Fancy yourself, or someone you know, to be a bit of a knitting or crochet guru? We’d love to see your creations. Share them with us through our Facebook page, our Snapchat account bgoaddy, by tagging @BgoAddy on Twitter or by using #bendigoadvertiser on Instagram
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
IT’S been more than 70 years since Lois Bell was taught how to knit, but she remembers the day well.
“My Dad taught me,” she said.
She was about five years old, propped on her father’s knee while he was on leave from the war.
“I was knitting with yellow wool,” Mrs Bell said.
And she’s been knitting ever since.
“Ever since I can remember, I’ve been knitting,” said fellow Kangaroo Flat Uniting Church craft group member, Janice Pearce.
She came from a family of knitters who, together, stitched more than 500 socks for charity.
On Saturday, Mrs Pearce and another of the group’s members will be stationed near the knitting aisles of Spotlight Bendigo to help teach those keen to cast off on the craft, for free.
It will be no ordinary knitting lesson, for Saturday marks World Wide Knit in Public Day.
Spotlight Bendigo will be among more than 1000 sites in about 57 countries to mark the occasion, and has encouraged people of all levels of crochet and knitting ability to join in.
“We’re so excited to spread the joy of knitting with the community and teach first-timers everything they need to get started,” store manager Amy Hall said.
Though she said there had always been a “fairly big” consumer base for knitting and crochet in Bendigo, Ms Hall said it was gaining popularity with the younger customers.
“There has been a lot of emphasis lately on upcycling, recycling and DIY,” she said.
She said YouTube tutorials were helping to impart skills previous generations might have been fortunate enough to learn from friends or family members, or at school.
Mrs Bell welcomed the renewed interest in learning how to knit and crochet.
She said she had seen grandparents bring their children into the store for a lesson – skills they continued to build on at home.
“It’s excellent,” Mrs Bell said.
World Wide Knit in Public Day celebrations at Spotlight Bendigo start at 11am on Saturday.
Participants will have the opportunity to donate their creations to the Guardian Pharmacy’s Guardian Angel Knitting program, which will distribute garments to people in need, in partnership with the St Vincent de Paul Society.
Maldon has also registered a World Wide Knit in Public event, to be held in the main street from 1pm to 3pm on Saturday.
Emma D'Agostino
Covering general news and Bendigo council.
Covering general news and Bendigo council.
