Knit Fingerless Gloves

At Home Made, one craft leads to another

Julie Petrella’s home is alive with artistic energy. From the yellow-striped ceiling to the shelves and drawers overflowing with brightly colored yarn and fabric, it’s easy to tell that she is so enamored of homemade crafts that she has dedicated half of her home to them.

Petrella, 30, opened Home Made in January out of the first floor of her mid-19th century home in Swainton as a haven for craft enthusiasts. What would be her living room is stocked with organic cotton fabrics and yarn, classic and modern pattern books, sewing machines, notions and a chalkboard wall detailing upcoming classes and shop events.

“It’s a part of me,” Petrella said, so why not make it a part of her home.

She gives classes in which patrons can learn how to quilt or knit socks – but the crafting at Home Made isn’t limited just to the needle arts. For the summer classes, Petrella is thinking bigger.

Patrons can get their hands dirty 3 p.m. Sunday, June 26 at a Make Your Own Worm Bin workshop. With Jim Hutchinson from Cape May Organics, Petrella is teaching vermicomposting, a composting process that uses worms to make organic, nutrient-rich garden fertilizer.

The idea for the class, Petrella said, sprouted from her yarn club, which meets 7 p.m. on Wednesdays. In the spring, the club created a garden behind Home Made, which stirred participants’ interest in organic gardening.

Other classes include sewing wine and market tote bags, and quilting and knitting projects. Prices range from $25 to $45.

Petrella said that because some crafters put knitting and crocheting projects on hold in the warmer months, she is getting creative with her class ideas. She would like to introduce a fruit canning class, and has just retrieved a collection of doors from a demolished house that she is hoping to use in a corkboard workshop.

The community of crafters that has formed around the shop is a story all its own.

One regular is Hope Vasseur of Upper Township, who frequents the weekly yarn club meetings when she isn’t running her three sons to Boy Scouts or soccer practice.

“It’s mommy’s wild night out,” Petrella said with chuckle.

Vasseur is working on an olive-colored cable sweater for her oldest son. According to the other members, she always takes on rather ambitious projects.

“The back is easy,” Vasseur said, knitting so fluidly her fingers could barely be seen. “The front will be the hard part.

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