Robin Dennis

Current Awareness Assignment

Name of Activity: Knitting Night! At Antigonish Town & County Library

Date: April 7, 2014

Description/Overview of Activity:

The library staff at Antigonish Town & County Library will host a Knitting Night where they will facilitate

and assist patrons in completing one of three patterns from “Knits for You and Your Home: 30 Blissful

Knits to Indulge, Cocoon, Pamper and Detox” by Debbie Bliss.

Purpose or Rationale of the Activity:

This activity is to increase awareness of the new knitting and crochet books that the library has

purchased due to a generous $500 anonymous donation.

How the Activity Supports the Library’s Strategic Plan (Identify Specific Goal or Objective)

The library’s objective is to be a community hub and to provide materials and events that pertain to

patrons’ general interests (in this case, knitting). By hosting an event of a social and communal nature,

they will achieve these goals and bring further attention to a large upcoming acquisition. This event will

also raise awareness of the library and services they offer (Kennedy 267).

Intended Audience:

This event is intended to appeal to patrons of all ages who already enjoy knitting, wish to learn to knit,

or would like to try a new pattern in a social setting. This crafting event will also appeal to social crafters

who prefer creating items as a group and enjoy sharing with others (Kennedy 266).

Planning and Delivery Sequence (activity plan from beginning to end):

Materials needed:

Awareness poster with the date and time of the event, as well as any supplies that patrons will

need to bring

A copy of “Knits for You and Your Home: 30 Blissful Knits to Indulge, Cocoon, Pamper and

Detox” by Debbie Bliss

A sign to let patrons know where the Knitting Night to being held

o Foam board cut into an arrow

o A hot glue gun

o Yarn (two colours)

o A crochet hook

Once the foam board is cut into an arrow, use one colour of yarn to wrap

around the arrow (secure with hot glue gun as needed)

Using a crochet hook, make three long single chain strings, and use the hot glue

gun to affix them to the yarn wrapped arrow to spell “knitting night”

When completed, hang the arrow pointing to the direction of the room that the

event will be held

Completed versions of each pattern (book mark, flower pot cover and pencil case)

Flower pots

Live or artificial flowers

Light refreshments (coffee, hot water, tea bags, donuts – see “Permissions” for further details)

o Light refreshments will encourage participation (as well as be lightly refreshing) and

provide the library staff an additional opportunity to present the new knitting books and

the library’s services as a whole (Kennedy 265)

A laptop, containing scanned images of the three patterns

o It is not feasible for 20-35 people to share one book while attempting to work from

three separate patterns.

o Photocopying pages from the book would be infringement of its copyright.

o Therefore, the most accessible way to share the patterns with the patrons is to have

them scanned and projected onto a screen to accompany the book while it is being

passed around.

A recent court ruling has deemed scanning of books acceptable use, as they are

not being sold or given away (“Court Rules”)

A projector and a projection screen

Prior to Event:

Social media accounts will be updated two weeks prior to the event, notifying followers with

plenty of advance warning.

This will also allow an online conversation to be established with the following message(Cook):

o “Join us for Knitting Night! Let’s celebrate our new knitting books with an evening of

knitting, chatting, and most importantly coffee! April 7 @ 7pm, Antigonish Branch,

Library Program Room! Ask your local librarian for more information. All proficiency

levels (including new knitters) welcome!”

Posters will be displayed at library entrances and throughout the building

o Displaying cute and creative signs around the library not only serves to make the

patrons aware of the up-coming event, they also help capture the attention of a target

group that might not traditionally attend a public library knitting night (Auten 271).

o As Antigonish is a university town, having university aged patrons attending these

events would be a boon to the library’s marketing strategy.

Not only would this develop a new relationship with these users, they in turn

would spread the word of the library’s services via word of mouth and via social

networking.

Volunteering staff and/or Friends of the Library members will make the three patterns in

advance of the event in order to be able to facilitate any tricky spots more smoothly

Day of Event:

Set up the Library Program Room with work tables and chairs, as well as refreshments table

Ensure laptop and projection screen are in working order and patterns are scanned

Hang arrow sign in a visible place so that patrons can clearly make their way to the Library

Program Room

Once patrons have all arrived, the library staff member and/or the Friends of the Library

volunteers will do a short introduction highlighting the new knitting and crochet collection

The physical copy of “Knits for You and Your Home: 30 Blissful Knits to Indulge, Cocoon, Pamper

and Detox” by Debbie Bliss will be passed around so that patrons can familiarize themselves

with the patterns

The library staff and/or the volunteer will go over what patterns will be completed during the

event, and then turn the patrons’ attention to the projection screen that will show an enlarged

version of the pattern (the images will be switched at the request of the patron) (Bliss )

The patrons will have two hours to finish, or get as much of their pattern done as they like

To conclude the event, the library staff will once again remind the patrons of the new knitting

and crochet books that are available thanks to the generous donation of an anonymous

philanthropist , and that patrons are encouraged to borrow one of these books to learn a new

skill, try a new project or just have fun.

Planning Committee Members and Responsibilities:

The committee will be comprised of library staff and members of the Friends of the Library Committee,

which will provide an outside perspective with regards to organization and planning (Kennedy).

