Why Home Made?

Sometimes people ask me why homemade vs store bought? Several reasons really. Homemade is special. Homemade is a way to truly give of yourself. The person who receives your handmade item knows you spent time, knows it's a piece of you. It's my believe, and that of many knitters and crocheters that's helpful in giving them a warm feeling inside. I know a store bought item can bring about physical warmth, but I don't believe it can bring about the same kind of emotional warmth that a hand knit, hand crocheted, or hand loomed item can.

We do ask for store bought vs hand made socks, because they often can't be well cared for, and people need to change their socks to try and have dry warm feet is a chore.

Please continue knitting, crocheting, and looming your thoughtful donations of hats, scarves, mittens, and slippers for Men, Women, and Children all year long. As you know, these posts are written ahead, and in que. When this post was written it was raining cats and dogs, and then some. Making me once again think about our current focus, April Showers. Please, take time and read about it in the sidebar. This is a wonderful opportunity to help people, an opportunity where non knitters, non crocheters, and non loomers can join in.

This is post #390, getting closer and closer to 400.

2011
Scarves 168
Hats 262
Mittens (gloves) 61
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 24 (2 went to Pine Street)
Squares 214
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4

**Reminder to avoid the use of white as much as possible, tuck in your tails, include a note with your email, blog url, computer avatar/ID etc. with your donations.**

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Clapping for helping hands for the homeless

Three knitted hats, 2 knitted pairs of mittens, and 26 crocheted squares/diamonds and sampler type squares arrived the other day; from Lynn, a fellow Ohioan. Lynn H. is our newest pair of helping hands who found us from being listed on The Lion Brand Charity List. I always enjoy learning how people find us. The darling gold knitted set is soooooooooo cute. Love the mittens being attached, brings back memories of when my daughter was young. Don't think they make them like that anymore, but should. Sure keeps you from losing a mitten when the kids take them off. Thank you.

This is day 5 for our April Showers Project, please if you've not had a chance to read about it, do so by clicking in the sidebar. Please help us spread the word. This is a wonderful way for folks who don't knit or crochet or loom to be able to help the homeless. Being wet and cold is no fun. You can help, by supplying a poncho. A friend asked this question the other day on Facebook and so I thought I'd pass it along. She asked where one finds these poncho's. I found mine at CVS in the pharmacy area along with umbrellas.

This is post #389, getting closer and closer to 400.

2011
Scarves 168
Hats 259+3=262
Mittens (gloves)59+2=61
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 24
Squares 188+26=214
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4

**Reminders:

Avoid open or lacy stitches, solid stitches are warmer
Weave in your ends, please don't tie and knot and cut. Always leave several inches after joining new yarn and work those tails in so items don't come unraveled.

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Knitted Headbands help to warm ears

These 8 knitted headbands were donated by Kathy G. Headbands can help keep one's ear's warm. Believe these are all made with Lion Brand Homespun yarn. As you can see they'll fit a variety of head sizes since they are different sizes and widths. Thank you Kathy for your thoughtful donation. I think these will work for the girls at the 2 free clinics.

I recently switched to the new editor here on blogger for pictures etc. Not sure I like it. Are you fellow bloggers using the new or old version? Does anyone know how to alt text pictures using this new editor? Or do they no longer need to be alt texted? Does anyone know how to go back to the old editor? I think I like it better. The new one is suppose to be easier to use, easier to get your pictures where you want them, move them around etc. I'm finding just the opposite. Seems you get funny spaces here that you don't want or didn't put in??

This is post #388, only 12 more to go to reach another milestone of 400 blog posts. Wow! You all have made that possible, You all are awesome!

Does anyone know a person in Delaware Ohio who knits and crochets and donated? Received a box without a note, and not even a name on the return address. Not sure if this is another oversite or they wanted to be anonymous. I always work hard to try and identify people, so I can at least send an email to let them know the package arrived. But, I don't even have a last name on this one. If you're out there reading this, please send me an email or leave a comment here. I have no problem if people want to be anonymous, but please still include your name for me, so I can communicate.**Mystery solved**

Added another state, North Carolina to our map, check it out folks, we now have people who've donated from 29 states listed for a 58%, how cool is that. Thanks Anne G for your note, appreciate it, and added NC to your name on the list. Please folks, take a minute...find your name on the list of either bloggers or non bloggers and see if your state is listed with your name. If it isn't, please leave a comment here so I can update. You're helping in several ways when you do this. One, you're leaving a comment which is helpful to the blogs SEO placement, and 2ndly we'll be able to update lists and map which is fun, and is helpful when I'm trying to identify donations that come without notes etc. Thanks!

