It’s that time again – time to be a camper at Camp Loopy this summer! This is our second year hosting you all for Camp, and we anticipate a great summer of knitting.

How does it work?  First of all, there is no travel involved. This is Virtual Camp! That also means no bugs, no hard ground to sleep on, no sand in your food, no campfire smoke in your eyes, and no swimming tests to prove that you know how to save yourself if your canoe tips. Just lots of knitting, meeting new friends, contests, challenges, and fun!

We will be knitting a different challenge project each month, for the next 3 months. You can choose to knit for one month, two months, or all three months. There are benefits and prizes for completing your projects on time and an extra bonus for doing all three. I know quite a few of you have mentioned that your Camp Loopy knitting will be used for holiday gifts, which is a great way to get a jump-start on those projects.

Here is our schedule:

Project One: needs to be knit or crocheted between 5/27 and 6/27 (with a photo of the completed project uploaded to our Project One Photo Gallery by 6/29).

The Challenge for Project One – We’re all celebrating the Olympics this summer, so in keeping with the theme of many countries coming together for one event, your challenge for Project One is to knit something using a pattern from a designer who was born in (or currently lives in) a country other than your own. The only other guideline is that the completed project needs to be least 400 yards (370 m). I’ve added some designer links to the bottom of this post, in case you need some ideas!

Project Two: needs to be knit or crocheted between 6/27 and 7/27 (photo uploaded by 7/29).

Challenge Two details coming in June!

Project Three: needs to be knit or crocheted between 7/27 and 8/27 (photo uploaded by 8/29). This coincides with the Olympics, in case you’re knitting for that, too. Although the Olympics end before our Camp deadline ends.

Challenge Three details coming in July!

International knitters/crocheters: Since we started the Camp Loopy Store Week earlier this year, we don’t anticipate that you’ll need extra time on the deadlines. Hopefully your packages will get to you in plenty of time to start on the Project One dates with everyone else. But don’t delay in ordering – get it in as soon as you can.

The benefits:

1. If you need to purchase yarn for your project, we are offering a 20% Camp Loopy discount for the yarn during a designated “Camp Loopy Store Week” each month. The first discount, for Project One, is valid on one camp project’s worth of yarn purchased during Camp Store Week One (May 9 – May 16th). To get the discount, you will need to leave us an order note on the order, telling us which yarn will be used for your Camp Project, and you’ll need to purchase what you need in one order, so calculate carefully. We’ll apply the discount when your order comes through to us. If you’re going for free shipping in the U.S., please make sure that your discount won’t take you below the $75 level, or the website will add the shipping charge back in after we do the discount.

2. In addition to the 20% discount on your yarn during Camp Store Week, we’ll also double your Frequent Shopper Benefits from that yarn purchase, if your project is done and a photo of it is uploaded to our Camp Loopy Photo Gallery by the deadline. (Yarn must be purchased during that month’s Camp Store Week for the double credits benefit.) So if your project yarn costs you $30, you’ll see $30 added to your Frequent Shopper totals after your order ships, and then we’ll add in another $30 to your totals when we approve your photo to the Gallery by the deadline.

3.  If you choose to do all three projects with us (photos uploaded by the deadline and yarn for each project purchased during Camp Store Week for that project) we will also be awarding you a special skein of fingering weight cashmere blend, in an exclusive Camp Loopy Colorway. (We will have 3 different exclusive Camp colors for you to choose from, so that you can pick your favorite.) This luscious skein will be perfect for socks, shawls, scarves, cowls, or mitts.

So if you participate in all three months of Camp and follow the guidelines, you’ll get 3 projects done at a discount, you’ll no doubt earn one or more Frequent Shopper Bonuses, and you’ll get a skein of a luxury cashmere blend for yet another project. Cool beans!

Now – here are the answers to your Frequently Asked Questions about Camp Loopy:

Q. Can we participate with weaving instead of knitting or crochet?
A. For Camp Loopy, we’re sticking with knitting or crochet. You can weave for our regular Quarterly Challenges. Just not Camp Loopy.

Q. I ordered two colors for my project and I don’t like how they go together. Can I substitute a color from my stash for one of the colors, or can I order a different color now?
A. Yes.

Q. If I substitute a color, will it still count towards Camp Loopy benefits?
A. If you use at least one color that you ordered from us during Camp Store Week for that project, your project will still be eligible, if you finish by the deadlines. When we approve your project photo in the gallery, we will then add a second FSB amount to your totals for the project yarn that was ordered during Camp Store Week and used in your project. So if you ordered two colors and used both in your final project (done by the deadlines), we will add the amount of both yarns as a bonus. If you ordered two but only used one of those for your final project, we will add the amount of the one yarn that was used.

