YarnCon, the Chicago-centric celebration of yarn and fiber art and brainchild of Sara Ware and Natalia Wilson (Lindy Sinclair came onboard as a co-coordinator in 2011), is fast approaching with a new look and venue for all lovers of fiber crafts. The new location, the Stephen F Bailey Auditorium of the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union 130UA, is much larger than the previous space, allowing more vendors and more spacious walkways. What's more is that although YarnCon was founded partially because Chicago yarn enthusiasts who commute by bike and public transportation had no show of their own in the city, there is plenty of parking at the venue.
This year's event is two days instead of one, from 11a.m. to 7p.m. on April 6 and 11a.m. to 4p.m. on April 7. The Stephen F Bailey Auditorium is located at 1340 W Washington Blvd in the West Loop neighborhood of Chicago, so true to its roots, it is accessible by both the CTA Green Line and Blue Line, and several CTA bus lines.
YarnCon is currently accepting applications for vendors, volunteers, and workshop instructors through both email and their website. Vendors and other participants are not required to be based in Chicago, as past vendors have been located all over the Midwest and beyond, but the focus is on community and independent ownership. Volunteers can anticipate signing up for a shift, and in exchange for their time, they will receive a free meal and free entry to YarnCon itself. To express interest in being a volunteer, click here to submit some information to the organizers of the event.
With more space, YarnCon is expanding its class and workshop list, in addition to its vendor list. After collecting feedback for the past several months, the YarnCon Vendor Application is live in their website and can be found here. The deadline to submit an application to exhibit and sell wares at YarnCon is February 22, 2013. After this date, applications will be considered if there is still room and participants will be informed by March 21 if their application has been accepted.
For workshop applications, proposals can also be submitted by February 22 with specific information needed to be considered (information derived from the YarnCon facebook page):
*Workshop name and a short description
*prerequisite skills
*your fee for teaching the workshop
*price of any kits if they are not included in the workshop fee (and whether or not they are required for the workshop)
*any tools or supplies students should bring
*how long the workshop will run (in 1 or 2 hour blocks, please)
*maximum number of students you can take
Any inquiries regarding workshop proposals, in addition to general questions about teaching at YarnCon, can be emailed to the organizers at info@yarnygoodness.com.
To receive more information about the event, the YarnCon coordinators are in full-on promotion mode to get the word out regarding details surrounding the first weekend in April. They will be speaking at the Windy City Knitting Guild meeting on February 19, and they also have a facebook page, website, Ravelry group, and Twitter feed. For more specific information, inquiries can be emailed to info@yarnygoodness.com.
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