In 2005 Danielle Landes started World Wide Knit in Public Day. It began as a way for knitters to come together and enjoy their passion of knitting whilst also enjoying the company of others.  It's now become the largest knitter run event in the world and will be held this year on Saturday June 13th.

Hook & Hop are holding a KIP (knit in public) event at Melbourne Central (L2, 300 La Trobe St, in front of Plantation) from 10am to 4pm. So if you'd like to spend some time with other like-minded knitters and crocheters making beanies and scarves for people in need in your community, grab your yarn, needles and hooks and join in.  They're even holding classes (11am-12noon crochet and 1-2pm knitting) for a gold coin donation and all proceeds will go to KOGO (knit one give one).

For other KIP events around Australia - check out this list on the World Wide Knit in Public Day website and HAPPY KNITTING!

In March, on my annual visit to the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show at the beautiful Carlton Gardens, I was in awe of Phillip Johnson's garden exhibit incorporating thousands of knitted and crocheted poppies. The exhibit was a tribute to Phillip's great grandfather who fought and lost his life during WWI in the Somme.  The garden was inspired by the bushy area of Reedy Creek near Broadford in Victoria. His great grandfather had spent many hours walking through the bush and along the winding creeks with his wife and children.
The knitted and crocheted poppies were on loan from the '5000 Poppies Project' organised by Lynn Berry. Though instead of achieving the goal of 5000 handcrafted poppies for the project, an overwhelming 250,000 poppies were donated from all over Australia and some from overseas too. Federation Square, in the heart of the city of Melbourne, is now a brilliant blaze of red, displaying these gorgeous poppies.
Well done to Phillip Johnson and Lynn Berry - it was a truly moving tribute.  And well done also to all the crafty people who donated these lovely momentos to commemorate the Anzac Centenary.  Lest we Forget. 

Well, I finally finished the single bed, afghan blanket that I started almost 12 months ago!  Of course, it didn't take me that long to crochet the rug, it's just that I kept putting the project aside, especially when it came to joining up all the squares and sewing off all the ends.  (Not my favourite bit!) Sometimes you need an incentive to finish off your project - maybe it's a birthday gift, for the birth of new baby in the family or to wear at a special occasion?  My big incentive to finish this project was the season launch of kogo (Knit One Give One) for 2015, held last Sunday.

kogo started out in 2004 with a few ladies sitting around a lounge room enjoying their favourite pastime of knitting.  They were hatching a plan of how to assist people who were homeless; so these people could benefit from their treasured garments. Well, since its inception kogo have distributed over 200,000 beanies, scarves, blankets, clothes and toys via 250 different public benevolent institutions, charities and government agencies, contributed by around 5,000 volunteer creative people.  What a great way to enjoy the wonderful crafts of knitting and crochet, and also participate in a much-needed community project.

So, do you also have a project that's tucked away in the cupboard somewhere - a half-finished shawl, a jumper you thought would be great for (last) winter, maybe a baby's blanket for an upcoming birth?  Time to get click-clacking and get rewarded with that "just-finished" feeling. 

Check out these items in my store Bella Baby Bamboo Blend and Bella Baby Silk Blend and also see which yarns are currently on SALE.