Group members are ready to ‘Spin a Yarn’ at Kenilworth Public Library

 

 

Alec Bost, of Milltown, recently joined the library’s ‘Spin a Yarn’ group and is making a gift for a friend.

 

Barbara Svachak, of Rahway, says the program is ‘wonderful. It’s such a great learning experience.’

 

Andrea Alexander travels from Jersey City and says this group is worth it. ‘This group is amazing,’ she said. ‘I was hooked immediately.’

 

Kai Solom, of Cranford, has been spinning for the past five years. He said he enjoys being able to make his own yarn.

 

Irene Bobbins, of Union, said loves the arts. She’s showing a basket she made recently with a natural handle made of driftwood.

 

Claudine Celebuskiof Summit, has been spinning since 2018. ‘I like to make stuff that’s very local,’ she said. She is making a sweater.

 

Karen Freid, of Rahway, has been spinning for three years. ‘I love being with people with common interests. We learn from each other.’

 

Kathleen Czarnecki, a senior programming library assistant, leads the ‘Spin a Yarn’ group, which meets at the Kenilworth Public Library on the last Tuesday of each month, from 5 to 7:30 p.m.

 

Kathy McKinny, who is a member of the library’s ‘Spin a Yarn’ group, says she finds spinning relaxing – and addicting.

KENILWORTH, NJ — Creatives feel right at home at the Kenilworth Public Library when the “Spin a Yarn” group meets.

The group started about a year or two ago. On the last Tuesday of each month, from 5 to 7:30 p.m., people meet to spin yarn on a spinning wheel or spindle. The meet-up group is led by Kathleen Czarnecki, senior programming library assistant.

“I love spinning,” said Czarnecki. “I love the way the fiber feels between your fingers. It’s like magic.”

Aside from learning to spin, Czarnecki feels the club is also about community. She said, “We all support one another. It’s all about kindness.”

People come from throughout New Jersey – including Rahway, Jersey City, Roselle, Cranford Union and Milltown – to spin at Kenilworth Public Library. Everyone brings their own wheel.

“We’ll help you learn,” said Czarnecki. “If someone new comes, we’ll try to get them going.”

Czarnecki started spinning about 10 years ago. She walked past a spinning wheel in a yarn shop in Clark. She said, “I’d look at the spinning wheel. Something made me do it – I purchased a spinning wheel.”

Kathy McKinney, who is in the group, said, “We learn from each other. We get to make yarn. It’s relaxing. It’s addicting.”

McKinney is self-taught, saying she learned on YouTube.

Alec Bost, of Milltown, recently joined the Spin a Yarn meet-up group. He said, “I love the different colors. I love how it looks. My friend loves these colors. She’s getting a surgery and I want to make her a gift.”

Kai Solom, of Cranford, has been spinning for five years. He enjoys being able to make his own yarn. He said, “You can dye and spin your own yarn. Spin some silk. Spin without intention and it will get woven into something.”

Claudine Celebuski, of Summit, has been spinning since 2018. “I like to make stuff that’s very local,” she said. The goats that made the fiber she was working with live in New Jersey. It’s cashgora – an offspring of angora and cashmere.

She likes to make her own clothes for the winter. And in the summer, she shops at thrift stores.

Irene Bobbins, of Union, said, “I have never met such a group of supportive people. They’re willing to give time and resources.”
Recently retired, Bobbins has embraced her new lifestyle. “I’ve embraced it,” she said. “I love weaving. I’m looking forward to spinning.”

Barbara Svachak, of Rahway, said, “It’s such a great learning experience. It’s hard to find spinning and weaving places to meet. It’s a wonderful program.”

Svachak has been spinning for more than three years. She recently went to the Sheep & Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, New York. “I got some pretty soft and silky fiber,” she said.

Karen Freid, of Rahway, said, “I love being with people with common interests. We learn from each other.” She’s been spinning for three years.

Andrea Alexander travels from Jersey City, but said this group is worth it. “This group is amazing,” she said. “I was hooked immediately.”

Alexander is a designer who is transitioning to teaching. She said she enjoys weaving and creating content, documenting New Jersey and New York fiber events.

For more information on the “Spin a Yarn” Group at the Kenilworth Public Library, visit the website at https://kenilworthlibrary.org/.

Photos by Maryanne Christiano-Mistretta