Library Roundup

Crafters may be familiar with the temperature blanket (or scarf) trend where each row of knitting or crochet corresponds to the high temperature for the day and at the end of the year you have a colorful reminder of the year to keep you cozy. The Ramapo Catskill Library system is participating in a similar project by creating a Tempestry collection.

The Tempestry Project is a collaborative fiber art and environmental awareness initiative. A knit panel is created for each year to give a visual depiction of temperature for that year. When displayed together it creates a visual narrative of an area’s temperature over time. Following the example of the Mid-Hudson Library System, RCLS has a goal of creating a 100-year collection of tempestries to form an exhibit that will travel between libraries to be displayed. So far there are seven completed tempestries with more in progress. The tour will go on tour starting in 2027.

The Goshen Public Library & Historical Society contributed two tempestries to the project, the years 1918 and 2019. 1918 may be better known for the end of the First World War and the influenza pandemic, but it was also the year the Goshen Public Library opened its building at 203 Main St. For a century the library served its community and grew beyond its capacity until our current building at 366 Main St. opened the summer of 2019.

If you would like to contribute to the RCLS Tempestry Project, there are still many years left to choose from. You may purchase a kit through https://shorturl.at/rZ4Vb. Your completed project can be dropped off at the library and it will be sent on to RCLS.

Fiber arts for all experience levels

For those who are not ready to participate in such a project, but are interested in fiber arts, the library is the place for you. For those looking to learn a new craft we have our Libratory @ Home Kits to learn to knit, crochet or loom knit. For all levels of experience there are a multitude of books to learn a new technique or find a pattern for your next project. One recent addition to the collection is “Learn to Knit in 50 Squares” by Anna Pantelous. This is a both a knitting course and a blanket pattern with each blanket square building on previous skills and introducing new techniques. Another book for the mor ambitious is “The Doodle Knit Directory” by Jamie Lomax. This is a collection of 200 colorwork motifs and ‘recipes’ to make hats, scarves, socks and more by mixing and matching the patterns. If you just want to craft in company there are groups for you to join. Yarn Gang meets Wednesdays at 2 p.m. and the Fiber Arts Guild meets the second Friday of the month at 11:30 a.m. Both groups are drop-in, no registration required, just bring your current project.