but also made two more friends.

There are many folks in the fibery world to thank for their donations. I am listing them here because their generosity should be noted:

• Twist Collective – for the postcards, buttons, and gift certificates
• Juniper Moon Farm – for the advertising postcards and sheepy tattoos
• Bijou Basin Ranch – for the cool stickers and postcards
• David Simpson’s Fiber Studio – for the yummy fibery goodness
• Lawre’s Laine – for the very cool notions bag
• Classic Elite Yarns – for the heavenly scarf kit
• Berroco Yarns – for the 3 bags of yarn to be used in the hats

Huge thankful bunny hugs go out to every one of these companies for participating!! The best news of this event? We will be doing it next year and will have at least twice as many folks than the 71 crafters that signed up. How do I know? When the Pawtucket Red Sox had their first Stitch and Pitch game, the numbers were exactly the same. (I am rubbing my paws together in glee!) *beaming bunny* Until then, these 42 photos will have to do as proof! =:8

If there is something that made me sad upon leaving New England, especially the Boston area, it was missing the amount of meetups for social networking. Since PodCamp opened my eyes, I became more active in the non-knitting realm and was eager for increasing my connections to interesting folks. Now that I have been living in Southwest Virginia for a month, I think folks in New England might not realize how lucky they are in being more advanced both in the technology and the fiber realms.

With my arrival to Blacksburg full of rose-tinted visions, I looked in advance for groups to associate myself. Unfortunately the one group I found on LinkedIn had required membership (as in dues and such) stipulations. I am fine with the requirements, but wish that information was listed up front to avoid confusion. Slowly I found folks to follow on Twitter when on November 20th Dr. Vittorio Bonomo and I attended Modea’s Social Media Marketing Question and Answer Session in the Pamplin School of Business at Virginia Tech. The presentation was targeted towards those who either taught or attended the college, but there were some other interested folks who were just outside that circle. From that day I had met both Gary Cope and Michael Kiser along with the trio from Modea: Aaron Herrington, Mansi Trivedi, and Mike Cox. That afternoon I met Joseph Rooks, and knew this Twitter group was just the beginning of better things to come.

Because of their tweets, I had discovered a Tweetup on December 1st for Handshake 2.0 by Anne Giles Clelland. Excited about the event, I started Tweeting even more so. (begin /tangent) To explain, a few months back I joined Foursquare. Since Richmond is my currently adopted city, I have been Tweeting about all the places I have been from Blacksburg to Virginia Beach. It seems that I *ahem* have been Tweeting about a LOT of places. According to Foursquare, I am mayor at over 40 venues… (end /tangent)

The evening of Handshake 2.0’s Tweetup at Bull and Bones Brewhaus was to promote its new video. All I can say is that president Anne’s energy is contagious. In her business, she is promoting various folks including the New River Valley Triathlon scheduled for July 2010. While there I met Cameron Nouri, Evangelist of Rackspace and the team of Beth and Corey from The NewVA Corridor Technology Council. Later, dinner for me was the duck wrap and an cold glass of St. Maeve’s stout. I consider the lilting conversation as my dessert. Knowing that I will see many of these folks again, I left a hoppy bunny.

The next night was even more adventurous because Rackspace’s Software division was hosting (please excuse the pun) a Wine/Cheese party for its anniversary. I saw Cameron, met with Stuart Mease from their HR department, and was delighted to chat with other members of the company like co-founder Pat Matthews. His presentation answered a lot of questions that folks in the community have probably wondered like the number of “Rackers” who were employed, the growth of the company, etc. From the night before, I ran into both Beth and Ronald, and I think we all are looking forward to Rackspace’s next celebration.

My lesson learned from these weeks has been this one: If you are just pining for networking, you cannot sit at home on the computer and Tweet. You have to go out and meet folks to be real. I am determined to do just that in the Southwestern Virginia corridor! =:8

Recently Chris Brogan tweeted that leaders in social media should be inspired to act as if in a team sport. I had to laugh while reading those words, and did so heartily. I know of many examples of where knitters easily demonstrated what it is like to be a team player. How do these events happen? I will hoppily explain.