Q. I didn’t get to order during Camp Store Week, but if I order my project yarn later in that same month and complete the project by the deadline, does that still count, even though I know I don’t get the Camp Loopy discount?
A. Yes! Mostly. :-) Make sure that you add a “Camp Loopy” note to your order, so that we know you’re participating. You’ll still be eligible for the project drawings and prizes for that month, and if you finish all three projects by the deadlines, you’ll still get the bonus – a free skein of that luscious cashmere blend. You won’t be eligible for double FSB credits for this project, since the yarn wasn’t ordered during Camp Store Week.

Q. I want to participate using yarn from my stash. Does that still count?
A. You are welcome to participate and knit from stash and upload it to the gallery, as long as it’s yarn that we carry at The Loopy Ewe. (We always require projects in our Photo Galleries to be from yarn that we carry at TLE.) You will still be eligible for drawings and prizes for the month, but you won’t be eligible for the FSB double credits or the free cashmere blend yarn at the end.

Q. When you say to knit the project between 5/27 and 6/27, when EXACTLY does the timing start?
A. You can start at 12:01 am your time on 5/27 if you’d like, although a good night’s sleep and a good breakfast might be a better idea. The project needs to be done by 11:59 pm on 6/27, your time. The photos need to be uploaded by 11:59 pm OUR time (Mountain Time) on 6/29.

Q. Should we be starting a new Camp Loopy Group on Ravelry?
A. No. Since it’s an activity through The Loopy Ewe, I’d like to keep it as a part of our regular Loopy Groupies group. However, you’ll see Camp Loopy threads popping up on the Loopy Groupie board, based on different activities each month.

Q. When you specify yardage in a project, can I use up the yardage by knitting double stranded? So you if say 400 yards, can I do a 200 yard project, holding the yarn double? That would use 400 yards.
A. No, no doubling the yarn to get the yardage. If you’d like to knit something double stranded, you’ll need to use 800 yards so that you end up with a 400 yard project when it’s done.

Q. How do I know if I’m on track for the free yarn bonus, and when will I get it?
A. If you have earned the extra Frequent Shopper points for each project (which you will see as a note added to your Camp Store Week order for that project, once your photo has been uploaded on time and approved), then you are on track. Once Camp is over and the yarn is ready, we’ll send you a notice to let you choose your camp colorway. You will have the option of having your bonus yarn added in the box with your next order from us, or you can choose to pay for shipping to have it sent to you right away on its own.

Q. Why do we have to purchase the yarn during Camp Store Week each month, if we want the bonuses?
A. Two reasons. One – it costs us money to fund this (the contests, the extras, the free yarn at the end) and your purchases help us to be able to afford to do this. Two – it helps us to guarantee that everyone is knitting for the project during the designated time and not simply pulling a finished (or half finished) project out of their pile and saying they did it “for camp”. It keeps an even playing field for all of the people earning the bonuses.

Q. Will we have the chance to buy t-shirts with the Camp Loopy logo, like we did last year?
A. Yes! They’re on order and we’ll put them up on the website as soon as they arrive. And maybe a couple of other fun things, too. ;-)

Here are some links for designers currently living in (or from) a few different countries. Don’t forget – you need to pick a designer from a country different than your own! There are so many wonderful designers out there. I wish Ravelry had a way to search designs by country. (Or do they, and I just don’t know about it?) This was a result of my not-so-efficient method of clicking around randomly and finding a few to share with you. Feel free to leave other suggestions in the comments below.

United States: Wendy Johnson, Anne Hanson, Kirstin Kapur

Sweden: Johanne Landin,  Asa Tricosa, Anna Dalvi

Canada: Felicia Lo, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, Ilga Leja

Finland:Veera Valimaki, Lankakomero

Germany: Birgit Freyer, Martina Behm, Susanna IC

Scotland/UK: Ysolda Teague, Gudrun Johnston, Jane Sowerby, Alice Yu, Helen Stewart

Netherlands: Stephen West

Japan: Olga Buraya-Kefelian

We’re so looking forward to camping with you again this summer, and we have lots of fun things planned. Grab your backpack project bag and your canoe, and hop in. It’s going to be a fun summer!

Sheri thinkingIneedawhistleifI’mgoingtobeaCampLoopyCounselor