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Wooly Games! November 14th & 15th, 2026

Hello from the “Knit Crew” at Rosehaven Yarn shop in Picton, Ontario - Prince Edward County. 

We are going to do something crazy and totally off the rails! 
We are hosting a weekend long Wooly Games event on November 14th & 15th, 2026!

This grand idea came from our weekly Tuesday knit-night group, at the shop. We all gathered and watched the Game of Wool TV series each week and enjoyed the fun and suspenseful knitting & crocheting of that show. Then we started the discussion of how we could do something like that… Et Voila! The Wooly Games was born!

This event will be a fundraiser for the Foodbank. Our shop is located in an area that has the highest food insecurity in Ontario. Families are struggling and we want to help. 

We have a plan and a way you can participate with us and fundraise for your own area foodbank! 

The Wooly Game!

We are looking for 6 contestants willing to be challenged to knit from a pattern that we designed for a shawl made from 3 skeins of DK weight yarn, within a 13 hours period over 2 days - November 14th & 15th, 2026.

The shawl will have techniques in the pattern to challenge a knitter. 

There will be a section in the pattern that will allow the knitter to add their own flare, or whatever they would like to show their own unique skills & personality.

 

Finding Contestants

The contestants will be found through an application process. Click here for application. They will fill out a questionnaire and email that in. From these applications we will have a zoom meeting with a select number of people that will be in charge of choosing participants. 

Contestants applications need to be in by July 31st. 

Contestants will be notified then interviewed. 

The final 6 contestants will be announced August 15th. 


The competition 

Each contestant will be given the pattern at 8 am, Saturday November 14th, to read over and make notes about it. No casting on until 9 am.

Saturday Nov 14th - 9 am to 5 pm - Contestants will have 12 hours to work on the shawl. (There will be short breaks and an hour lunch.)

Sunday Nov 15th - 9-3:30 - Knitting starts at 9 am and ends at 3:30 pm. (30 min for lunch)

3:30 - 4 pm - Judges will deliberate for 30 mins. 


Ways to raise money for the Foodbank

  • Selling the pattern. (Participating yarn shops will get early access to the pattern to make samples and create their own kits.)

  • Sell kits of the pattern and yarn - The pattern will be emailed at 8 am November 14th to everyone that purchases one. 

  • Sell time slots for knitters to come and sit at the venue where the competition is happening. 

  • People can take part by trying to finish the shawl in the allotted time while the broadcast is happening. At home participants will have to send an image to the YouTube chat with them holding up the finished shawl. This will give them a ticket into a special draw for a prize. 

  • Dry foods for the Foodbank can be dropped off at the location of the event or the yarn shop. 

  • Sell tickets to raffle prizes.

  • Set up an online fund page for people to make donations.

  • Offer spots for donators to join the game contestants “Snag Team”  Each contestant will have a “snag team” (or pit crew), to help contestants with things like, fetching tools, snacks, drinks and maybe a massage!


Live broadcast on YouTube - timeline and entertainment ideas

Live continuous broadcast on the Rosehaven YouTube channel - Saturday 9-5 and Sunday 9-4

Blast off at 8 am with the opening of “The Vault” and the viewing of the pattern. Let people know that the pattern has been emailed out to everyone that purchased it. Announced on Instagram and Facebook with links to purchase the pattern. 

At 9 am we start the live broadcast with showing the finished shawl. Only the audience will see the finished shawl, the contestants will not see it. We hope to have a couple of sample versions of the shawls in different colours.  


During the day’s broadcast 

  • Interview our celebrity judges - Kate Atherley & Fiona Ellis

  • Replay the zoom interviews and go through some of the contestants responses to the original application. 

  • We will have a game of knitters trivia.

  • Visit Bill Stearman’s studio and interview him about his quilt show that was created from his interviews of elder queer folk across Canada.

  • Interview the head of the Department of Illumination whose studio space will be using to run the event. We will go through and show all the puppets created by the Department. Plus talk about their Not for Profit community events they create each year. 

  • Interviews with the Society of Stitchers about their projects.

  •  More ideas will be added and interviews of knitters and podcasters.


Sponsors Needed

We have a need financial help to pay for a few items so that the money we bring in can go in the largest part to the Foodbank. 

Items we need to pay for are;

VIA train tickets for 2 to bring our celebrity judges to Picton for the weekend
Food for contestants and judges during the 2 days, lunch and dinner x 2
Beverages for contestants and judges for the 2 days
Money to pay for the accommodations for our 2 judges for the weekend. We receive a Airbnb accommodation, but we still have to pay the base fees for cleaning and taxes - $185 a night x 3 nights.
Donations of prizes for raffle draws, that viewers to win during the weekend.


Cheers,

Lesley - Dyer of Baa’d Girl Yarns & owner of Rosehaven Yarn Shop