If you follow us on social media, you have by now seen all our posts about the upcoming 2024 Witches’ Benefit Ball on October 27th. The big day is quickly approaching, and we’ve been so awed by the local businesses and artists that have pitched in and offered their support to make this happen.

We want to talk a bit more about what the Witches’ Benefit Ball is, and what you can expect from this evening now that we are getting closer! We’ve had a ton of questions and I think it’s about time we answer some of them.

This Witches’ Benefit Ball is something we have talked about doing for YEARS and have just never had the resources to truly pull off in the way we’ve wanted. We’ve had such support and growth this year that we decided this was the year. Taylor and I cannot wait to share what we have prepared with you; and we’re very excited to see how this grows in the coming years.

We’ve wanted to host an adult only, ELEVATED witchy soiree for longer than RavenWerks has been alive. We both dreamed of something that would resonate with our friends and give us a chance to make new ones. We always an excuse to get dressed up. The idea was to create something for all of our Samhain and Halloween lovers that didn’t revolve around little kids and candy; an intimate party that calls to your inner Owens Sister. But, we also wanted to come together in a way that could be good for our community. After all, it is coming to the end of the harvest- and now it’s time to share our bounty.

What is the Witches’ Benefit Ball?

Exactly that! An evening of Cocktails, Hors d’oeuvres, Desserts, Music and activities; but with a witchy twist. We’ve had a lot of people ask if it’s a costume party- and the answer is no, not in the traditional sense. Instead, the Witches’ Benefit Ball is more like a gothic cocktail party. Dig deep into your inner Morticia and Gomez, channel your Aunt Francis and Jet, Pull out THAT dress. Now give it a magical twist and make it moody. Think like a gothic 1920’s speakeasy Gatsby party.

What to Expect at the Witches’ Benefit Ball

In addition to the small bites, witchy cocktails, pastries, photo-ops, music, and dancing (if you dare); we’re hosting a tarot reader, a best dressed competition, gifts for every attendee, a DIY floral broom station, and more. We say more because every time we think we’ve hit our cutoff- another member of our community steps forward and offers another hand- so it may very well be bigger by the big night.

A main feature of the evening is our ‘shop small’ raffle. It’s growing by the day and full of unique, handmade art from local artists, experience packages, gift cards, and other gifts from local businesses and community members. A raffle ticket is included with your ticket, but additionals are available for purchase to support our non-profits.

Who does the Witches’ Benefit Ball Help?

Community is one of our foundational pillars. Both building it and giving back to it. This is the first of what we hope is many, many fundraisers and community focused events and opportunities that we hope to create. This year’s Witches’ Benefit Ball is for two non-profit organizations that we love. 100% of the proceeds go to Sustainable Northwest and Purrfect Pals Cat Rescue. This is a completely non-profit event.

We’re also hoping it’ll will help some of our favorite local small businesses and artists to get some extra exposure as well. All of our raffle and giftbag items were donated, designed, and created by friends in Arlington and Mt. Vernon.

Sustainable Northwest:

Sustainable Northwest is a Non-profit organization that partners with communities throughout the Northwest on projects that promote smart water use, clean energy, and healthy forests, farms, and ranches.

Their solutions are as unique as the problems they solve and include entrepreneurship, policy, market innovations, public and private investment, collaboration, and technical assistance.

Sustainable Northwest was founded in 1994 to forge collaborative solutions for conserving forest and community health. Today, their challenges have multiplied with climate change, catastrophic wildfires, and persistent drought harming our region. Yet they remain optimistic that nature, people, and local economies can thrive together.

Sustainable Northwest uses every donation to help fund outreach, seminars, continuing education, policy advocation, business consultation and more in their pursuit to minimize eco footprints in a way that is beneficial for not only the environment but our businesses and communities.

Purrfect Pals Cat Rescue:

Purrfect Pals highest priority is taking in the cats and kittens who need them most… those who other shelters and rescue groups might not have the resources to help. This includes senior cats (though we prefer to call them “vintage”), cats with major medical needs, cats with chronic illnesses (including FIV and Feline Leukemia) and those with behavioral challenges.

Their cat adoption and rehabilitation programs help to place homeless cats, including those with special needs, in loving homes. We believe that every cat is adoptable; some just need more time than others to find the right match. The ultimate goal is to place them with adopters, but some might need a skilled foster family in the meantime. Purrfect Pals’ cats will always have a home with them for as long as they need it. The Purrfect Pals Sanctuary is currently home to 100+ of these special cats.

