Wanting to Build a Community

I’ve been a fiber artist for a long time. By fiber artist, I mean that I’ve been knitting, crocheting, weaving, spinning, and fiddling around with things that concern fiber for over 18 years now. During that time, my family and I have moved around the country quite a bit. My husband’s career requires us to move frequently. During that time, I have found that it hasn’t always been easy to establish a community, but having my fiber arts has made it easier. Lately, I’ve been kinda active online and what I’ve realized is that I really want to build a community…

This might seem weird to you because many of us don’t live on an island by ourselves, but if we all really think about it, there are times when it sure does feel that way. I think this is especially true when you have a hobby that isn’t really common, like knitting…or any of the other fiber arts. We are kinda the 1% of the community, of sorts. Truthfully, sometimes I wish that there were more of us out here connecting around the creativity of fiber arts.

I mean, I really had no idea of the sheer number of people using fiber to be creative until I watched a video on Youtube by Emma on the history of Ravelry. In that video, I learned that there are over 9 million users on Ravelry, currently. I’m sure that number will grow, but I personally know at least 10 people that don’t have a Ravelry account, which means that there are thousands, if not millions of people out here playing with fiber and not accounted for.

Anyway…I digress.

My point in saying all of this is that I yearn for more of a sense of community. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get it in person, but I’ve started connecting more on TikTok and even engaged more on Instagram. These social media platforms are meant to be social, so social it’s what I’m going to do.

In general, I connect on Tiktok at least once every other day, and my account is growing, but I have concerns. The platform seems to be scheduled to disappear. With the friction between the US government and the owner of Tiktok, it doesn’t seem to be a place where I should be too comfortable with growing and staying connected.

In comes my ability to problem solve with a vengeance…

With this in mind, I’ve had to be intentional about what I want to do and how I want to do it. Obviously, I want a community of my own, to belong to and connect with, that involves my love for fiber arts. I’ve owned a web development and marketing agency for sometime now and I know that social media platforms can be unstable, so I definitely didn’t want to build my community there.

I decided that I would establish a Patreon. This would be a central place for all of my supporters to connect and decide how far that want to take our connection. If they just wanted updates, on all the things I’m doing and where I’m posting, there would be the free membership, but if the wanted more…because I want to give more as well, there would be the paid membership options, which would open them up to a whole new world of possibilities…

The DISCORD group!

Yes, I am that excited about this group. I did all caps and almost screamed it at you. LOL

This is where I’m building. I’ve decided to use discord and my other tech skills to build a community that I can facilitate and cultivate over time, and in a way that feeds my need for community. This might be a little selfish of me, but I honestly think that I’m not alone in this.

I think there are other fiber arts lovers out there wanting the same thing that I want, but aren’t sure how to get it. I’ve just decided to take all of my skills and use them to help us get to that next level as a community. I’m sure that I’m not the only doing this, but I know that I am one of the few that are willing to do it on this level.

So, if you’ve come this far, it’s because you have an inkling of a desire for community, like I do. If you are interested in joining or at least learning more, be sure to check out my Patreon and decide how you would like to show your support, while becoming a cherished member of our community. (Be sure to check your popup blocker. The window might not open up, if you don’t.)