Welcome!

Welcome to the Purl Street Scarf Project! Conceived for the first annual Detroit Maker Faire, the Purl Street Scarf is a collaborative project to promote the joy of knitting and crochet. The venture was designed to pay tribute to technology with a craft typically thought of as old fashioned and tiresome. Our goal is to make a scarf that will be able to wrap around the neck of the Thomas Edison statue located in Greenfield Village (maybe even several times!) At Maker Faire we will be teaching people how to do basic knit and crochet stitches as they add their rows to the scarf. Or, if someone already knows these awesome skills, they can either add rows onto the scarf or make an independent piece that will be added on later.

The Purl Street Scarf is named in honor of Thomas Edison's first commercial power station. On September 4, 1882, the Pearl Street Station, located in lower Manhattan provided light and electricity to 59 customers in a one square mile area. In this project, we want people to plug in with yarn and get a charge out of knitting and crochet.

Maker Faire is a festive salute to makers, tinkers, inventors, builders and crafters. It is a place where arts, science, engineering and crafts can connect and inspire each other. This is the first year this two day, family friendly gathering is being held in the Detroit area. It will be at The Henry Ford, where technology, agriculture, crafts and traditional home arts are celebrated every day. The dates for this year's fair is July 31 and August 1, 2010. For more information, please visit Maker Faire at The Henry Ford.

We hope you can come to Maker Faire on July 31 or August 1 (or both!) to share your love of the loop as well as be inspired by others just as crazy passionate as you are. However, if you can't, you can still participate in the project. Just knit or crochet a swatch in a 3, 6, or 12 inch square. The scarf will be 12 inches wide so these dimensions will all fit together nicely. Then mail it to Neighborhood Knits in care of Carolyn. Please include your name so it can be added to the list of contributors as well as your signature on a separate piece of paper. (We will be asking people to sign their name on a poster board at the Maker Faire so this way yours can be included.)

Yarn geeks represent! And help keep Tom warm!