During the weekend I was in PodCamp Boston 4, the first annual Sock Summit was held in Portland, OR. This conference of knitters brought together many of the fibery rockstars from around the world. For months the lists of names in attendance were gossiped and discussed. Though the server hosting the classes database crashed after 5 minutes from 50,000 people trying to register for the 3,500 available slots, I managed to buying 2 tickets for the opening night’s festivities and a class with an alternative time slot. (For some reason, the webhosting sites NEVER believe that knitters can crash a server no matter how much they are warned.) What is astounding is that 99% of the communication was done via the social network of Ravelry, blogging, and emails. In Ravelry’s Sock Summit forum, questions were answered about traveling, lodging, restaurants, who was attending, who was teaching, and who was vending. Manufacturers made special editions of their products just for that event and posted the details online. There was a contest between hand-dyers on which yarn should be chosen as the official Sock Summit one, and all members of Ravelry were encouraged to vote. The worldwide scores of folks flying in from Germany, the UK, Australia, and other countries amazed many. Yet the common bond between these people was the same: all were interested in sock knitting and all were active in social media.

One of the ladies who co-founded the concept of Sock Summit did a similar event back in the 2005 Winter Olympics. Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, aka the “Yarn Harlot” of Toronto, issued a challenge on her blog. She was going to cast on a brand new project on her needles when the Olympic torch was lit to commence the Games, and she was going to finish it by the time the torch was extinguished. When the words were live for all to see, she had an immediate worldwide response of others joining her challenge. The crazy numbers that I remember during the event: there were about 4000 athletes competing in the Olympics versus the 7300 folks competing in the knitting Olympics.

Now for my last example, I was at the Stitches East convention in Hartford this past September. The booth I was running was to encourage knitters to participate on the “Bigsock” project. This project is the running attempt to break the current Guinness Book of World Record’s largest hand-knitted sock. To promote the last minute appearance of the booth, I used whatever tools that seemed to target the main audience I wanted to connect: Ravelry, Twitter, and Facebook. Yes, I could have used both the blogs of Bigsock and mine, but I knew that time was of the essence. I quickly posted threads in various groups on Ravelry that would see the information, updated them with posts so as to nudge them back to the front when necessary, and involved Jenny (aka “DivineBird“), a known local fiberista, work with me in the booth. The results paid off. The folks who read my threads spread the word, and along with the members of Jenny’s spinning/knitting ensemble, all arrived to do their fair share on the sock. Together by using social media tools, we accomplished over 38 rounds knitted during that one weekend! A quick visual on the amount of what 38 rounds equals: each round is 1500 stitches which means 57,000 stitches were done in those 3 days.

These examples are only a smidgeon of what knitters have done together by way of social media. Who’d a thought that folks with pointy sticks could do so much? =:8

For many weeks, I have been biting my tongue whenever I remembered the crime scene. I had walked into the Natick Mall Sears to participate in what I expected would be a busy 3-ring circus. Why the expectation? Lands End was hosting two of the knitting world’s rockstars, Kate Jacobs and Vickie Howell, in an event to knit hats for the homeless. Since the e-mail I received about this event was very last minute, I was worried that I would be lost in the crowd of fans. Instead I was in a front row seat to witness Lands End’s failure to reach a highly sought audience for their targeted goal of 250000 knitted hats.

With today’s fluctuating economy, savvy businesses utilize social media tools to increase their customer base. Being active in the realm of weblogs, podcasts, and online networks have enabled these businesses to advertise their products and services. For specific niche markets, narrowing the target to reach a solid customer base is a must to reaping high ROI. Lands End’s charity drive stop in Massachusetts is an example of how not to use social media.

In chatting with Kate, Vickie, and the woman who represented Lands End’s charity drive, I discovered a few keys affecting the low turnout of knitters (about a dozen at most) who appeared:

- The lack of utilizing Ravelry – a worldwide social network for knitters, crocheters, and weavers.
It seems that a particular publishing company dislikes its knitting authors to be on Ravelry. This publishing company feels that the authors would be wasting time and should be writing books, even if there is a group dedicated to specific authors. Because of this break in communication between the author and the readers, the author has no way of announcing appearances or news. Lands End had also contacted the owners of Ravelry to promote their charity. Unfortunately, it would not be feasible nor fair to the hundreds of charities that other Ravelry members promote themselves (mine happens to be Sweet Binks Rabbit Rescue). If protocol were followed, the suggestion that Lands End sign up for a Ravelry account would have been made so as a member, Lands End could easily promote themselves by creating their own group or contacting the local groups where their charity drives would be visiting. From my last check, Lands End did not follow that suggestion.