Join us for a Magickal evening.

We’d love for you to join us! If you want to learn more about the Witches’ Benefit Ball, our beneficiaries, the raffle, purrfect pals wishlist, or to purchase tickets, you can check out the event page here.

If you’d like to donate (either to the charities directly, or to the raffle), please email info@ravenwerksguild.com

You can also get sneak peeks of the event, and chat with others about it on our facebook events, as well as our instagram. We can’t wait to see you!

Happy Harvest,

Mikaela

Hey fellow crafters! 

I am switching gears a little bit today. I want to do a video on loom knitting basics but before we get to that I want to go over why loom knitting is so awesome, some of the tools you might want, and what you can make.  

I am not going to lie… when I was first knitting, I saw loom knitting as cheating or the easy way out. But I also have a policy of: 

“Don’t knock it till you try it!” 

So, I waddled my happy ass down to an art store and purchased my first kit. I can proudly say I am now hooked (pun intended).  

Why? 

Loom knitting quicker, easier to learn for beginners and easier on one’s hands for the elderly, disabled, or arthritic. If you have trouble keeping count of your stitches, I also find that loom knitting is easier to keep track of.  

What can you stitch on a loom?  

Beanies? Check.  

Scarves? Check.  

Bags? Check.  

Blankets? Check.  

Socks? Check.  

Sweaters? Check.  

The point is that anything you can get a knitting pattern for, you can also do on a loom. You can do a knit or purl stitch. The only thing to consider is that you will need to doctor a knitting pattern a bit as loom knitting is always knitting the right side (RS) and regular knitting, every other line is the wrong side (WS) so you need to convert those lines to be the opposite/ backwards.  

What do you need for your project?   

1. Yarn- this seems obvious. 
2. Either your hands or a pen- your hands also seem obvious BUT if you want to speed things up and maybe save your self a hand cramp, I saw a trick online that I love. Take the tip and inside of/out of a pen so you just have a tube (I suppose you could also use something like a straw), thread your yarn through it and literally act like you are drawing with the yarn around the pegs. If you have loom knitted, you know what I am talking about. If not… I will show you when I get to the video.  
3. A pick- you use this to throw stitches over the pegs and create the stitches. The kits come with a pick that looks like a handle with a little metal hook on the end to grab the yarn. If you bought your loom second hand though it may be missing AND I have noticed that those get broken AND they also tend to give me hand cramps over time. Knot as bad as regular knitting but like 3 hours in I can feel it.  I would recommend splurging on one at a craft store that has a bigger and/or cushier handle. I also saw someone use the cricut tool to help clean up cuts that looks like a hook and confess that I will be trying that soon. It looks comfy since it has a longer handle.  
4. A loom- Now THIS is what I was trying to get to because there are different types of looms.  

What types of looms are there and what are they for? 

So I should say first that each of them can be used for multiple things. For example, I have used the smallest circular loom to make tiny hats, stockings, mittens, ‘sponges’, and a placemat. Just because it is circular does not mean you have to knit in the round; you can do a flat piece.  And using the long rectangular looms you can make a flat piece, a circular piece like a hat or get a double layered effect.  

There are 4 main types on these looms:  

Circular Loom– These can and are mostly used to do flat panels, sponges, stockings, mittens, placemats, coasters, hats, bags and even sweaters. Most kits come with 4 standard sizes. The smallest size is mostly for preme baby hats, dish scrubbies, mittens, and little stockings. The next size up would be more like regular baby sized hats or a scarf. The next size up from that would be for adult hats, smaller bags, scarves and the like. The large one is technically a bit large for beanies, but I like it for slouchy beanies. It is also a great size for sweater parts and bags. 

Rectangular Loom– These can also be used to do beanies but it’s better to leave that to the circle and focusing on something else. These are great for sweaters, scarves, double knitting, and some blankets. I also find them easier to store in my drawers when organizing so I think they are a powerhouse.  

Sock Loom– You make socks with this.  Duh.

Infinity or Afghan Loom– This is really just a large rectangular loom but it was big enough they folded it into an infinity sign so that you can knit a larger item; like an Afghan.  

I plan in the near future to do a video showing how to get started and to make a beanie in the round vs making something flat like a pot holder. I am mid way through a move but I have several projects lined up so that we can work along. Anything I will be teaching could be applied to any of the 4 types of looms so why don’t you locate a couple supplies are work along with me next month?

Thank for stopping by,

Taylor