How to Host a Knit Night (or Any Creative Gathering) at Home

With my boo, Alain, at a knit night

Last autumn, as the leaves began to turn in Vermont, Romaine and I journeyed north to Tunbridge for the second year in a row to meet up with friends at the Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival. We arrived without a project in mind, but luckily, our friend Kara (a seasoned knitter) brought us to the Junction Fiber Mill booth because she knew she wanted some yarn from them. Their booth was buzzing, filled with folks snapping up special-edition yarns. One of the owners had a chic little red scarf tied jauntily around her neck, and I was intrigued. After inquiring about it, she graciously shared that it was the very famous Sophie Scarf and said it was beginner-friendly. We all gathered around her and gushed (dramatically, as we do), and each picked a color that resonated with us. We vowed to learn how to knit matching Sophie scarves and left feeling inspired—excited to learn a new skill.

I threw us into a group chat to get this knit night going and invited folks over to our home, Chez Kim-Martin, for the first knit night. We began meeting regularly, taking turns hosting between our and Remy and Alain’s place. We all love to cook and share food, so the knit nights have become themed food evenings (see below for examples), followed by knitting, joking, chatting, and lots of laughing. We all began at different knitting levels, but it’s been so fun to see everyone grow their skills, make progress on various projects, and cheer each other on as we finish new pieces. I find great comfort in the intimate and regular nature of these gatherings. I love that this container has helped me deepen a few relationships that I’m not sure I would have been able to build without these evenings.

I’m a firm believer in investing in and building meaningful relationships as adults. We can build our own community, and it’s a practice we must continually engage in because our lives are continually evolving. And while theoretically building a friendship or relationship may seem simple, it can be daunting for oh-so-many reasons: it is work and requires effort from both parties; the fear of rejection is real (but the worst thing someone can say is no); and we’re so, so busy. But I choose to believe in what’s possible, and actively work to build the life I want.

I want to encourage you—put yourself out there, ask someone into your life!

How to Host a Knit Night: Tips & Learnings

Here are my tips and learnings from hosting knit nights. I hope this encourages you to host your own knit (or any activity you want) night and build intentional community. Let me know how it goes in the comments below or on socials.

Communication Is Key for a Successful Knit Night

  • Group text strategy: We communicate via a group text and use this group chat solely for communicating about knit nights and sharing progress on our projects.

  • Clear expectations: The host needs to explicitly communicate logistics (date, time, location), and expectations (what guests bring, wear, do).

Choose the Right Venue

  • Rotating homes: We split hosting duties between two locations that make sense for us. 

  • Alternative venues: If you don’t have space in your home, try hosting at local maker spaces, bars, or community rooms. Do your research!

Food Ideas and Themes

One of the easiest ways to make a knitting night feel special is by centering it around shared food.

  • The host picks a theme: Everyone contributes a dish and wine to share. Planning a menu can be stressful, so I find having a theme and letting the guests collaborate around it keeps menu planning fun. We discuss the menu via group text, and folks will volunteer a dish they want to make. We are not at all strict about the themes because the goal is for everything to be fun. Our group happens to love cooking, and everyone is good at deciding and delegating what they want to make.

  • Give ample prep time: Determine the theme or menu with several days (at least four) of lead time so folks have time to plan, grocery shop, and actually cook.

  • No cook options: If you’re not into cooking, great! Bring a store-bought dish, wine/drinks, or order in. We’ve had a pizza-night knit night, which was so fun because we just showed up to knit.

  • Some of our knit night themes: No cook knit night, where we ordered pizza; brown food day; taco night, where I showed up on the wrong day with a tres leches cake; tapas night, where I made Fizzy Lillies; Greek night; bibimbap night; fondue night; and here’s one from cribbage night—Spaghetti and meatballs along with my recipe. 

How to Be a Gracious Guest

  • RSVP: Be communicative, prompt, and honest with your RSVP. 

  • Respect others’ time: Show up (on time), bring something to contribute, and have fun!

  • Be gracious: An expression of gratitude goes a long way.

  • Shared responsibilities: Hosting is a lot of work. We honor our hosts by making sure that everyone is chipping in and distributing the work by bringing food, setting up, and cleaning. Being conscientious goes a long way in relationship building. 

Discuss Group Dynamics and Boundaries

  • Discuss with the group: We’ve had to have some group discussions, especially about letting people into the group: What’s the max number of people? Can we bring visitors? What is the format of our meals? 

  • Decide together: We chatted through these questions together before making decisions. We ultimately decided to keep our group intimate, but whoever is hosting has the option to invite an additional guest once in a while. 