- Publicizing to a group located nowhere near the scheduled events.
Where the events were located is over an hour’s drive from the group base. The Greater Boston Knitting Guild meets in Boston. The events were at Burlington, MA and Natick, MA. Both areas require a long bit of driving, and do not allow easy public transportation. Since only that Boston guild was contacted, only one other guild was shared that news, the MetroWest Guild of which I am a member. How I had learned of the events was through a last-minute e-mail sent a couple of nights before the scheduled dates. It was sent as an “FYI, in case you are interested” type of feel. There was no “Wow! Come help Kate and Vickie knit hats for charity”" excitement. The small amount of notice made it difficult for many to plan on attending. Another note is that Lands End stated they had sent newsletters to its customers asking of any of them knitted to come and participate in the events. I quizzed a number of Massachusetts residents afterwards and not one received such news. Many of them were unhappy at missing the opportunity.

- Ignoring the power of local popular figures and specialty shops to promote the events.
Every town and city has their own respected community rockstars. They are many in New England, particularly Massachusetts, for the knitting world. Designer Kristin Nicholas, Julia Farwell-Clay of Twist Collective, Pam Allen of Classic Elite, Kathy and Steve Elkins of WEBS, Guido Stein of “It’s a Purl, Man” – these folks are just the tip of the iceberg. With the location of the scheduled events, it would have been more lucrative to include nearby New Hampshire and Rhode Island. This fibery network of community rockstars do connect with one another, and could have helped Lands End promote the charity events. By not including the local yarn shops and stores, Lands End failed to spread the word effectively, particularly in the locations where the events were scheduled.

I sometimes find myself reflecting on that Saturday when I met the small quiet crowd who came to the event. I always end up shaking my head in disbelief on the lack of the numbers that could have been. Since that day, I noticed that Kate is now on Twitter (another network she was told not to participate), and I wonder if it is really her or her publisher. (Update 2009-11-19: I was informed that it definitely is not her publisher, but I still think that the Tweets sound like hollow marketing.) I am just glad that Vickie is the real deal online, and that contacting her results in genuine responses. =:8

With much anticipation, I was one of those eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Twist Collective Fashion Trunk Show during the 30th of September. For everybunny who does not know, on every last Wednesday of the month, the Slater Mill Knitting Guild hosts a meeting at its Community Building in Pawtucket, RI. This restored conference area combines the elegance of clean modern lines with the tasteful simplicity of yesterday. If the ghosts of Slater Mill were able to communicate, they would undoubtedly share approval of their new digs.

The mistress of ceremonies was none other than Twist Collective’s Julia Farwell-Clay, who came down from northern Massachusetts. Julia (her blog is Moth Heaven) is one of the most charismatic individuals I have ever met. I admire her work ethics and those staunch dietary habits with exercise. When asked once about her secret of losing weight, she spilled that giving up sugar was a key. We do however share a love for Jeni’s Ice Creams, and when I told her about Joppa Foods carrying the full gamut of flavors, I think I made her day!

All of the garments were modeled by volunteers in the guild. Hoppily I participated and was able to wear my Wisteria with Kat Coyle’s Petal skirt. Surprisingly I fell in love with the skirt material’s drape and softness. I was able to wear other sweaters, and I admit that my favorite was Mari Muinonen’s Luminen which has knitted snowflakes covering the back of the coat. However I really should be knitting up the patterns that I already purchased like Sylvi, Grant Park (if I can find a male somebunny who would want that sweater!), Licorice Sticks, the Aran Waistcoat, and Jaali.

Because there were so many photos taken of the show, I am sharing the link to them on my flickr account. I do hope that you enjoy them! =:8