Knitting inspires sophomores to start club

Yarn club creates tight-knit community

Sophomore+Gaby+Beilke+knits+during+a+yarn+club+meeting+March++21.+According+to+Beilke%2C+this+was+the+clubs+fourth+time+joining+together.+

Noah Orloff

Sophomore Gaby Beilke knits during a yarn club meeting March 21. According to Beilke, this was the club’s fourth time joining together.

Marta Hill, Noah Orloff, and Emma Leff

After Yarn club leader sophomore Gaby Beilke and fellow club leader sophomore Evelyn Chlebek discovered their love of knitting over winter break, Beilke said they felt inspired to start the club.

“We realized how much we love (knitting) over winter break, and thought ‘what if other people at school love doing this kind of stuff too?’” Beilke said.

Chlebeck said the club provides a place and time dedicated to yarn crafts.

“We just wanted a place to do yarn things. We used to search around to find a place before school on Tuesday and Thursdays, to sit and knit, so we made a place to do that,” Chlebeck said.

According to Beilke, the club’s goal is to educate students about yarn and give students a way to give unused yarn a purpose.

“Our goal is to teach everyone who wants to know how to do stuff with yarn. Everybody has yarn just sitting in their house, so we thought why not put it to use?” Beilke said.

Beilke said their appreciation of knitting was rekindled over winter break at a movie marathon.

“(Evelyn and I) went to a 12-hour ‘Lord of the Rings’ movie marathon, and I thought that I was going to fall asleep because it’s so long. So then I thought about how in elementary school I (finger knitted), so I bought five balls of yarn to the marathon, and I got it all finger knitted during the movie marathon,” Beilke said.

According to Chlebeck, knitting is a productive and rewarding activity.

“It is a fun use of your time. You can learn how to knit something useful, like hats. I know how to knit hats, but I haven’t been doing it recently because it requires a loom, which I can’t compress into my backpack,” Chlebeck said. “It’s just a relaxing thing to spend your time doing.”

Chlebeck said Yarn club is a calm way to start the day, and all students are welcome regardless of ability.

“It is just a fun place to hang out in the morning and just chill. We will teach you how to knit if you want,” Chlebeck said. “I have yarn I am planning to bring for other people to use.”

Sophomore club leader Oliver MacDonald, who is learning how to knit, said everyone in the group is able to respect each other.

“I think my favorite part about the club is, sorry to be throwing a pun in here, but it’s kind of knitted tightly together and a very tight group,” MacDonald said. “I think all of us get along really well, and that’s fun.”

According to MacDonald, those who are inexperienced with yarn will still be able to enjoy Yarn club.

“I would like to tell (students) they should join or at least try to knit, and if they can’t do that, there are other things to do with yarn than just knitting,” MacDonald said. “There’s crocheting and all these other fun things that you can do with the yarn that I think people should start trying.”

MacDonald said the future of Yarn club is bright.

“I thought (Yarn club) was a cool idea, and then I got involved in it,” MacDonald said. “It has grown quite a bit, and I think that we have the potential to grow even more.”

According to MacDonald, Yarn club meets Thursday mornings before school.