The Yarn Arts Club invites lovers of crocheting and knitting with skill levels from beginners to experts to express their creative sides at Grand Valley State University. 

Co-Presidents Abbie Peltier and Bailey Strang roomed together their sophomore year and shared a passion for the yarn arts. The pair formed the club in March 2022 after they found there were no yarn art-based clubs at GVSU. As a result, they took the initiative to create one themselves and saw many others were interested as well.

“We decided to make a place where people could come and learn, or if you already knew, to come and hang out with other people,” Peltier said. 

During the meetings, a brief presentation is given for any announcements or important information members may want to know about. Members can then share their work and tips on crocheting and knitting. Afterward, members bring out their own yarn, needles or hooks to start a new project or continue with one they have been working on. The club even provides these tools for those who came empty-handed or are new to the art. Often while working, the room is filled with laughter and supportive cheers for each other’s work.

“It can be a good way to meet people outside of your major. I think it’s important to meet people from all over campus that you share a hobby with,” Stang said. 

The co-presidents said the Yarn Arts Club has seen a big turnout in their recent meetings because of the large number of freshmen on campus this year. They also mentioned Campus Life Night helped to recruit new members, as many students discovered this club through the event. After this, the club grew from ten members to as many as 40 this year. 

Members Emmy Hurd and Bonnie Bertin were some of the students to discover the Yarn Arts Club through Campus Life Night. In their recent meeting, they worked on projects like cat plushies and crochet balloon dog plushies, as they said it felt easier to knit than the standard starter project: granny squares. Both members expressed that they like the social aspect of the club and that members help others out by sharing tips and patterns they are working on. 

“There’s a lot more people who are into doing stuff with yarn than I expected there to be,” Hurd said. “I’m really excited to be able to know people who have that same interest.” 

Additionally, Hurd and Bertin had some to no knowledge of crocheting before joining and were excited to see a club dedicated to teaching and executing crochet projects on the GVSU campus.

For beginners in crocheting and knitting, one technique usually taught first is how to make a chain. A chain first starts with a slip knot to attach the yarn to the hook or needle. Once this is done, a chain can be started and is used frequently when beginning a yarn art project. Historically, crocheting and knitting was learned by sharing patterns and copying them. The Yarn Arts Club allows people to form both crochet skills and to share community with one another.

“I hope they (the members) take away new friendships and new skills for crocheting, and I hope it’s a time for them to relax,” Strang said.

Like many hobbies, the club said the yarn arts are a fun way for people to either relax and wind down or to keep themselves busy.

“It’s nice to teach people how to crochet and to also have a place for people to come and gather around a hobby,” Peltier said. 

This year the club is looking forward to expanding its events with things like “Stitch and Study,” where members can study while others crochet and chat with friends during exam week. The club also plans on having meetings outside when weather permits. They also plan on holding an event where people make their own granny squares which will then be stitched together into a collaborative blanket and donated. The club plans to hold this event sometime in November.