Puerto Rico, an area hit so very very hard from two major hurricanes back in September has Rock Stars, like Da'maris. Not only did she endure these devastating disasters to her country, but she suffered person injury with a fall and fractured femur. She required surgery and rehab and is currently walking with a cane. So sorry she has suffered so much, both personally and emotional with the damage to her country. But, she is a rock star for sure. She had knitted this lovely and thoughtful donation for Bridge and Beyond; but was unable to send until now. I thank you from the bottom of my heart. When I read your note, I had tears in my eyes.
Am thrilled to know you are improving each and everyday, and am very grateful for your huge heart and willingness to help others. People like you, Rock Stars, make this world a better place.
Please take care of yourself, keep up the good work.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time.
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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.
You might remember this start, as it was posted on Jan 19th, after raiding my stash and stopping at the local yarn shop to buy a few more skeins of fun colors. I called this Eclectic, but having recently finished a crocheted Eclectic, guess I need to rename this Knitted Eclectic Afghan. I say Eclectic, because there is no pattern, blocks and stripes of colors are not even, on purpose........it's just free flowing as I grab colors. It's sorta like a log cabin style in that you go one direction, bind off and then pick up stitches to go another direct......but it's not traditional enough to really be called that. So, perhaps it could be called contemporary log cabin? But, whatever...I'm calling it Knitted Eclectic.
It was pretty small here and so I packed it to go with me in my recent travels for something to work on that didn't need to be layed out and pieced together like the squares and stripes that were to be crocheted together.
It's growing in size and has more color (though this picture is a bit dull and not quite true to color). 5 Additional sections thus far.
Further progress as I knitted in the car on the way home from Hilton Head, a 2 day car ride. Making progress, but now need to find different set of needles, as I need more cord. You can see it's pretty bunched up on the current size. Need to see if I have the same size needle with a longer cord in order to continue to pick up stitches, because as you go the number of stitches on the needles increases.
Today's letter is T, this is perhaps a bit of a cheat.........this afghan traveled with me. In the first leg I was knitting on board the plane from Columbus to Charlotte and then to Hilton Head, and the 2nd leg was the 2 day car trip back. Now, it's officially to big to tote in the car and it's traveling days are over..........except of course when it's finished and travels with me to Homeless Families Foundation. I'm enjoying the color combination and will see if I have enough yarn, or need to add additional colors..........after all, it's truly free form...grab and knit. Perhaps I swing by the yarn shop and see if anything is on sale. Not because I need more yarn with my huge stash, but because I don't have this style yarn in my stash ...beyond what I'm already working with.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time.
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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.
So many words that start with the letter S and make good donations for our homeless friends. SOCKS! Socks, white, gray, black.......colors matter not, but socks are an item needed all year long. Store bought vs hand made socks can make a huge difference is someone's comfort, and their health. Remember anyone living out in the elements has to content with limited if any ability to do laundry and therefore a clean dry pair of socks is like heaven to them. Also think how miserable we all are if our feet are wet and cold. This is a problem spring, summer, winter or fall. Men and women who live out in the elements need socks, as do those with nights here and there in shelters. Socks are also something people who don't knit or crochet can donate.
Scarves.......men, women, and children need scarves. Not babies or toddlers, but school age........teens etc are in need of scarves. Scarves can be knitted or crocheted. They need to be long enough to wrap around as in the pictures below. Please review the guidelines int he scarf tab for information about size, colors, and fibers. It's important our scarves meet the needs of those we serve. No white, no lacy open stitches, and no novelty yarn please. They aren't practical for those trying to stay warm, those without ability to do laundry.
If you have questions, please sing out by sending me an email or by using the contact option in the right sidebar of this blog.
Shampoo is another S word that makes for a good donation. Again, an item that non crafters can donate. You can purchase shampoo, and or save shampoo from your travels to donate.
Will be catching up with donations that were delivered while I was out of town over the next few days folks, so please pop in often. Then I will resume The ABC posting with the letter T.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time.
**
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.
