Thoughtful and Necessary Items Donated for Families in Need

 Here's a cleaver way to package personal care items.  Thank you Cheryl S for this thoughtful and bountiful donation.  Personal care items are always needed by all 3 family shelters, as well as our folks on street.  I always safe all the sample sized stuff that comes in the mail, as well as the goodies from hotels when traveling.  A great way to make donations without spending money.  Cheryl has crocheted a cute little blue bag to hold it all.  This is also a nice gift idea folks if you need a little something for co-worker or friend.  Put a nice homemade bar of soap, bath scratcher or better yet one of your homemade knitted or crocheted cotton washcloths with it. 

 A beautiful, colorful and very cheery stripped afghan, made in what I would granny type stitches.  Won't this make some family happy!

 Stick with me folks, the box Cheryl sent was HUGE!  I took out a layer and photographed and just kept at it.  I love this pretty ripple afghan that started out with granny squares.  Very very nice.  I can see a Mom with girls loving this.

 Homeless Families Foundations is going to be jumping for a joy when I make the next delivery which will includes these ghans from Cheryl.  Another variation on granny's as the center and building from that.  This pretty purple and pink afghan is made like a never ending square...once the 3 where joined to form the middle.

 Cheryl included some personal care items, a hat, a space blanket and poncho.  And, the cute matching green set of hot pads, dish towel, spatula, dishcloth, measuring cups etc all packaged nicely for Welcome Home.  This will make an awesome addition to those special packs Homeless Families Foundation puts together when folks transition from shelter living to their permanent housing situation.

 Missed getting this in the above picture, more kitchen goodies folks!

 Creative, creative, and always looking ahead....that's our friend Cheryl.  She visits garage sales and came up with this cute doll.  She's made the doll clothes, a blanket, a towel set.  Please click to see all the cute items and their detail here.  This will be put aside for the special Christmas project through Homeless Families Foundation. 

 Another adorable crocheted afghan from Cheryl.  This one is tied to look a quilt.  Nice squares, joined in a pretty blue with the added touch of white ties.  AND...a blue and white ticking (think that's the right word) stripped pillow case.  This will make a nice bed package.  The colors will work for either a young boy or girl in my opinion.  Even a teen girl would enjoy this.

 Slippers in lots of sizing and colors.  Not sure what's going on in the picture...the colors are really funky and not true folks.  No idea why.  In addition to the slippers Cheryl has made a cute outfit for a young girl with a skirt and vest/top.

Another awesome colorful afghan.  Look how she picked up on the colors in the 2 pillow cases with her stripping on the granny stitch afghan.  Nicely done Cheryl.  What a nice idea putting pillow cases to make a bed ensemble!

I do hope you found time to eat and sleep while compiling this box of goodies.  Whew....it took me quite a bit of time opening, counting, photographing....can't imagine how much thoughtful time you spent crocheting.  Bless You!

2013 Donations:

Hats:  374
Scarves: 289
Socks: 200
Afghans: 25+5=30
Slippers: 132+9=141
Rain Ponchos: 202+1=203
Mittens: 77
Cotton Wash Clothes: 419
Shawls, Sweaters, Vests, Poncho's, Skirts etc. : 10+2=12
Misc. Items: include personal care, headbands, hand-warmers, cowls/gators and all meal prep related items, Dolls & associated items, stuffed/crocheted/knitted toys... etc aren't tabulated.


All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.

Cotton Washcloths for Family Shelters

Pick a color!  Look at this awesome mound of fabulous crocheted cotton washcloths from our friend Dianne L. from California.  I love the variety is sizes and colors.  Also click to enlarge, look how she tied them...doesn't that make a nice package look to them.  All the family shelters love getting these cotton washcloths.  They are used as people enter the system and have nothing to get a nice shower, they used in move out packages when folks move from shelter living into permanent housing as both washcloths and dishcloths.  They are always needed, and always well received.

