Join us Aug 2017 – Warm Up America Squares & Chain Link Recap

Time & Place

Sunday, Aug 27, 2017, 1:30-3:30
Fabric Place Basement, Natick, MA

Program – Warm Up America Squares & CGOA Chain Link Conference Recap

Warm Up America Challenge

The CGOA’s Warm Up America Challenge is complete! While we didn’t win the prize for the most blocks made, we did help CGOA make an impressive number of blocks for charity.

It is time for us to assemble the blocks we made for the Challenge. We’ve selected HugCrafters as our charity and will be assembling blankets for Spaulding Rehab. We will be making lapghans for folks in wheel chairs.

HugCrafters’ guideline is to make wool-free blankets that are approximately 3′ x 4′. Square is OK, but this rectangular size is more practical. 20 of our WUA blocks will make a 3′ square blanket, 25 blocks will make a 3′ x 4′ blanket.

Mary will bring the blocks we’ve been collecting so anyone who wants to help assemble blankets can pick thru and choose their colors. She will also bring some black acrylic yarn to share for assembly. If you have made any additional blocks, or have acrylic yarn of any color you’d like to donate to the project, please bring to the meeting.

CGOA Chain Link Conference Recap

Karen, Mary, Barbara, and Melissa went to the CGOA Chain Link conference this year in Illinois. Karen, Mary, and Melissa will be on hand to share some tidbits and exciting news from our travels. We came home with lots of ideas to help grow our membership and make our meetings more fun and interesting, but we’ll need everyone’s help to choose and implement these ideas.

Please Bring (optional)

• Additional crocheted blocks, if you have them.
• If you’d like, any color of acrylic yarn you’d like to donate to the project. This yarn will be used for joining, boarders, or filling in additional blocks to make complete blankets.
• Any other completed charity items you’ve been working on.

RSVP

All are welcome. RSVP to fishnetcrocheters@gmail.com if you plan to attend. Please do not call the shop.

CGOA Warm Up America Challenge 2017

The Challenge

The Fishnet Crocheters along with many other chapters participated in the CGOA Warm Up America Challenge this year.

We were tasked with making as many 7″ x 9″ blocks (per the Warm Up America guidelines) as we could between January 3rd, when the content was announced & July 1st, just in time for winners to be announced at Chain Link.

The Winners

Each chapter competed for prizes. The chapters with the highest average blocks per member won prizes. Red Heart sponsored cash prizes for each winning chapter which were awarded at the conference at the Excellence in Crochet event.

Fishnet Crocheters of New England did NOT win the prize for the most blocks made for Warm Up America, but Red Heart, as a sponsor, awarded each participating chapter with some yarn to help make more blankets.

Participating CGOA chapters made a total of 8,970 blocks, if you can picture that. The winning chapter, AStitch4You from Evarts, Kentucky, has only five members, who made a total of 716 blocks. Hard to compete with numbers like that!

Dona Cerule busily taking inventory of the completed blocks for the Warm Up America Challenge.

Our Charity

Due to the volume CGOA anticipated, we were asked not to use Warm Up America as an intermediary, but to choose a charity and assemble the blocks into blankets ourselves.

At one of our summer meetings, we selected HugCrafters as our charity and will be assembling blankets for Spaulding Rehab. We will be making lapghans for folks in wheel chairs.

Assembly

It is time for us to assemble the blocks we made for the Challenge. HugCrafters’ guideline is to make wool-free blankets that are approximately 3′ x 4′. Square is OK, but this rectangular size is more practical. 20 of our WUA blocks will make a 3′ square blanket, 25 blocks will make a 3′ x 4′ blanket.

Mary will bring the blocks we’ve been collecting to the August Meeting so anyone who wants to help assemble blankets can pick through and choose their colors. She will also bring some black acrylic yarn to share for assembly.

If you have made any additional blocks, or have acrylic yarn of any color you’d like to donate to the project, please bring them to the August meeting. This yarn will be used for joining, boarders, or filling in additional blocks to make complete blankets.

Charity News

We are supporting some additional charities!

Please bring charity items to our monthly meetings where Deb will collect and distribute them to many locations, including:

• Cor Unum Family Soup Kitchen, Lawrence MA
• Holy Family Hospital Methuen MA
• Lawrence General Hospital Lawrence MA
• Pregnancy Center Haverhill MA
• Prescott House Care Facility North Andover MA
• Saint Vincent DePaul at St.Michael Parish, North Andover MA
• Spaulding Rehabilitaion Center, Boston, MA
• Sunbridge Nursing Center, Methuen MA
• Veterans Hospital, Manchester NH

Use acrylic yarns or washable wool yarn or washable wool blend yarn. The following items are needed by the many charities we support:

• hats of all sizes
• scarves
• mittens of all sizes
• car seat size baby blankets approximately 24” square or similar dimensions in a rectangular shape
• lap robes of approximately 42” square.

Upcoming Crochet Events – Sept & Oct 2015

Some upcoming crochet events you may be interested in! There may be additional details on some of these events on the Events of Interest page.

