Ravelry

I've been a member of this group for 10+ years and have connected with wonderful people from all over the globe. They are helpful, supportive, and inspiring. I consider many very dear friends, even though we've never met.

I also appreciate the fact that the owners of the website are willing to put their values ahead of their profits by banning racism and bigotry on their site.

Ravelry keeps a library of patterns (often these are free such as the one in the picture) and its pattern pages are an easy way to find and see what others have done, to help you make the best knitted and crocheted projects possible. I also appreciate the personal pattern records - I knit so much I forget what I've done the last few years, it what's in my stash.

This site is an amazing place to meet friends and learn about fiber arts. It has some pretty great patterns, both free and paid. The forums can give you a place to find help when you are having trouble with a pattern. As well the project page is a wonderful resource to keep track of your fiber arts projects. You can list what pattern you used, needles or hooks, yarn and there is a section for pictures and your own notes. You can search other peoples projects and see what trouble they ran across on a patter, as well as what yarn they used and how it looks in that pattern. I've found this site to be very helpful.

Ravelry has been my forum of choice when it comes to fiber arts. They have the largest database of patterns available anywhere and their recent policy of zero tolerance for white supremacy is a most welcome one. It's a high five from me!

Been apart of this site since it started. I was just learning how to knit and all it offers has helped me getting better at my craft. Love the pattern library. And while there are political elements I am not there for that. People who have left ravelry due to censorship that is your choice but political stuff dont belong in crafting.

Ravelry has everything; an amazing database of patterns for knitting, crochet and other fibre arts; a plethora of forums where you can find like-minded people to discuss pretty much anything; hardworking and caring owners, staff and volunteers who do their very best to make sure the site is welcoming, inclusive and safe.

They never said anything about skin color or racism. These people are just mad that they put in a new policy where you cant discuss politics or trump on the site. Its crochet and knitting, not a news outlet.

Ravelry is a fantastic site. Thousands of patterns, groups for every interest under the sun, forums where you can get help with projects, and chat, and make friends... Ravelry is excellent. Please don't let the recent barrage of negative "reviews" sway you -- a white supremacist Facebook group has directed their users to harass the site's owners Hopefully these false reviews will be deleted soon, but in the meantime, I will be spending more time on Ravelry!

I've been on Ravelry for almost a decade. It's the only resource I use for patterns, finding out about yarn, and getting hints and tips. The forums are great, made even better because they have taken a stand against hate speech.
If you want to start, improve or try new techniques Ravelry is the best place to be.

I will start with the positives. A huge library of both pay for patterns and free patterns. I place to store your project notes. Forums to communicate with groups of people who have the same interests.
I will now move on to the negatives. Over the years, Ravelry has practiced its free speech by posting very polarizing content. I believe this encouraged strife, though most (not all) stayed silent. Ravelry then decided that it could dish it out but could not take it. Ravelry updated their policy. It basically said that if you are not on their side then you either keep your mouth shut or be banned. Though many had kept their mouth shut, for the sake of peace, have decided that this was going too far. I deleted my account.

In addition to being extremely user-friendly and intuitive, Ravelry's staff and team of volunteer moderators work tirelessly around the clock to ensure the site is functioning smoothly. I can't imagine planning a knit or crochet project without Ravelry, and keeping track of my yarn stash would be a nightmare. Plus, they've taken positive steps based on user feedback to ensure the community is safe and welcoming for all members.

I used to buy a ton of patterns and buy from Amazon through their link. Now I don't. Their supposed motto is "Be excellent to each other" but if you dare ask a question, be prepared to be attacked and possibly become fodder for a bunch of horrible, mean people with zero lives. Some of these "mean girls" will follow everything you do on Ravelry and make nasty comments. Ravelry lost all the money I was sending their way because apparently only a few people should be excellent; everyone else gets a free pass to be nasty and mean. Until it cleans house of all of the constant bullying and negativity, they won't see another penny from me.