This afghan has been designed from crocheted scarves that weren't large enough for our needs. My daughter helped me design this afghan in the works. I like the blend of brown and green. The stripes aren't quite the same size, but with some edging which will be in tan, it should come together nicely. It will need a good size border to make the afghan an appropriate size. As always, I searched for a name for this afghan and came up with Earth and Sand, or Sandy Grass; but wasn't sold on either of those names. A Fitbit friend saw the picture and came up with Rolling Hills. I think that's a good name, makes me think of fields with grass and earth and things growing perhaps in a farmers field.
This afghan to be is currently resting in one of my project bags, waiting it's turn to grow. Please stay tuned. Hoping to get this completed in the near future.
This idea of stripes is a good way to use up yarn in your stash, it's also a bit easier or perhaps quicker than the assembly of an afghan with lots of squares or rectangles. Also, it seems there will be less ends to work in. If you've not made an afghan using this method, please give it a try. We here at Bridge and Beyond would love to donate one of your afghans made this way.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time.
** 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.
This is a Christmas Quilt I made years ago for my Mother for a Christmas Gift. After her passing, my Dad returned it to me. I am not a "true" quilter, but have made several family quilts similar to above with no definitive pattern. As I continue to work my way through the alphabet...Q was a stumbling block for me. Then the word quilt came to mind.
We've not really had people making and donating quilts, but...........we could. Why couldn't they be part of our afghans that we donate to Homeless Families Foundation? Though I know making a quilt is quite time consuming and so, I guess I'm asking...is it practical for us to suggest people make and donate quilts? This one is warm, but realistically, I use it primarily for decorations, and obviously only once a year. But, if it weren't a Christmas Quilt, could we do that? Are any of you quilters?
Some of the afghans we've received and donated through the years have looked like a quilt in their design. If this is a reasonable idea, perhaps there are ways to connect with quilters here on the net? Perhaps it's too costly a venture. I don't remember what I spent to buy the fabric, thread, backing, bias tape, or cotton batting...been too many years. If anyone is a sewer and has some idea of costs, please let me know. I like throwing out ideas of things I think might be helpful for Bridge and Beyond, but I don't want to spend lots of time trying to find quilters if this isn't a good idea due to time and costs.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time
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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.
This little puppet was photographed some time back and previously posted here on this blog, but I thought I would revisit it with you all. Look how cute it is. This one is knitted, but would think crocheting one would work just as well. Puppets, certainly aren't going to keep people warm, but wouldn't it make a cute item for small children spending a night in a shelter? Small, soft, and perhaps comforting. Something I presumed to be easier for families to hold onto as they move about from day to day with temporary shelter situations. Might it be an item that would help a child through the night of uncertainty? This is something I would suggest we strive to make tons of, but something I do think would be nice for the shelters to have on hand.
When I spotted this on my blog from some time back, I didn't see a pattern for it, but will do some looking around. In the meantime, looking at it might be enough for some of our experienced knitters and or crocheters to wing it and make one.
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-knit-a-teddy-bear-hand-puppet/
If above link works, it's to a video and what looks to be very similar pattern for a puppet.
Here's a link to a free pattern on Ravelry. You can create a free account there
Personal Care items is something men, women, and children need and use all year long. There are used by folks living out in the elements, as well as those who obtain a night in a shelter. AND they are needed when families transition from shelter living to a permanent housing situation. Personal care items can be purchased, and collected whenever you visit hotels on business and or vacations. Shampoo, toothpaste, toothbrushes, floss, mouth wash, combs, chapstick, shaving cream, razors, sunscreen, female products, soap are some of the items we donate all year long. These are also items that non knitters and crocheters can help with.
**The counts on our progress bars are current, the percentages not quite. I'll not be figure the percentages with each update of numbers, but will be updating again next at least by the 20th. I have in fact made a reminder not on my cell phone for the 20th of each month to do percentages. If we're at a milestone, or I just have extra time I may do it more often...but certainly at that scheduled time.
**
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.
Where are You and Your Yarn From?
I'm trying to identify where everyone is from, partially for fun. Take a look at the map. Also, believe it will aid me in cases where we have several people with the same name. Please look at the lists of bloggers and non bloggers and see if I have the state you hail from. If not, please leave a comment and let me know.
Additionally, we've had help from Scotland, England, Germany Puerto Rico, Canada, and France! They don't appear on the map, but their help is still greatly appreciated.
