Help Me Help You

For me, old techie that I am, the disconnect between needlepoint and information has always been a baffling one. In the tech world of my previous working life there was a saying:

Information wants to be free.

Now you can put many different interpretations on that, but one thing is true: information wants to be known. That means our shops, guilds, and designers have information that they want people to know. After all getting the word out is how we keep our industry alive, healthy, and attractive to others.

But then I come up to the reality that in the needlepoint world information can be hard to find for so many reasons: a shop has no newsletter, information is only posted on a Facebook group that restricts members. The information might show up in your feed but was gone so fast you never see it or can’t find it when you want it.

In the past magazines might have published some things but these were at best very incomplete for many reasons. More recently there have been some attempts to provide information on-line but they didn’t do well and ultimately shut down.

That bothers me because it’s just too hard for needlepointers to find information about classes, events, trunk shows, sales, and news. Because I don’t like knowing I created Needlepoint News to be a free, unbiased, and, eventually, complete source of needlepoint news.

From the beginning it was designed to be user friendly. Articles are short and to the point. They almost all have pictures and links or phone numbers. I’ll tell you where and when. Best of all, the site is searchable with extensive tags. Want to know about upcoming classes with your favorite teacher? Just put in the name in the search bar. Traveling and want to know about shows nearby? Enter the state.

Originally it was updated three times a day. Recently I increased it to four. When the amount of information coming in demands it, I’ll increase it even more. And the site is completely free, both to you as readers and to anyone who sends me information.

That’s where you can help me. My goal is to be on the mailing list (preferably email) of every needlepoint shop, guild chapter, teacher, and designer. I’m working all the time to add to my lists but you can help me greatly.

Here’s how:

• Ask your guild chapter to add me (address below) to their email list for the newsletter.
• Ask your shop to add me to their newsletter. If it’s email, use the address below. If it’s print only, ask them to call or email me (information on contact page).
• If you are a shop, designer, or teacher, add me to your mailing list (address below).
• If you know of an event, exhibit, or class that isn’t at a needlepoint shop, fill out the contact form (link in header) to let me know about it.

Remember if I don’t know about it, it will not show up in the news. Others who want to know won’t.

Help me help you by adding me to any needlepoint sources of news you know about.