Published: Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Camano Island woman crocheting her online empire
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Kristi O'Harran / The Herald
Laurie Wheeler shows her crochet work, including an octopus, at Cama Beach on Camano Island recently. Wheeler has a worldwide following at her website, Crochet Liberation Front.
Laurie Wheeler calls herself Fearless Leader of the Crochet Liberation Front. Last month, she had almost 250,000 visitors to the CLF Facebook page, where the talk is all about creating items from yarn.
When she saw those looky-loo numbers, she was online at one of her favorite places, she said, the Camano Island Library.
"I was a little loud," she said. "I said 'Holy cow!'"
Her path in life started with travel. She grew up in Oregon and left home at 18. She went to college in England and studied international relations. Wheeler worked in Africa and in the Middle East in international sales. She came back to the United States at the end of 1998 where she met the park ranger of her dreams, Jeff Wheeler. In 2001 they moved to Camano Island where he was set to open Cama Beach State Park.
She was 31 in 2001, a stay-at-home woman with two children, wondering what to do with herself because at first glance, they had moved to a retirement community. Wheeler met a woman in Stanwood and learned how to spin yarn by hand. She knew how to crochet since she was a little girl.
"Everything changed when I learned how to hand spin," she said. "It opened a new world of creativity."
She said she loves working with fibers, making pictorial pieces or doing free form. She attended conventions for fiber arts.
As a political analyst, she felt that her yarn work was put down, unappreciated.
"In 2007, I wrote a blog post declaring the Crochet Liberation Front," Wheeler said. "Today there are 8,000 people on my message board."
She has readers from Argentina, Syria, Turkey and Russia.
"A lot of people who craft don't know there are people locally who crochet," Wheeler said "People have been able to connect, like a bulletin board."
There were people out there who felt isolated.
"Those who crochet don't tend to group," she said. "I caught the commonology of language."
Wouldn't it be cool, she said, if they didn't do this in isolation?
Last year she offered a retreat at Cama Beach and 30 crochet enthusiasts attended. Several folks stayed in the historic cabins at the beach. She paired the event with the Center for Wooden Boats at Cama. Together the visitors made a nautical-themed afghan.
"We had classes from 9 a.m. to noon," she said. "The rest of the time we did community building and enjoyed music."
The Crochet Liberation Front is partnering with the Center For Wooden Boats and PinchKnitter Yarns in Stanwood to offer a Crochet@Cama Retreat Oct. 16 to 20 at Cama Beach.
The retreat includes breakfast, a goody bag, massages, meditation, nature walks, tea tasting, prizes, games and a barbecue.
Some of the classes will be in an almost-finished retreat center at the beach, above the rental cabins, that is gorgeous. I got to peek inside at the amazing fireplace, spacious meeting rooms and enthralling bay view.
"The retreat is the place to come to restore your creativity," Wheeler said. "Reconnect with old friends and make deep and lasting new friendships."
For more information about this year's retreat, go to tinyurl.com/CrochetCama.
Jim Price, who lives in Spokane, taught at last year's retreat. He turns and hand carves crochet hooks from branch wood.
He said he can attest the retreat is a great event and he'll be there this year.
Wheeler plans to take the group for a reception at PinchKnitter Yarns in Stanwood. Owner Sirkku Bingham said Wheeler shows the group what yarn works best for what projects.
"It was incredible last year," Bingham said. "Many are returning this year."
Wheeler said it's important to select the correct yarn.
"Women often choose to not spend money on themselves," she said. "They don't want to waste money so they use a not-as-good yarn. Their projects don't turn out."
Living on Camano Island has turned out fine for Wheeler, she said.
It's a place where she found many lovely friends.
"My kids know every deer trail," she said. "This is a beautiful place with many talented, creative people."
Kristi O'Harran: 425-339-3451, oharran@heraldnet.com.
