What the heck is Stitch N' Bitch anyway?
Stitch N' Bitch Los Angeles is a place where girls and guys can come together to be crafty, chat, and have a great time. We welcome all levels of knitters and crocheters. New knitters don't be shy; we'd love to share our tricks with you! We have online message boards as well as regular "offline" gatherings.

Are there any rules about posting to S&B LA?
Glad you asked. In addition to the Yahoo! Terms & Conditions, there are a few additional S&B-LA Guidelines to follow regarding posting to the both Yahoo! Group and message boards. It may seem a bit overbearing, but they are to ensure a friendly and useful experience for everyone. Abuse or violation of the rules may result in membership termination. The rules are as follows:

Keep Your Messages On Topic:
* Please keep messages on-topic, regarding needle arts only (knitting, crochet, embroidery etc). Please, no politics in your messages. Do not post virus warnings, jokes, e-cards, etc. This is a large group that generates lots of traffic and we want to keep email clutter to a minimum. Items related to selling non-crafty related items like that old car on block in your backyard or finding a home for some kittens is considered off-topic and should not be posted on this board.

Commercial Posting Policy: (revised 8/11/06)
While there is no official limit on the frequency commercial groups and yarn shops can post, we do ask that you please be considerate of the group members by aggregating announcements in a single post and keeping your frequency to no more than once per week please. Also, the topic of the post must be knitting/crochet/craft/needle arts related. This will help everyone reduce email clutter in the group.

How Can I Help Control the Email Clutter?
* To help members weed through the tons of email S&B-LA generates, use these codes to preface your posts:
OT = off topic
MTG = Info on upcoming meeting
NK = no knitting

* When posting please, please, please refrain from me too’s; messages should be productive. Consider this before posting your message: if you are responding to a post, is it one that more than 300 people would want to read as well, or should you respond directly to the poster?

* If you are planning an upcoming meeting, please notify the moderators who will post the event to the calendar. Limit your announcements to one before the event and a reminder the day of the event. Ask members to reply off-list, directly to you with any questions or comments.

* Trim irrelevant information before posting your message. Please do not re-post an entire thread or Daily Digest in your response. If you would like to respond to a post you read and received by email in the Daily Digest, please visit the Yahoo! Group website, locate the appropriate message and post your reply there, taking care to trim your message to just 1-2 sentences of the post pertinent information needed to reference your response.

* Do not send attachments to the list. Most people will not open them anyway because of all the viruses floating around in cyberspace. If you feel you absolutely must forward something, please forward it as inline text.

There was this poster that really bugged me, they dissed my favorite yarn shop and cursed my cat, can I give her/him a piece of my mind on the list?
* Um, no. You are a grown up. Be polite! No personal attacks or flaming will be tolerated and are grounds for immediate membership termination. It’s fine to have a difference of opinion, but watch your tone. If you encounter a problem, think a poster is in violation of the rules, or feel you were flamed, forward your concerns to the moderators and they will handle it.

I have a crafty business or weblog and I want the world to know, is it okay to post it to the list?
* Feel free to post a link to your blog, gallery, website or crafty business in the Links area and in your posting signature (at the end of your posting). We should help and support our members’ businesses and crafty endeavors. Please read the policy on Commercial Posting above for some additional posting guidelines.

I love my LYS (local yarn shop) and want to tell the world about it!
* Before posting general yarn shop questions (e.g. locations/hours) please refer to our handy-dandy list of yarn resources in the "files" section of the Yahoo Group, or here.

Is the official Santa Monica meeting the only one? Are there other groups closer to me?
* Look at the official calendar on the Yahoo! Group for a list of crafty meet-ups.

Can I schedule my own Stitch N' Bitch Meeting in my LA neighborhood?
* Before you do this, please check the calendar, because chances are, there is a meeting already scheduled near you! If you do not see one near you and would like to schedule a regular meetup, we ask that for LA County meetings, that you choose a day other than Tuesdays, which is the date for the Original Los Angeles Stitch N Bitch. Select a day, time, place and group leader. Then, please notify the moderators who will post the event to the calendar. Please limit your announcements to one before the event and a reminder the day of the event. Out of respect for the hundreds of members who are on our list, please ask members to reply off-list, directly to you with any questions or comments about your meet-up. There is a great guidelines document about how to start a knitting group at the Stitch N Bitch Chicago site here.

What about posting my own (non-Stitch N' Bitch) crafty event?
* To add a non-Stitch N' Bitch craft meeting to the calendar, (such as a craft fair, knit-a-thon, yarn shop sale, etc.) simply e-mail the moderators with the name, date, and time of the event to be added to the S&B-LA Official Calendar. Be sure to include your personal contact information and any details of which you want to make members aware. To cancel an event, unless it’s an extreme emergency, please provide at least 24 hours notice prior to the event.

How will I know if the moderators have important information for the group?
* When you see messages prefaced with "MODNOTE" please read it. This is a note from the moderators with important information for the group.

I have this sweet pattern that I’m sure everyone on the list will love, can I post it? (Otherwise known as "The Great Copyright Debate"):
* As a general rule, do not post patterns to the list unless you wrote it or hold the legal rights to it. Copyrighted patterns posted in the group will be deleted. Please note: buying it in your LYS or bookstore, or having it written for you does not constitute ownership. Why not post a link to the pattern instead? There are folders for knit and crochet patterns in the links area specifically for links to patterns.

How do I advertise on StitchNBitchLA.com?
* We accept very limited advertising to cover the cost of hosting this site. Please send your inquiry via the "contact" link in the Yahoo! Group.