Once again CGOA offers vast opportunities for those that are, or those that strive to be, professionals in the crochet industry!

At the Knit and Crochet Show this July 23-27, 2014, in Manchester, New Hampshire, there may not be the traditional “Professional Development Day (PDD)”, but there are many learning and networking options available. 

On Wednesday, there are three different events that can aid any professional. “Get Your Geek On” is an opportunity to discuss crochet structure and technical processes of actually creating a stitch; while “Master’s Crochet the CGOA Way” may be focused on the CGOA Master’s Program, but will share with you information that will improve your crochet abilities and help you to look critically at your work. I cannot forget “Professional Think Tank”, an informal setting that is designed to aide all crochet professionals, by addressing your pressing questions, and honing your communication skills while networking with others.

However the opportunities do not end with Wednesday. 

The CGOA Education Committee has had a hand in ensuring that there are some terrific classes such as:

• ·         Thursday “Design Inspiration” with Lily Chin.

• ·         On Friday there is “How to Market Your Knit & Crochet Business” with Kate Preston and “Independent Pattern Publication” with Mary Beth Temple.

• ·         Saturday continues different options with “Color Theory and Fiber Artisan” with Suzanne Allen.

• ·         While Sunday rounds out options with “Healthy Hands” with Suzanne Allen, “Draping a Pattern- a Demonstration” with Lily Chin, and “Teaching Challenges” with Karen Klemp. 

This list does not even include all the wonderful technique classes available, there are so many to list that I would basically be reposting the class listing. 

There are also many “informal get-togethers” being planned for those that are recognized as Associate Professionals and Professionals with CGOA (keep an eye open on the Professional Yahoo Group for the locations and times, they will be posted as the event nears). If you are interested in applying for Associate Professional or Professional status, please apply here (www.crochet.org). 

If you are able to attend this, the 20^th Anniversary conference of CGOA, you will not be at a loss for learning and gaining new friends!

Check out all available classes, events, and registration at http://www.knitandcrochetshow.com/

Look forward to seeing you there!

Summer Professional Development Day!

Thank you, Lion Brand Yarn, for sponsoring the CGOA Professional Development Day in Indianapolis! 

It was a fun and educational day thanks to our many fabulous presenters!

Bobbie Matela speaking on editor critique.

Melissa Leapman presenting how to create a proposal.

Kimberly McAlindin our emcee for the day.

Amy Shelton discusses social media.

Walking into the room was like walking in to a candy store! Lion Brand Yarn donated all the hooks and yarn for our attendees to make squares for “Warm Up America”! The tables were centered with all different colors and collections to choose from!

“Warm Up America" provided several different patterns to work on - lots of fun deciding what to do first! Our Attendees really knocked out a lot of squares for a great cause!

A very big thank you for all the great raffle prizes that were donated! 

Karen Ratto-Whooley, Pamela Price Designs, Ellen K. Gormley, Coats & Clark/Red Heart Yarn, Margaret Hubert, Susan Lowman, Random House/Doris Chan, Crochet 1-2-3/Value-Publishing, Caron Yarn, Universal Yarns and Tahki Stacy Charles all donated to help raise funds for “Warm Up America”!  We collected $486 in raffle sales! Thank you!

Most of all we would like to thank those who attended Professional Development Day! Without your attendance there would be no Professional Development Day! You don't need to be a professional to attend our event - it is for the everyday crocheter or knitter who is considering/dreaming about entering the profession - whether you are thinking about designing, contract crocheting/knitting or tech editing.

It's not too late to sign up for our October Professional Development Day in Concord, NC! We hope to see you there!

Enter the Professional Development Committee's GIVEAWAY CONTEST!

Giveaways are a lot of fun and this one is no exception! CGOA's Professional Development Committee is excited to tell you about a fabulous free giveaway sponsored by Lion Brand yarn.

Lion Brand is the proud sponsor of Professional Development Day which will be held in Indianapolis, IN on July 17 and in Charlotte, NC October 2. You can find all the details here http://www.knitandcrochetshow.com/ and we hope you can join us for at least one show!

What Can You Win?

Take a look and see the fabulous prize package you can win. (Disclaimer: All photos shown are meant as samples only. Yarn photos do not indicate the color that may be included in the prize package.)

Copyright: All photos are copyright Lion Brand Yarn and are used with permission.