Crochet retreat
A Crochet@Cama Retreat is planned for Oct. 16 to 20 at Cama Beach on Camano Island.
It's the second annual retreat, all about crocheting, organized by Laurie Wheeler of Camano Island.
For more information, go to tinyurl.com/CrochetCama.
When she saw those looky-loo numbers, she was online at one of her favorite places, she said, the Camano Island Library.
"I was a little loud," she said. "I said 'Holy cow!'"
Her path in life started with travel. She grew up in Oregon and left home at 18. She went to college in England and studied international relations. Wheeler worked in Africa and in the Middle East in international sales. She came back to the United States at the end of 1998 where she met the park ranger of her dreams, Jeff Wheeler. In 2001 they moved to Camano Island where he was set to open Cama Beach State Park.
She was 31 in 2001, a stay-at-home woman with two children, wondering what to do with herself because at first glance, they had moved to a retirement community. Wheeler met a woman in Stanwood and learned how to spin yarn by hand. She knew how to crochet since she was a little girl.
"Everything changed when I learned how to hand spin," she said. "It opened a new world of creativity."
She said she loves working with fibers, making pictorial pieces or doing free form. She attended conventions for fiber arts.
As a political analyst, she felt that her yarn work was put down, unappreciated.
"In 2007, I wrote a blog post declaring the Crochet Liberation Front," Wheeler said. "Today there are 8,000 people on my message board."
She has readers from Argentina, Syria, Turkey and Russia.
"A lot of people who craft don't know there are people locally who crochet," Wheeler said "People have been able to connect, like a bulletin board."
There were people out there who felt isolated.
"Those who crochet don't tend to group," she said. "I caught the commonology of language."
Wouldn't it be cool, she said, if they didn't do this in isolation?
Last year she offered a retreat at Cama Beach and 30 crochet enthusiasts attended. Several folks stayed in the historic cabins at the beach. She paired the event with the Center for Wooden Boats at Cama. Together the visitors made a nautical-themed afghan.
"We had classes from 9 a.m. to noon," she said. "The rest of the time we did community building and enjoyed music."
The Crochet Liberation Front is partnering with the Center For Wooden Boats and PinchKnitter Yarns in Stanwood to offer a Crochet@Cama Retreat Oct. 16 to 20 at Cama Beach.
The retreat includes breakfast, a goody bag, massages, meditation, nature walks, tea tasting, prizes, games and a barbecue.
Some of the classes will be in an almost-finished retreat center at the beach, above the rental cabins, that is gorgeous. I got to peek inside at the amazing fireplace, spacious meeting rooms and enthralling bay view.
"The retreat is the place to come to restore your creativity," Wheeler said. "Reconnect with old friends and make deep and lasting new friendships."
For more information about this year's retreat, go to tinyurl.com/CrochetCama.
Jim Price, who lives in Spokane, taught at last year's retreat. He turns and hand carves crochet hooks from branch wood.
He said he can attest the retreat is a great event and he'll be there this year.
Wheeler plans to take the group for a reception at PinchKnitter Yarns in Stanwood. Owner Sirkku Bingham said Wheeler shows the group what yarn works best for what projects.
"It was incredible last year," Bingham said. "Many are returning this year."
Wheeler said it's important to select the correct yarn.
"Women often choose to not spend money on themselves," she said. "They don't want to waste money so they use a not-as-good yarn. Their projects don't turn out."
Living on Camano Island has turned out fine for Wheeler, she said.
It's a place where she found many lovely friends.
"My kids know every deer trail," she said. "This is a beautiful place with many talented, creative people."
Kristi O'Harran: 425-339-3451, oharran@heraldnet.com.
Crochet retreat
A Crochet@Cama Retreat is planned for Oct. 16 to 20 at Cama Beach on Camano Island.
It's the second annual retreat, all about crocheting, organized by Laurie Wheeler of Camano Island.
For more information, go to tinyurl.com/CrochetCama.
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