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Crochet Guild Australia is the brainchild of passionate crocheters from all over Australia.
Launched in November 2019, Crochet Guild Australia is a very young organisation that is rapidly evolving. Despite the set backs of the COVID 19 global pandemic that unfolded two months after the launch of the Guild - we are committed to providing a centralised crochet community resource for education, inspiration and teaching tools for those of us who love crochet whether hobbyist or professional.
More and more passionate crocheters are joining the effort and are willing to put their time and work into growing our Guild. The current committee acknowledges and respects the enormous effort and passion of the founding Management Committee and subsequent committees. We thank you for having the courage, knowledge and passion to unite and launch Crochet Guild Australia.
Lynley Buckley - President QLD Born in New Zealand, Lynley trained as a Registered Nurse as well as becoming a Director and Manager of a family photographic business with her husband David. As the developer of the digital restoration programme within the company Lynley gained skills in advertising, restoration of images, management and people skills, while at the same time raising her family.
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Vicky Ledwy - Secretary QLD Vicky has been involved in crochet since a toddler. Today, we are so lucky to have her as our Secretary of the Guild. A country woman, Vicky has taught crochet for well over 40 years including through the local TAFE and through her own studio as well as craft groups and shops. Vicky has a very active presence contributing to the social media pages of Crochet Guild Australia uploading teaching videos and contributing much to the ongoing conversations online between members and prospective members.
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Tracey O'Neill - Treasurer QLD
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Samantha MacNally - National Crochet Conference manager for 2023 NSW- Sam has an extensive corporate background in communications. She has previously led Corporate communications teams at Microsoft, NineMSN, IBM and Austrade to name but a few of the big brands.
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Carolynne Cannon - Community Groups WA - Carolynne learned to crochet from her neighbour Michelle when she was 10 years old. "I still have the first 2 books on “how to crochet” and my first granny square blanket in hideous colours, a reflection of growing up in the 70s! I tried knitting too but crochet has always been my thing…..that was, until my interest changed to boys in my teens!." "Fast track to 2017 and my passion for crochet was reignited while in China on a coach trip with my colleague who was crocheting. Jo had a spare hook & yarn. I couldn’t believe how easy it was to pick up from where I left off many years ago, just like riding a bike! I’ve been hooked ever since & don’t know where I’d actually be now if I hadn’t picked up this craft again. Crochet has been my saviour & therapy during these last couple of Covid years, especially since my travel business has been so severely impacted." Carolynne's professional life encompasses 35+ years in the travel industry with the last 13 years operating her own business. She is lucky to have visited 6 continents and hopes to make it to Antarctica one day. Her last 2 trips prior to Covid were Crochet cruises! "We had so much fun, laughter & learning that I organising another which I was about to launch when Covid hit in Mar 2020. Both the designer, yarn supplier and myself were devastated! So it’s sitting on the back burner for when the time is right to cruise again." "I also run a social crochet group, Crochet Escapes, every alternate Sat in my local area. My aim is to grow the crochet community in WA & foster new friendships. We have a core group of lovely talented ladies who inspire new projects & share ideas. Everyone is welcome! "I strongly believe that crochet provides a therapeutic & creative outlet while also being productive too. I look forward to working with the committee to benefit our members. Hooray for crochet!" |
 Petra Creutziger QLD
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 Kathleen Hansen QLDI would like to thank you for the opportunity to join the committee, to help to promote crochet in Queensland and Australia, and to learn from those who have much more knowledge and experience than I have. I will give you the best I can. I cannot remember a time I was not making something with my hands. I grew up with, and was surrounded by crafty men and women who could fix or make just about anything. All the women in my family produced beautiful intricate and fine crochet lace creations, sewed gorgeous garments for the whole family, knit dozens if not hundreds of jumpers and hats, made leather handbags and purses, painted, made jewellery, and baked decadent breads, sweet treats, jams and more. I was expected to learn, and I did. I started knitting my first scarf at 5 yrs, sewed my first dress at 8yrs, crocheted my first lace doily at 12yrs (I still have it), and took over the family cooking when I was 15. I learned to spin 12 yrs ago to supplement my growing yarn obsession and am just now learning about painting and art. In the intervening years I have knit, crochet and sewn many of the clothes my children needed, until they had a say anyway. I’ve taught various crafts to the Brownies when my daughter was little, some basic sewing skills to high school students ( teenage boys and sewing machines are not a good mix), and handcrafts to my former local QCWA branch members. |