2011
Scarves 168
Hats 259
Mittens (gloves)59
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 24 (must have forgotten to add ghans somewhere along the line, just updated after checking all the pictures..2 of the ghans went to our friends at Pine Street earlier
Squares 188
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4

**Day 4 in our April Showers Campaign, if you've not read about it, please click in the side bar. Thanks!**

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

From the Sunny State of Florida

 Our good friend Sandie down there in the sunny State of Florida had quite a venture trying to get this box to us.  She and I communicated several times.  The post office really had issues.  Delivered this to the wrong address in another city, then returned it to her.  In the meantime, she kept busy and made a few more things and a month later a new box came to me with 23 loomed hats and a scarf.  Many thanks Sandie for your stick to it-ness.  This isn't the first time the post office has played havoc with our donations.  Though the last time I had such an issue was trying to mail to another Ohio city when we had a contest and I was sending yarn.  It too, took about a month to resolve.  Soooooooo frustrating.


Sandie's hats, as you can are a nice variety of colors and sizes which is awesome.  Keep up the good work Sandie, and next time...could you please pack up some sunshine to add to your box.  Pretty please with sugar on it.


Folks we're into another month, with another focus.  Have you read about April Showers?  Please do, check the sidebar.  Thanks.


**Reminders:
Please include a note with your donation with a means of getting in touch with you, be it your email ady, your blog url, your RAV, HIVE, or Facebook ID/link.


Please check the lists, is your state listed with your name?  If not, please include it here in the comments so I can get it added.


Please visit frequently, spend time, leave comments, let us know you were here.


2011
Scarves 167+1=168
Hats 236+23=259
Mittens (gloves)59
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 13
Squares 188
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4 

*This is post #387, only 13 left to reach 400, WOOT!

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Hats to Warm the Homeless

5 Crocheted hats to warm our homeless here in Ohio from Karen H in Illinois.  Isn't it wonderful when help crosses state lines!  These 5 hats are are crocheted nice and tight with small stitches so will be nice and warm.  I love the striped one, reminds me a bumble bee!  Bumble Bees make me think of summer and warmer weather, and that makes me smile....BIG TIME!

Thank you Karen H for your thoughtful donation, it's greatly appreciated.

Have you checked out our April Showers Campaign?  If not, please do.  Click the badge in the sidebar.  Please feel free to add the badge to your blog.  Help us spread the word.

**Have you noticed the number of posts growing?  Hope so, we're getting close to another milestone.  With this post #386, only 14 more blog posts are needed to reach 400!  Wow, that really makes me smile.

**Have you added yourself (bloggers) as a followering of this blog?  If not, please do.

***Remember, you do not need to be a blogger to leave comments.  We encourage you all to leave comments each time you visit, so we know you were here.  If you're not a blogger, simply type your comment, then click name and url and leave the url blank empty.  That's all there is to it.  Visiting, and commenting are very helpful and they're both things that can be done, even for the non knitters and non crocheters out there who'd like to help.***

2011
Scarves 167
Hats 236
Mittens (gloves)59
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 13
Squares 188
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4

**Added pattern for fingerless gloves to the tabs across the top of the blog.  Looks like a nice quick and easy pattern folks**

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

April Showers Bring Pain and Suffering

We've all patiently and impatiently awaited the coming of Spring, being tired of the cold winter, tired of the snow and tired of the ice.   We've no doubt heard the saying, "April Showers Bring May Flowers", many times and thought it was a cute saying.  However, April Showers bring pain and suffering doesn't sound so pleasant.  Cold, tired, hungry homeless people living outdoors do indeed have pain and suffer with April Showers.  Temperatures are still cold and uncomfortable, add being wet to that.  When it rains, we come indoors.  When it rains we run to our cars if we're out and about running errands.  When it rains, we grab an umbrella, boots, and or rain-gear.  When you're homeless you don't have a car to run to, a house, and generally no boots or rain-gear or umbrellas.  When you're homeless, you suffer, you get wet.  When you're wet you're colder. 

According to historic averages, this area's average low temperature is 40 degrees.  Do you know how cold 40 is when you're wet?  It's bone chilling bitter cold.  Currently we're averaging 10 degrees below normal, 10 degrees below historic norms.  Given that fact, our average lows for the month of April (if current conditions continue) would be 30.  That's 2 degrees below freezing.  Yikes.

We can't do much about the weather folks.  In fact, we can't do anything about the weather; but we can try to keep these people dry.  April's focus folks is PONCHO's.  Please consider sending along a poncho or two with your warm hats, mittens, scarves, and slippers.  I purchased 4 the other day, pictured above.  These are the light weight, easy to fold and stuff in your pocket/purse style.  Their inexpensive, and light weight to mail.  We can add these to all our donations to The Bridge Folks.

Today is April 1st, and this is not an April Fools Jokes, but an honest request.  Today, I'm kicking off our April Showers Campaign.  This is another project that non knitters, non crocheters, and non loomers can get involved in.  Please help us spread the word.  Add a badge to your blog.  Tell you co-workers, friends and family.  Tweet and Facebook it.  Let's see how many ponchos we can collect during this rainy month of April.


2011
Scarves 167
Hats 236
Mittens (gloves)59
Socks 62
Slippers 34
Ghans 13
Squares 188
Sweaters 5
Ponchos 4

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!