Nice work Dianne, please keep up the good work.  Hope to see you here often on Bridge and Beyond.  

June is slipper month, hope we get huge numbers of slippers.  We need slippers for men, women, and children.  Remember slippers should be made nice and thick (no loose stitches please).  Please check the slipper tab for ideas about how to use double yarn, or chunky yarn, or how to put 2 slippers together.


2013 Donations:

Hats:  374
Scarves: 289
Socks: 200
Afghans: 25
Slippers: 132
Rain Ponchos: 202
Mittens: 77
Cotton Wash Clothes: 369+50=419
Shawls, Sweaters, Vests, Poncho's: 10
Misc. Items: include personal care, headbands, handwarmers, cowls/gators and all meal prep related items, etc aren't tabulated


All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.

Whatever Lola Wants, Lola Gets

Thought you all might get a kick out of this cute cartoon about how nuts we who knit and crochet are.  I can't remember if I saw this on Facebook or on LionBrands site; maybe both.  Anyway, thought it was cute and worth a repeat.

Hope you're all keeping busy now the weather has finally turned nice in most places.  We're still closing windows and putting on fleece some days/nights here.  Normally that's not the case for this time of year, it's been a bit wonky.  Do keep your fingers busy with hooks, yarn, and needles.  We like to collect and delivery our awesome donations all year long.....even in summer.

June is slipper month, hope we get huge numbers of slippers.  We need slippers for men, women, and children.  Remember slippers should be made nice and thick (no loose stitches please).  PLease check the slipper tab for ideas about how to use double yarn, or chucky yarn, or how to put 2 slippers together.


2013 Donations:

Hats:  374
Scarves: 289
Socks: 200
Afghans: 25
Slippers: 132
Rain Ponchos: 202
Mittens: 77
Cotton Wash Clothes: 369
Shawls, Sweaters, Vests, Poncho's: 10
Misc. Items: include personal care, headbands, handwarmers, cowls/gators and all meal prep related items, etc aren't tabulated


All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.

Thank you, but No to Anonymous Donations

Anonymous donations came up the other day and it's not something I've blogged about in awhile, so thought it was time to discuss again.
**Isn't it nice when people donate anonymously, that means they don't need or want a public attention?**  Actually, no it's not nice in our setting for lots of reasons.

• In the past when I would receive a donation without a note, I would spend hours, sometimes days trying to determine from whom the donation came.  Why?  Because I don't have a way of knowing if they just forgot a note, or if they want to be anonymous.  It's not uncommon to get a heads up something coming your way, forgot to put a note in the box.  Since I can't look into my crystal ball to know if they forgot or if they wanted to be anonymous, I always expended lots of time and energy tracking people down.  All those I tracked down were in fact people who'd forgotten...so I really never assumed someone wanted to be anonymous.  Luckily, that particular problem has really lessened.  THANK YOU
• When a donation comes without a note, I'm not able to let the person know their items actually made it here.  Sadly, we have had a few situations with items lost in the mail, so it's best for everyone to know their items have been received...AND it saves them spending extra money to have it tracked.  (also less of a problem now with the changes in parcel post.
• Obviously for my record keeping anonymous is a problem.  I need my records to be visible and without question.  You can be anonymous on the blog, but not with me. 
• Sometimes I receive donations that aren't quite appropriate for our cause and it's important I have the ability to privately let the person know so they don't continue to send things that don't quite work.
• Sometimes I have items that require repair by me before they can be donated, and it's very important to communicate that so changes can be made in the future
• And..something I've never discussed here on line; but think perhaps it will help folks understand the magnitude of my being able to communicate with the individual, even if they wish to be anonymous on the blog. .. Bugs can nest in yarn and be transported from one house to another; bed bugs among them.  No, I've not had this happen; but I do know someone that has been unfortunate enough to be in that situation.  I did once, sometime back have a situation with yarn someone donated that I had to discard for related issues.  My apologies for feeling the need to post this; but as we grow it's sadly one negative by product of growth.

