OMG! Heart Ravelry

Why has Ravelry never gotten its own post on my website!? It’s been an institution online for the Knitting and Crochet community since its inception tadalafil problema di erezione in Italy. And something that is such a given sometimes people forget to mention it! I’d been knitting for years but only found out about it around 2010. I guess I was knitting in my own bubble without many friends who shared my hobby and oblivious to such a thriving community. So perhaps a post like this may help other ninja bubble knitters (and crocheters!).

Great Community
There’s lots of groups and networks for whatever your knitting or crocheting heart desires. Ask questions in the forum, look for pattern help, plug in and make some new friends, share your expertise, or simply post your completed projects for the whole community to see. Trolling the groups is also a great way to get a birds eye view into the knitting and crochet subculture.

Great Tools
There are lots of great tools too like a project tracker, stash manager, needles and hooks manager, you can favorite your favorite projects, place them in a queue, keep track of works in progress, and check out what others have to say about the pattern you’re working on. And the tools don’t suck. All the yarns actually link to the manufacturer, colorway, etc. You can even include when you bought it and the price. They’ve really thought of everything.

For crafters who also sell their handmades online, it’s a great way to maximize your exposure. Kind of like Facebook but for Knitting or Crochet only!

What I Like Best
The really advanced pattern finder. You can search for very specific things from hats for kids in worsted weight yarn only to all free patterns for skirts to only projects using Size I9 hooks or US Size 5 Needles. It’s really handy. For crafters looking for just the right pattern or some inspiration it’s really one of the best pattern finders out there. Simply because it’s crowd sourced!

You can also find lots of helpful pattern insight. For example, if someone or some people have already worked on your pattern and posted it up, you can find it there, check out their comments and errata to see if they’ve stumbled across the same problems you have! There are so many projects and patterns, especially free ones found online, that it’s probably been done by someone on Ravelry! Yup, it’s that great.

The only cons are you must be logged in to see anything. So someone cannot simply link to a page, me on Ravelry, and just see some content. Which I find really restrictive. They should make some pages public or at least partially public like on Facebook! It would at least give people a taste of what they might be signing up for before they sign up. Other than that I hope they never change how well it works or how many great features they offer!

It’s Free!
Ravelry now has 3 million users! So it’s popular and definitely a powerful resource. 3 million knitters and crocheters from all over the world is in itself a cool concept. It’s really a knitter or crocheter’s dream online buddy. For those who are especially organized, it’s got everything you need to satisfy your obsession. Really. If you’re not already on there, check it out. It’s free to join, and you’ll find there’s something on there to suit every fiber need from dabblers to die hards!