I have been a registered nurse for more than 20 years. I specialised in Intensive Care with a post-grad Masters in education until a recent sea change to Hospital in The Home. I was always a crafty kid. My Great Aunt taught me how to knit, but that did not click with me. The need to do craft- any craft remained and long stitch tapestries, sewing clothes, bags and a little basic patchwork along with scrapbooking were my mainstays. I tried learning to crochet from a book with no luck. It was not until my daughter turned one, I attended the last four crochet lessons offered by the local Spotlight store. Crochet “clicked” and I was off. I would meet my crochet teacher weekly for some time to help finesse my skills and fine tune the understanding of the language and art of crochet. In 2010 and again in 2012 I entered a cot blanket into the Sydney Royal Easter Show. The 2010 entry won 3rd place and the 2012 entry won 2nd place. My proudest moment in craft was when I successfully passed the CGA Teacher Certificate from the inaugural conference in 2021. My crochet time is frequently interrupted by going to work, supporting my two teenagers in their endeavours and gardening on our property. “I enjoy the overall feeling of calm when I have a hook and yarn in my hands and I’m making something useful.” |
Naomi McManus NSW - Membership Officer
I can’t explain how I feel when I crochet or knit or sew. All I know is that I need to crochet, knit or sew. I have been dragging a project bag filled with projects, hooks and or needles around since I was 5 years old. Around 10 years old, I was serious enough that Mum went out and purchased all that I needed to start me on making granny squares with real wool. I still have my first hooks, needles and that all important Patons Knitting and Crochet book that I taught myself to crochet from.
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Carolyn Boots SA
Natalie Vella - Education Committee NSW
I am delighted to have been elected onto the Management Committee of Crochet Guild Australia. I intend to apply my organisational and teaching skills from my 25 years as a classroom teacher to the Crochet Guild particularly, if desired by the Committee, in the area of Education.
I learned the basics of crochet as a child, and I have always loved the versatility of this craft so I have made many hundreds of diverse crochet items over the years by teaching myself new techniques by taking up the challenge of a new pattern, and being persistent in my efforts because I enjoy the challenge of learning. Finding the wonderful community of crocheters in recent years now inspires me to offer to employ my time and efforts to assist the Guild to extend and share the joy of this tremendous skill.
As an educator of young people, and particularly through the lens of our recent experiences during the pandemic, I value the enormous benefit that time spent on crochet provides to an individual’s mental health and wellbeing. Over the last few years, I have spent time teaching and enjoying crochet with some of my high school students (even via zoom at the end of school lessons during lockdown) as a deliberate means to calm the mind, relieve stress, and inspire creativity and joy, as well as provide simple human connection.
I have many years experience in creating lesson plans and programs with a clear sequence of tasks using appropriate resources, adjusting to the learning needs of individuals, communicating effectively, and using technology for educational purposes. I have management and team skills that I have developed in my role as a ‘middle leader’ in a high school setting in which I oversee the humanities Key Learning Area in a school of 1000 students, with a dozen staff members under my purview. I aim to assist my team members and our students to flourish by fulfilling my own role with diligence and by taking my responsibilities to the team very seriously. I manage resources, support my staff and students, lead the way in adapting to new technology and approaches to learning, pay attention to detail, and aim to be flexible.
I hope that the skills that I have developed in my professional role may be of service to the Guild.
2022 Committee Lynley Buckley - President Vicky Ledwy - Secretary Tracey O'Neill - Treasurer Naomi McManus - Membership Officer Carolyn Boots Carolynne Cannon Pertra Creutziger Kathleen Hansen Samantha MacNally Natalie Vella | 2021 Committee Jenny King - President Lynley Buckley - Vice President Michele Bake - Secretary Lynda Tomkins - Treasurer Lyndall Reeve - Membership Officer Carolynne Cannon Rachael Parker Petra Creutziger Kathleen Hansen Samantha MacNally Alison Phillips |
2020 Committee Jenny King - President Rhonda Bennett - Secretary Lynda Tomkins - Treasurer Lyndall Reeve - Membership Officer Mel Richards Sandi Owen Jasmin Jones Alison Phillips Narelle Reed Rachel Devitt Carolyn Healy |