Some time back I indicated I could no longer spend the hours and days looking for people and therefore could not accept anonymous donations.  Thank you folks for understanding the ramifications.

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.

Crocheting with 12 Children

Still enjoying sharing our stories about how and when we learned to knit or crochet.  Please email your story, it's fun to see how we all started these crafts that have become such big part of our lives.  These skills/gifts given to us that share with the  with those less fortunate.  I believe our hearts and hands are guided down this path.  Please keep up the good work, One and All.

Love to post your story, please email at sandycrochet at gmail.com

Here's our good friend Sherry K's story, enjoy!

When I was about 7 or 8 my mother had a friend who had 12 children yet she had time to crochet baby afghans.  She was quick and it fascinated me.  I didn't actually pick up a needle until I was 19. I had lots of time on my hands because my first husband was a Marine and gone all the time.  I purchased a basic book to learn the basic stitches.  I didn't start small though. I went right to an afghan. I made afghans for everyone except myself of course.  Over the years I have made baby clothes, hats, scarves, and more but my real love is to make afghans. I recently made a knitted hat for my son and I have made a few knitted wash cloths but I still prefer crochet over knitting.

My story is quite simple but that is the way I roll.

 *I love how so many of us have a common thread, whether it's knitting or crocheting, so many of us used the craft to fill a void, and it truly does*

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.

Crocheting to Over Come Grief

A few days back I shared my story of how when and where I learned to knit and crochet.  A few days later I shared Sandie P from Louisiana story.  And now I'm sharing a beautiful story from our friend, Marjorie M.  It truly touches me, and while I knew some of this from our first couple of email exchanges it still touches me to think about it again.  Here are Marjorie's words.

No really big exciting story here. I learned to crochet because they told me I couldn't, due to being left handed.  Elder Aunts and my Mother taught my sisters but not me.  I watched from across the room and could see it in reverse.  Did it opposite of the right handers. I crocheted basic stuff for a few years then quit when I got married and had two babies and a job.

My husband was diagnosed with lung cancer on May 9 , 2011 he passed away on June 19th of the same year.  That was such a confusing, tragic time for me that I was looking for something to keep me sane. My younger sister sent me some yarn and a hook and I started crocheting again. I am not good at it, but can't even tell you the number of hours I spent sitting in his chair crocheting. Really believe it saved my life.  When I came across your charity by accident, it seemed like something I was supposed to do, being in Ohio where he was from.  He loved street people and the homeless and was always stopping to give some guy a few bucks or a cigarette.  I am still not able to read a pattern, but make terrific grannie squares, have taken a class,  to learn basics,and now belong to a crochet club. maybe I will improve over time.

the reason i check in with you each morning is that my dogs get me up at 6 a.m.  when i let them out i get dressed and turn on my computer at the same time. i hit the button to your site as the first thing i look at. then i tweet my granddaughter with a report on the weather for the day, before school.  i am a creature of habit. same thing starts each day.  therefore when your site is the same for a day or two i notice.

good talking  with you, hope you get lots of interesting stories on your new project. thanks again for all you and rae do to help the Ohio homeless.

**Marjorie, you would not be the first who turned to knitting or crocheting for comfort.  I had yarn in my hand all the time I sat beside Mom during her long hospital days before she passed.  I've read many books who's theme was in fact how they got through my learning to knit or crochet, or the comfort a group brought to them during difficult times.  You certainly honor your husband by sitting in his chair and caring for people from his homestate.  And, finding my blog perhaps wasn't by mistake...we all are guided, sometimes we just don't know it.  We're thrilled you've joined us, and shared your touching story.  Don't sell your crochet skills short my friend.

**please email me your story, how, when, where and why did you learn to knit or crochet?**

sandycrochet at gmail.com

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated. The Power of One is awesome, and when we work together The Power of One becomes The Power of Many.