ESCANABA — A group of local fiber artists meet once a month to create, share ideas and socialize at the Escanaba Library.

Library Assistant and facilitator for the Fiber Arts group, Jane Lynch, said she follows other libraries across the country and found several of them have a group similar to what the Escanaba Library is doing now.

“I had seen several places that had like a group like this, and I thought, I wonder if there’s an interest,” she said.

There certainly was an interest as she hosted the inaugural informational meeting in October, where 12 individuals attended.

“I was like, okay, I think there’s an interest out here,” Lynch said.

The group then had its first official meeting in November and hopes to continue meeting every month.

“It’s been a lot of fun. We’ve had a lot of people asking about it,” she said.

Current members do a little bit of everything, including sewing, knitting, crocheting, and more.

“We have lots of knitting and crocheting, which are the most often seen,” Lynch said.

The club is open to anyone 16 and up and is free to attend; you just need to provide your own tools and materials. Those with zero experience are welcome to join and learn from other members.

It’s a great program to learn a new skill or enhance a current one while collaborating with other artists. Lynch shared a story about a member who brought in a homemade sweater that unfortunately had a hole in it. Luckily, another member knew just how to fix the sweater to make it look like the hole was never even there.

“It’s one of those things where people help each other ask each other questions, get advice, get ideas, and mostly a social time just for people who like to do this stuff to get together, relax, and forget about the world. Forget about all the busyness and just come and have a good time,” Lynch said.

Even though the group is relatively new, Lynch said the group sees 15 to 16 people at each meeting and would love to continue to grow the club. Lynch even provides coffee and hot tea for attendees.

The group meets on the second Thursday of each month from 5 to 6:45 p.m. in the Escanaba Library. The group is free to attend, and members must be at least 16 years of age. Any type of fiber work is welcome, but no noisy electronic equipment such as a sewing machine.

To keep up to date on when the club meets or any other information, visit the library website at escanabalibrary.org or on its Facebook page at Escanaba Library.