If I can't find what I'm looking for on ravelry, then it doesn't exist. The filters (including everything from fiber type and yarn weight to specific constructions and fits) narrow down searches to help find exactly the right pattern. Purchasing and downloading patters takes seconds, and I can keep track of any adjustments and notes. Those notes can even be shared with other users, alerting them to possible problems and solutions.

First and foremost, it's a great site for people who knit, crochet, weave and/or spin, but more than that, they offer amazing tools for designers who want to sell patterns and stay in touch with their customers. There is really no other site that does this better, with such fair and affordable fees and advertising options for sellers. I also appreciate that users do not have to pay to get all the robust social media features, which is not always the case for craft-based social media sites.

I've been a member of Ravelry for eleven years and in all that time I've always been impressed by the great people who run it. They work hard to ensure it is a safe place for everyone. It's the best resource on the internet for patterns, yarns, designers etc and there is so much support on the forums. The creators have been really generous in making this a free-to-use website with low charges for designers but great opportunity for exposure. The search engines are easy to use and help pinpoint what it is you are looking for. I've made many friends through Ravelry, I hope to still be a member in another eleven years!

It seems both Cindy and Leigh have seen the same horrible things I have. I don't know said attacker and she has not threatened me, but why would I visit a website with such low standards? The ravelry attacker is even allowed to post death threats and remain there to do it again. No. I will purchase my patterns and yarn elsewhere, thank you. If they don't care about death threats, then why would they care about securing my payment info? Ravelry was once a huge empire for all things knitting. Now they're too big to maintain the site themselves. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.

I joined Ravelry years ago and often purchased patterns there. Logged in recently and read their new policy which says "support for Trump is undeniably support for white supremacy". That is obviously not true. They continue to allow hateful speech that targets conservatives. Not a place I care to be associated with anymore.

Technically a good site and I liked it for years, but now? Nope. Owners decreed that support for our country and our President brands you as a white supremacist. U.S. Flags are banned. 'God is Love' is banned and considered Hate speech. But F**K Trump is okay. NOT a place that feels good. Haters trolling and baiting. Just a summer camp for bullies now with a fascist owner. Don't bother spending years amassing patterns and organizing your projects there because one day YOU will be on their hit list and all your work was for nothing.

The freedom to speak your own mind, this is possible outside of Ravelry. Within Ravelry, however, it isn't. Just as I prefer to spend time with those who have diverse opinions and perspectives, I prefer an online knitting community with similar values. That isn't Ravelry where only one view is permitted. No matter how many patterns they offer, the cost is too high.

I was part of the Ravelry community for years. While there, I overlooked groups, statements, projects, and profile pictures that I found offensive or vulgar. Choosing instead to utilize their pattern database and mind my own business. Unfortunately, their move to censor and ban certain groups who did not agree with their ideology, while ignoring the vitriol of those who did was too much. Therein lies a slippery slope that I want no part of. Of note: This site claims to be inclusive but they have a management staff that is 100% white. How is that "inclusive"?

I joined and also create craft communities that are inclusive of all races, religions or political views. After reading the comments posted on the main page of Ravelry calling those that differ from their beliefs "white Supremists", no matter of their ethnicity and reading correspondence between Ravelry and fellow fiber artists, I do not know why anyone would want to associate themselves with people that have such venomous hatred of others. I do not understand why a craft site would get involved in such immature behavior.

I really love the way I can add my magazines and books to my library and then search thru them on my IPad. Being able to see patterns made in different yarns is so helpful. I don't know what I would do without it.

This is a fantastic and FREE site that offers more than you can imagine. It allows for free discourse on fiber-related topics as well as groups for those interested in discussing just about any other imaginable topic. Adults should be able to have civil discourse and should also be willing and able to bypass issues/patterns in which they have no interest or disagree with. Freedom of speech, however, means if you're a racist, homophobe, or want to force your religion on others that you will hear from those who disagree with you.