• A pack of Lion Brand's newest yarn release, Heartland, and the Royal Triangle Shawl pattern

• A pack of Bonbon mini-skeins and the Mini Granny Square Bookmarks pattern

• A skein of Kitchen Cotton and the One Ball Soap Bag pattern

• A tape measure, tote bag, and crochet hook

How Can You Enter?

To enter, simply comment on this blog post. If you've attended Professional Development Day in the past, tell us what is your favorite part about it! If you've never been, tell us why you would love to attend. You can also earn a second entry by visiting and "liking" the CGOA Professional Development Facebook page.


Contest Rules
Contest will be managed by the Rafflecopter app on the CGOA Professional Development Facebook page. Winner will be selected by random drawing by Rafflecopter.
Open to U.S. and Canadian residents only.
Must be 18 years or older to enter.
Void where prohibited by law.

Contest ends July 1, 2013, at midnight EDT.

Winner will be announced on the CGOA Professional Development Facebook page.

Winner must provide a valid email address to the CGOA Professional Development Facebook page via a Direct Message to the page by midnight EDT on July 8, 2013. If a message is not received by that time, the prize package will be forfeit and another winner will be selected.
This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. We hereby release Facebook of any liability. Winner(s) will be contacted by email 48 hours after receiving email address.

Good luck to everyone!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Professional Development Day: Social Media

Are you stumped by social media? Does it all seem very overwhelming? Amy Shelton is going to help take the mystery out of it! You don't want to miss her Professional Development Day presentation of "Making the Most of Social Media"!

Facebook. Twitter. Pinterest. Instagram. LinkedIn. Ravelry. Crochetville. There are so many social media sites, and a designer has so little time. Amy Shelton helps our professionals learn the benefits of each site and shows how to create an action plan for spending online time wisely and effectively. Sign up today!

Visit Knit & Crochet Show for more information.

National Crochet Month and Professional Development

I'd like to thank Amy Shelton and Donna Hulka of Crochetville for hosting this exciting blog tour in celebration of National Crochet Month! I have enjoyed reading all the posts each day this month. You can find the complete list here in case you missed any of them.

Please join us in supporting Project Night Night which is an organization that provides homeless children with a new security blanket, an age-appropriate children's book, and a stuffed animal -- all nestled inside of a new canvas tote bag. You can find all the details here.

For those of you that don't know me, I am Tammy Hildebrand and I am thrilled to be serving as your Vice President this year. Having previously served as CGOA's mentor coordinator and the professional development chairperson, I'd like to take this opportunity to share some of the great benefits CGOA has to offer.

Did you know the Crochet Guild offers a mentoring program at no additional charge other than the cost of membership? We've got professional members ready to help you achieve your goals whether you're working towards a career in technical editing, contract crocheting, teaching, and of course designing. You must already be actively pursuing your goals on your own but if you qualify, our mentor coordinator will place you with an established professional to work with one-on-one for up to two years!

Currently in development is a brand new online teaching group. Some of your favorite conference teachers will share their experience and knowledge on topics such as how to propose and prepare classes, creating handouts for your students, how to gauge your time, material fees and so on. This is not a class on teaching so you must already have some teaching experience.

And speaking of the conference, we will be in Indianapolis, IN July 17-21 for our summer show and in Charlotte, NC October 2 - 6 for our fall conference. Read about all the exciting events and classes planned for the annual Knit and Crochet Show. One of my favorite events is Professional Development Day, also known as PDD. This is a daylong event that kicks off the conference first thing Wednesday morning. Each year we have a different theme, various speakers and topics, and interesting formats to help you increase your knowledge about what it takes to be a professional.

Also at our conferences we hold a  "Designer Meet and Greet" with editors and publishers from your favorite       magazines and yarn companies. This is such a unique opportunity to have actual face time to show your designs to the publishers. It is not uncommon to sell a design right off your back! Where else could you do something like that? So what are you waiting for? Stop by our website to learn more and you too could be a member of the Crochet Guild of America!

Be sure to pop over to This is Crochet, our other stop on the tour today. Turquoiz Blue is one of our  professional members that designs beautiful fashion, accessories and home decor. Be sure to check out her Fleurette Scarf, a clever piece done in Tunisian Knit Stitch that I think is so pretty.

You can find me on my blog at Hot Lava Crochet and also on Facebook at Hot Lava Crochet. I hope I will  see many of you at an upcoming conference. Please be sure to come up and introduce yourself!