Peruvian Motifs

Weaving brought back from a trip

At my knitting group the other day, I was enjoying listening to the various conversations around the room, but my knitting project was almost putting me to sleep. As I have been knitting children's sweaters for Knit for Kids for--gosh, could it really be?--the last five years, I probably could continue knitting them in my sleep. 

And then, it happened--Carol strode into the room, arriving late* as she usually does--and literally pulled this wonderful weaving out of her bag. Don't you find it a lively and inspiring piece? So much life is packed into such a relatively small space!

Looking up at the various sprightly figures, then down again at my (yawn) bazillionth little kid sweater, I found that all kinds of ideas were suddenly percolating around in my head. I am certainly surrounded by talented knitters and crocheters in that group, and they are always coming up with wonderful projects. Perhaps it's time for me to try something new!

*****

*Not that the term "late" has any real significance here in the Land of Mañana...

Oh, No--More Baby Blankets

Sometimes, especially if you are a frugal New Englander, you reach the point where the yarn stash is overflowing with odd bits of every color and you know it's time to start finding some new color combinations to use it all up. These are the latest baby blankets that have been sent off. I've never seen any reports on color blindness in babies, but I'm hoping that the recipients don't object to pink and orange together. And why not? This is New Mexico, after all, where colors get combined in ways you'd never imagine.

Good News Tuesday: Knitting as an Act of Love

Ready to ship 2008

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you may recall that I knit children's sweaters for Knit for Kids. As a matter of fact, I just finished sweater number 64, a fact that absolutely amazes me. I honestly never imagined that I would be able to do something so simple that could, in its small way, make the world a better place. I like to picture 64 little kids from all over the world, standing together in a great big group and giggling and fidgeting like kids do. In my mind's eye, they are wearing my sweaters and knowing that somewhere on the other side of the world is an American woman who has made a gift of love to them. I may not be able to impact our foreign policy very much, but I am doing what I can to send out good feelings to my fellow human beings, one child at a time.

One stitch at a time.

I just checked back through my records and see that I began with my first sweater in March of 2006. In just under three and a half years I have produced piles and piles of sweaters that have been mailed away for distribution, and I did it all in spare moments here and there--while sitting in community meetings, while watching a movie on TV, and while riding in a car.

Ready to ship November 2007

But this isn't about me, it's about you and how wonderful you will feel when you donate a bit of time to make everyone feel a little better.

For those of you who are beginning knitters and feel a little overwhelmed about knitting a sweater, I can assure you that the pattern is quite a simple one that is especially geared toward beginners.

Still not ready to take on a whole sweater? I just recently found out about Knit a Square, a project that provides blankets for "abandoned children, AIDS orphans and child-headed families in southern Africa, who live in dire poverty." All you do is to knit an 8" x 8" square out of wool or synthetic yarn. The goal for 2009 is 5,000 blankets: "That is an average of 25 squares per blanket, so to achieve 5,000 blankets we need 125,000 squares! As your squares arrive, they are collected, sorted and bundled into blanket packs by the ladies of Soweto Comfort Club." Those same ladies sew the squares into blankets, so all you do is make the square and pass the word on to others to make squares, too.

If you are worried about the expense of buying yarn, just ask you friends or local community group (church, PTA, etc.) for any leftovers they may have, or check on your local Freecycle, a grassroots network that is devoted to reducing waste and reusing and recycling good stuff. You'll soon find that you have your very own yarn stash, waiting for you to begin with that very first stitch.

One Design; Four Blankets

I've been trying to use up all my little bits of yarn before buying any more, and that means granny squares--lots and lots and lots of granny squares. Here are four blankets that are ready to go to the people who give them to new moms with low incomes. 

More Baby Blankets and a Question

Here is the latest batch of baby blankets that I will be donating to the local group that distributes them to new mothers in the community. All the blankets but one are crocheted, based on either individual granny squares or one big square. The last one is knitted in the Old Shale pattern.

Here is my question. If you don't crochet, just skip this odd little discussion. The middle of the blankets done in one big square is wonky--not squared up. I've checked the Internet and see that other blankets made this way have the same appearance. When I first started crocheting, I thought that this happened due to my own error--I didn't understand how to turn the corners on the square (missed reading that part of the directions!)--so my "squares" were actually spirals. Now that I have corrected that error, each round (actually square, in this case) is completed with squared corners before a new round (square) is started, so I don't understand why the center squares look so crooked.

If you have the answer, please leave it in the comments. I would love to solve this mystery!

More Baby Blankets

I have a couple of knitting projects going all the time--sweaters for Knit for Kids, and baby blankets for some local charities. I started out crocheting the baby blankets...
but now am using them as a way to practice new lace knitting patterns, many from the book A Treasury of Knitting Patterns, by Barbara Walker. This means that with the more complicated pattern repeats I need to be alone in a quiet room with no interruptions, muttering to myself as I knit.


Lucky for me, the little newborns don't mind a few mistakes, such as the rather obvious one marching across the width of this blue and yellow blanket.

Blankets for Newborns

I've always loved working together with other women for a common cause. I met with a knitting group in New Hampshire whenever I could over the 20+ years we lived there, even though I worked full time and the scheduling was often tricky. Sitting in a room with those women, I would marvel over the many years of knowledge and experience we shared with each other. As we worked, we talked and listened and helped each other through whatever problems came our way.

I missed that fellowship when we moved to New Mexico. I finally decided one morning to go out and either find a knitting group or start one, and was lucky enough to find The Needle Gang at the Baxter-Curren Senior Center. These women have been meeting together for at least a couple of decades, making blankets and hats for newborn babies in the community, which are distributed by the local Foster Grandparents program.

I still make sweaters for needy children through the Knit for Kids program, but I am glad to enjoy the friendship of these wonderful women while contributing to local families by making baby afghans. My first few efforts are pictured above.

Suggestion For a New Year's Resolution

You know you have moments here and there when your hands are idle—riding in the car, watching TV, sitting in meetings, or chatting with friends. Why not use that time to produce some warm mittens, socks, hats, simple baby quilts, or sweaters for someone in need? If you’ve been reading this blog for any time, you know that I make hand-knit sweaters for Knit for Kids. I’m on sweater number 32 right now, and all of them have been created with time that would otherwise have been wasted. It warms my heart to think that some little kids might be more comfortable this winter because I put my spare minutes to work.

Here are some links to web sites that will get you started, no matter what your craft or level of expertise. Why not pass on this information to other people who might help out? You might even organize a group at your club or church to work on projects together.

Charity Connection: http://cache.lionbrand.com/charityConnection.html
Search by craft or organization, and by zip code to find a local charity that needs what you make.

Crafting for a Cause: http://www.recipelink.com/crafting.html
Many crafts are represented here, including quilted sleeping bags for the homeless. Patterns are included.

Handmade for Charity: http://home.att.net/~susanBinKC/hcharity.html
Baby blankets, sweaters for adopted kids, blankets to make animals in shelters more comfortable, afghans for Afghans, socks for soldiers—here are all kinds of crafts: Knitting, crocheting, quilting, etc.


Happy New Year!