From our most recent knit night, Fondue night

The yarn we procured at the 2025 Vermont Sheep and Wool Festival

Le Pique-nique: How to Host a Chic Picnic

The air is starting to get crisp in Paris, and just like that, it's fall again. It's wild to think about the first brutal European week-long heatwave that Romaine and I survived was just weeks ago. Because we now live in a Parisian apartment, we DO NOT have air conditioning—yes...it's drama. We had to quickly learn how to stay cool with what we have. Our routine consisted of opening all windows at night to let the tepid air in, closing them with the shutters early in the morning to keep the disrespectfully hot air out, and sitting beside our fans all day misting ourselves with water for momentary relief. Before the scorch-fest, I had planned an intimate picnic to celebrate Romaine's birthday, which would happen at the heat wave's peak. I fretted about how we would deal. 

A word on picnicking in Paris: On any nice warm-ish (not raining) day, you'll find folks dining outside at one of the many manicured and accessible parks throughout the city. The numerous parks and public green spaces function as crucial third places for city dwellers. A third place is a space outside of the home ("first" place) and work ("second" place) where folks can relax and connect—bars, cafes, parks, churches, libraries, etc. Parisian parks have been designed for peak comfort and include adequate seating, ornate views, greenery, trash/recycling, and sometimes fountains for glamour and to cool the surrounding areas. 

So, on the steaming day of our picnic (the high was 100 degrees—help!), we arrived around 8 pm to Place des Vosges—a stunning little square with a tree-lined perimeter, benches, fountains, and plenty of grassy areas. We spread our blankets on a patch of grass near a fountain, and I marveled at the refreshing puffs of crisp air rolling off the water. As the sun set, the temperature dropped, and so did my heat-induced anxiety. I decompressed in the fresh evening air as our friends showed up to share a lovely summer meal. 

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Picnicking near our home at Places des Vosges

Here are some tips and things to consider when planning and organizing a pique-nique to make it as chic and stress-free as possible.

Communications and Logistics

Who

Be intentional with the guest list and keep it intimate. Be especially cautious and consider the wellbeing of yourself and those around you.

When, Where, & What to Bring?

  • Streamline communications—throw everyone on a group chat.

  • Pick a date and time, and send a calendar invite; follow-up a day or two before the event.

  • Provide enough time for folks to get groceries, cook, etc. You're grown—three days minimum and ideally a week to prep. 

  • Be inclusive by inquiring about dietary restrictions. If someone has different needs, use this opportunity to get creative. 

  • Set everyone up for success with clear expectations. Share what you'll bring and what you'd like your guests to contribute. 

  • I might say, "We're planning to bring a pasta salad, a chickpea salad, fruit, wine, water, plates, silverware, and some cups. Please bring some food and drinks to share and a blanket!" 

  • Pick a specific location and share it with folks when setting the date. If the picnic is in a large park, pick a landmark or drop a pin. This little courtesy will help your guests figure out travel logistics.

What She Packs

Bringing the right items can make the picnic feel comfortable and easy. We are lucky to have a dishwasher at home, so it's easy for us to bring our non-fragile reusable kitchenware to share with our guests. Be resourceful and think about how you can reuse and re purpose old take-out containers as plates or Tupperware, and cute jars as cups or containers. 

These are the things you'll see in our tote bags for picnics:

  • Enamel plates (I have six from IKEA, and they're a couple of bucks each) and a few shallow take-out containers if we need more than 6 plates.

  • Enamel cups and small yogurt/jam jars for drinks

  • A portable speaker (not allowed in French parks, but if you're allowed, bring it for the vibes)

  • A blanket or two

  • A trash bag and recycling bag (the parks here have recycling and garbage options)

  • Metal forks and spoons for each person

  • One or two small knives for cheese and spreads

  • Serving utensils 

  • Napkins 

  • A bottle opener

  • Two insulated water bottles: one filled with ice and one filled with water

  • Hand sanitizer

  • Lighter 

  • Mosquito repellent incenses that I light and stick around the perimeter 

What She Cooks

I prefer picnic foods that are easy to eat and easy to share. Consider if the food will be alright to sit out and bring a serving utensil for the dish you contribute. If you're not into cooking, no worries, get easy to assemble items (fruit, charcuterie, cheeses, dips). Here are some of the foods and some of my picnic-friendly recipes:

Be a Dope Guest

If you're not planning the event, be a dope guest. Come correct, and have a good time. 

  • RSVP promptly and commit to a decision. If you can attend, excellent! If you can't, no worries, politely decline. Be clear and timely with your communication. 

  • Show up on time. A fifteen-minute grace period is a given when commuting in a city. Showing up a couple of hours late, however, is disrespectful.

  • If you plan to bring a guest, ask the host for permission, and relay it to the group. Communicating this information to the host and guest shows gives folks time to adjust the quantity of food they're preparing. Also, set the new guests up for success and let them know the expectations of the picnic. 

  • Be helpful. Set-up, pass food around, and clean up. 

Do you have any pique-nique tips? Share in the comments below!

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