Including members of the Friend of the Library Committee will help spread awareness of the event by

word-of-mouth. The committee’s participation is warranted and apt since their mandate is to ensure the

success of events that promote the library’s services and its collection (Kennedy). Participating staff

members will need to delegate the following items to ensure a successful delivery:

Booking the Library Program Room for three hours on the designated night

Preparing the poster and displaying it throughout the library

Making the arrow sign and hanging it

Knitting the three samples for the event

Scanning the three patterns into a laptop

Ordering and delivering the refreshments

Setting up the Library Program Room on the day of the event

Setting up the refreshments table on the day of the event

Bringing extra materials if patrons forget their own, or wish to drop in

o Comprised of extra knitting needles and extra yarn in various colours

Being on site on the day of the event to assist with patrons, answering their questions and

helping when a stitch is dropped

Library staff/Friends of the Library members to break down the tables and chairs and clear away

the refreshments after the allotted two hours are up

Budget:

The budget for this event should not run over $135.00 based on the following breakdown (costing

estimated for approximately 35 participants):

Items Details Total

Refreshments (coffee, tea, doughnuts, cookies)

Tim Horton’s “Take Ten” x2 = $24.80

2 dozen assorted doughnuts = $24.50

1 dozen assorted cookies = $13.50

1 box of tea bags (Earl Grey) = $5.00

$77.90* (HST of 15% included) (“HST”)

Materials Flower pots = 2 for $1.00

Foam board for arrow sign = $3.00

Yarn for samples = ~$15.00

Fake flowers = $2.50

~$24.75 (HST included)

Emergency reserves If patrons do not bring their own yarn and/or needles, yet still wish to participate, extras should be on hand, which would amount to an approximate amount of $30.00 (4 pairs of size 6 needles, 3 pairs of size 3 needles, 4 skeins of yarn in various colours)

~$30.00 (HST included)

Total: $132.65

* Paper napkins, paper cups, stir sticks, milk, cream, sugar and sweeter are all included in this price

Permissions:

- Media release: to be signed by patrons who participate in the event allow their picture to

appear on the library website. The Library staff might like to post pictures of patrons knitting

together as a marketing tool.

- Communications: a copy of the communication (event outline) plan will have been established

well in advance to assist the staff members executing the event, and will provide them with a

framework (Dodington 35)

o By disseminating the material to all participating staff and volunteers, organizers will be

kept on task and will be prepared to answer any questions about the event that the

participants might have

- Health and safety: a basic First Aid kit should be on hand, as patrons will be handling scissors

and potentially sharp knitting needles

- Facilities: a room of sufficient size must be booked to ensure proper space is available for a

three hour period (30 minutes for set up, two hours for the event, 30 minutes for clean-up). All

events at the Antigonish Town & County Library are held in the Library Program Room

(“Antigonish Branch Location”)

- Refreshments: Coffee, tea, assorted doughnuts, and cookies will be brought in from Tim

Horton’s. Signs will be made and placed around the refreshments, advertising them as they

“May Contain Nuts” for patrons with allergies.

Wrap-Up and Thank-You Notes:

Library staff that participate in this event will be able to add “Event Planning Skills” to their résumé.

Volunteers from the Friends of the Library Committee will receive a thank you note for their generosity,

patience, and participation.

Evaluation:

The success of this event will be assessed by the number of patrons that participate and the number of

subsequent loans of the new additions to the 746 section (textile arts).

Works Cited

“Antigonish Branch Location”. Pictou-Antigonish Regional Library. Pictou-Antigonish Regional Library.

N.d. Web 3 Apr 2014.

Auten, Beth et al. “Using NLM Exhibits And Events To Engage Library Users And Reach The Community”.

Medical Reference Services Quaterly 32.3 (2013): 266-289. Library & Information Science Source.

Web. 3 Apr 2014.

Cook, Sue and Constance Wiebrands. “Keeping Up: Strategic us of Online Social Networks for Librarian

Current Awareness”. VALA 15th Biennial Conference and Exhibition, Melbourne Convention and

Exhibition Centre. 2010. Web. 31 Mar 2014.

“Court Rules that Google Can Continue Scanning Copyrighted Books Under Fair Use”. Fair Copyright.

N.p. 13 Nov 2013. Web. 3 Apr 2014.

Dodington, Anne. “Herding Cats: PR-Friendly Library Events with Kids”. Feliciter 58.5 (2012): 35-36.

Library & Information Science Source. Web. 1 Apr 2014.

“HST”. Nova Scotia Finance and Treasury Board. Province of Nova Scotia. 14 Aug 2013. Web. 3 Apr 2014.

Kennedy, Joy C. “How to Plan a Special Event to Promote the Library”. Journal of Hospital Librarianship

11.3 (2011): 261-268. Library & Information Science Source. Web. 31 Mar 2014.

Join us! We are having a Knitting Night in the

Library to celebrate our new knitting books! Join us on Monday, April 7

th at 7:00 pm in the library program room to explore a few patterns from the

new Debbie Bliss book, “Knits for You and Your Home: 30 Blissful Knits to Indulge, Cocoon, Pamper and

Detox”! We will be trying three different patterns, one for each level of knitters!

Bookmarks (beginner); you will need

Size 3 needles

1 skein sport weight yarn

Any leftover yarn from other projects for weaving

Flowerpot Covers (intermediate); you will need

Size 6 needles

1 skein worsted weight yarn

Pencil Case (advanced); you will need

Size 6 needles

2 skeins worsted weight yarn in contrasting colours

An 8” zipper

Light refreshments and helpful encouragement will be provided by the Library Staff. Please feel free to

talk to any staff member for more information.

Brought to you by the Antigonish Town & County Library

Sample Poster to promote awareness of the up-coming

event

Completed arrow sign

Completed samples of the patterns

The final product