Schlagwort: YarnCamp

The YarnCamp 2013

Veröffentlicht am von Carina10 Kommentare

Last weekend I almost didn’t make it to YarnCamp 2013. Work had been insane. I was tired, stressed, and honestly, not in the mood to travel at all. But isn’t it true that the things you dread the most often turn out the best? Case in point: the 5-hour train ride to Frankfurt was already amazing. I sat by the window, alternately daydreaming, knitting, or doing both – and by the time I arrived, I was relaxed and ready for whatever the weekend would throw at me.

And wow… YarnCamp totally delivered!

Do you ever knit or crochet in public? I don’t. Somehow it embarrasses me. Now imagine being in a room with about 80 people – mostly women, a few brave men – with almost everyone click-clacking away at needles (I LOVE that sound) or crocheting while chatting, discussing, or just admiring each other’s work. Some people even carried entire suitcases full of their projects from room to room. It took me a while to dive in, but eventually I managed to work on a pair of wrist warmers while soaking in the buzz.

And get this – I’m basically a yarn dinosaur. No smartphone for me, which apparently made me the only one at YarnCamp. Everyone else was glued to Twitter, Instagram, Ravelry, Facebook… or just taking pictures of their latest creations. If they weren’t knitting, they were online. If they weren’t online… well, they were definitely knitting.

From the get-go, we were encouraged to contribute, run a session, or just share ideas. In no time, 18 sessions were up on the board, led by participants who had never done a BarCamp before. I was seriously impressed – people were turning their passion into mini-lectures, and the discussions were lively and inspiring.

During the day, I got to geek out over Kaffe Fassett’s knitting (blog post coming soon!), learned how to start thinking like an author, finally wrapped my head around Twitter, and even joined a spirited debate about writing the perfect pattern.

Between sessions, we admired each other’s work, swapped patterns, and shared tips. I loved meeting Mienchen, Claudia, and Pia (keep an eye on her site Akizu – it’s coming soon!), finally meeting Frau Elise in person after following her blog forever, and participating in David’s session, which made me want to write a post about him and his work. The folks at Dye for Yarn are absolute wizards – not only do they dye yarn beautifully, but their lace shawls and that ocean-colored patchwork blanket? Total stash-inspiration.

And let’s not forget the spoiling: generous sponsors handed out yarn, needles, magazines, and books like candy. The buffet was fabulous, the coffee top-notch, and the smoothies… well, delicious doesn’t even begin to cover it. YarnCamp completely blew my expectations out of the water.

Huge shoutout to the organizers – Rebekka, Sara, Romy, and Lutz – who nailed everything from concept to execution. You guys are incredible. I can’t wait to do it all again in 2014!

BarCamp / YarnCamp

Veröffentlicht am von Carina4 Kommentare

Now tell me the truth—could you actually explain a YarnCamp or BarCamp to someone without Googling it halfway through? I definitely couldn’t… at least not until earlier this week. Thankfully, there’s Wikipedia, and here’s their definition:

A “BarCamp is an international network of user-generated unconferences primarily focused around technology and the Web. They are open, participatory workshop-events, the content of which is provided by participants. […] The format has also been used for a variety of other topics, including public transit, health care, education, and political organizing [and has been] adapted for specific industries like banking, real estate and social media.”

Right. So… that’s what it is? Kind of? Or wait—what was it again? 🙂

Let me try in human language: A BarCamp is basically a conference that isn’t really a conference. It’s an “unconference.” Which already sounds slightly rebellious, doesn’t it?

It’s a group of people who are all interested in the same general topic—let’s say yarn, for obvious reasons—meeting up in one place at one time to learn from each other. No fixed program. No hierarchy. No rigid schedule. At least not beforehand.

Instead, everything gets created on the spot by the participants. You show up at a YarnCamp, you suggest ideas, and then people vote on what actually happens.

So if I suddenly want to learn how to knit socks, or show others how to crochet flowers, or finally understand the mysterious consequences of yarn-bombing in public spaces, I can propose it. And then it might actually become a session at the YarnCamp.

You can teach something. You can learn something. Or both. Or neither and just sit there happily knitting.

Sounds pretty good, right?

So why am I suddenly blogging about a YarnCamp?

Because the lovely Ms. Elise from “Gemacht mit Liebe” (“made with love”) pointed me toward the first-ever German YarnCamp. Fifty tickets. That’s it. And guess what? I’m going!

Well… sort of. One part of me is definitely going. The other part is currently negotiating terms.

“It’s far…” – “Take the train.”
“But someone has to look after the boy …” – “He’ll be with his dad. They’ll survive.”
“It’s on a Sunday…” – “Take Monday off.”
“I’ve never done anything like this…” – “Exactly. That’s the point.”
“What would I even do there?” – “Knit. Talk. Meet people. Eat snacks. Repeat.”

So this is where I am right now: slightly uncertain, mildly negotiating with myself, but mostly excited.

I am going! And I’m really happy about it 🙂

Over the years, some of the photos that used to be here got lost – thanks to a total blog crash, a stolen hard drive, and whatever else can possibly happen to images along the way. The same goes for the link to the pattern – it seems the instructions have disappeared from the web as well. If I happen to come across either of them again, I’ll be sure to add them back in. Thanks so much for your understanding.