Our Story and Guiding Values

The planning for the first Bay Area Yarn Crawl began in the spring of 2023. In the wake of the pandemic, everything was in flux, and the yarn industry was no exception. It was decided that the San Francisco Bay Area needed an event to showcase our local fiber artists and celebrate the craft community as a whole.

From the very start, these values have guided our planning decisions:

• Everyone should feel at home in the craft community. True, not every customer will vibe with every shop, just as not every pattern will work for every person, and not every yarn will work for every project. But it is our hope that the BAYCrawl will help you find your place in the community.
  
  To that end, we are committed to creating a safe event for all races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, ages, socioeconomic classes, physical abilities or attributes, religious or ethical values systems, and national origins.
  
  We work hard to create an event in which each person can be inspired, feel they are supported, and know their presence is welcome. We encourage all participants to understand each other, moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the full spectrum of human creativity.
  

• Local first. Northern California has an incredibly vibrant fiber arts community, home to some of the very best dyers, designers, notions makers, and yarn shops you will find anywhere. In each planning decision, we give priority to local options when available as a means to both support small business and minimize environmental impact.
  

• Zero-tolerance policy. We will not tolerate racism, hate speech, discrimination, bullying, exclusion, disrespect, prejudice, harassment, or abuse of any kind. As such, we reserve the right to take appropriate actions including, but not limited to, removing any person who engages in these behaviors from the event.
  

• Humility: We know that no person or organization is perfect. However, we expect all BAYCrawl participants, when in error, to apologize with sincerity and thoughtfulness, decentering their intention and focusing on impact.

The Bay Area Yarn Crawl is organized and supported by the Northern California Fiber Arts Business Association, a registered 501(c)(6). NCFABA was organized to build relationships between fiber arts businesses located in Northern California, including yarn store owners, dyers, designers, and affiliated makers, with the goals of exchanging information, fostering collaboration, preserving traditional techniques, and expanding professional opportunities to people with historically marginalized identities.