Since June
“Sabrina Tunic” CAL, Free Lion Brand pattern
Several Fishnet Crocheters are working on their Sabrina Tunic. Join in!

Since Aug
Around the Bases CAL. Several Fishnet Crocheters are working on this CAL. Free pattern on Ravelry and Rav group for extra help.

Sept 8
Mystery Amigurumi CAL with the Crochet Crowd, starts September 8.

Sept 18 – Oct 4
The Big E, W. Springfield MA, September 18-October 4, be sure to visit the
Creative Arts building and The Fiber Nook (in the livestock area).

Sept 17 – 20
The Greater Boston Yarn Crawl Crochet “Freedom Trail” shawlette for the event: available on Ravelry.

September 25 – 27, 2015
Common Ground Country Fair in Unity, ME

Sept 26
Caring Forest Installation a yarn storm event sponsored by the Nave Gallery to raise awareness for Somerville’s homeless population.

Thru Sept 30
Call for snowflakes for the Crochet Crowd display at the Fall Creativ Festival in
Toronto. Due date: September 30th

Oct 2- 12
Topsfield Fair in Topsfield, MA

Oct 3-4, 2015
Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival at Turnbridge Fair Grounds, Turnbridge, VT

Oct 15 – 18
New York State Sheep & Wool Festival, Rhinebeck NY: Festival October 17-18,
Workshops October 15-18. Buses from Webs ; Assabet After Dark ; The Eliot School. Other transportation options.

Oct 17
Craft Yarn Council: I Love Yarn Day
Virtual event on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest; Using hashtags #stitchitforward and #ilyd2015.

Oct 23 – 24
Shiba Guyz Workshops
Craftworks, Northboro, MA
Friday: Book signing and trunk show $10 ($5 goes towards book), Saturday: two half-day workshops “Crochet Cables to Astound and Amaze” and “Non-Stick Lace”, $75 each. 10% off for both classes, $135. And VIP bundle for $150.October 17, 2015

Thru Dec 6
Wrap Around Project annual sale at the Nave Gallery of handmade knitted/crocheted/sewn goods to benefit Somerville Homeless Coalition

Thru Dec 31
“Wonder of Wool” exhibit at the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA through December 31, 2015. Coupon for $2 off admission on their website.

Thru Dec 31
Stitch Away Stress Lemon Stress Ball Drive. Crochet a lemon by Dec 31 for it to be distributed on tax day in NYC to promote crochet as a stress reliever.

Spring Cleaning Swap

Our last meeting before the start of the summer season was held a week early due to the upcoming Memorial day weekend. Show and tell included lots of fun projects and patterns.

Some of our folks had gone to the NH Sheep and Wool Festival the previous weekend. Despite the rainy start, it turned out to be a fabulous day! Lots of goodies were procured in addition to some fun time chatting over lunch (lobster rolls -yum).

After show and tell, we joined in a Spring Cleaning Swap Meet. Crocheters brought in no longer used or needed yarns, tools, and patterns. Everyone had a chance to find something of interest. Anything left was packed up to donate to Warmer Winters for their use.

Marathon Scarves Project

Blue & gold scarves were collected for the Old South Church Marathon Scarves project. Scarves will be distributed to Boston Marathon runners by Old South Church during the annual Blessing of the Runners service.

Warmer Winters

We’ve adopted Warmer Winters as our pet charity for the year.

Warmer Winters is a charity in central Massachusetts that donates handmade knit & crocheted items to those in need. They also teach knitting to elderly & children. They accept washable handmade items for winter. Everything is needed – scarves, hats, mittens, sweaters – all sizes – all colors.

However, they also accept monetary donations, yarn donations, and craft donations for their fundraisers (which in turn they use to purchase yarn). Pat will be collecting items the Fishnet Crocheters meetings and making sure they get to Warmer Winters.

Odd Ball Charity Baby Blankets

We present our latest charity project:

Oddball Baby blankets are blankets crocheted in six 6-inch strips round-robin style.

 

 

 

 

 

 

At each meeting, we rotate the blankets so that another 6-inch strip can be added.

 

 

 

 

 

Completed blankets measure about 30″ x 36″.

 

 

 

To participate, come to a meeting and take home a project.

 

 

 

Or start one at home by crocheting a 30″ x 6″ strip using any worsted weight acrylic yarn and any stitch.

 

 

 

Bring it to a meeting to hand off to someone else.

 

 

 

 

Nancy will be collecting blankets the Fishnet Crocheters meetings.

 

 

 

 

 

Blankets are sent out to charity recipients as they are completed, with a few already going to benefit Hurricane Sandy victims.

 

 

2011 in Review

Some of Our 2011 Projects

Donna’s Baby Sweater

 

Nancy’s Valentine Tote

 

Shawna’s blanket for Project Linus

Linked Stitches

Many thanks to Fishnet Karen for leading us in a demonstration of linked stitches.    Charity items were collected to be distributed in time for Mother’s Day, including this shawl.