Prayer Shawl

Our church just started a prayer shawl mission, initially aimed at supporting members of the church community. With enough growth, they hope to spread out their giving even farther.

While I haven’t been able to make the 2 meetings the group has had so far, I have managed to contribute an alpaca prayer shawl:

I have a cone of this luscious DK-weight alpaca that I picked up at the Classic Elite outlet in Lowell, Mass. a while back. I think it was originally about 1100 yards for $35. Couldn’t pass it up. I initially envisioned using it on one project but have been pulling from it ever since for littler things here and there.

The shawl is mindless garter stitch with easy-peasy fringe. But it’s one of those covers that you drape over you & immediately start feeling the warmth – luuuuuuuuv it. And I hope it brings some love into the life of someone who needs it. I hope to start another one in the next couple months.

Ravelry for Haiti

I just snagged three patterns from my Ravelry faves from the new help-for-haiti section of the patterns site.  Designers who are pledging some or all of their profits to Haiti are listing their patterns under the new haiti tag.  Head on over there & feel the love, while grabbing a few patterns you’ve been eyeing.

I bought Wooly Wormhead’s Igloo, PicnicKnits’s MacDuff Hat & Rebekkah Kerner’s Francie (11 pages!). 

I {heart} Ravelry.

Knitters for Kiva

I’ve always loved the concept behind Kiva, so I have to give a little pimp to Knitters for Kiva. It’s a way for fiber enthusiasts of all kinds to support economic independence and sustainability in the developing world via microfinance. 

As Kiva states on their site, “Kiva’s mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.  Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.”

They have an all-star cast of corporate and institutional supporters, and after all – I did first hear about them on Oprah. Need I say more?  I love the focus on empowerment, of throwing out a bootstrap or two for someone to pull themselves up by. Plus, knitters tend to be a good bunch of peeps. So I like the concept of banding together with them to help other handcrafters worldwide.

Thank you to Laura for starting the ball rolling!

Rustic Hat with Hugs

This is my first chemo cap of the new year:

The “Hats with Hugs” program at Maine Medical Center provides knit and crochet hats from patients undergoing chemotherapy. This mission is a little closer to my heart now that my mother is a cancer survivor. For more information on “Hats with Hugs”, call Volunteer Services at (207)662-2205.

I snagged this skein of Cascade Rustic with charity in mind a few months back. I got it on sale from Anna at Knit Wit in Portland.  In a city with four yarn shops, I’d have to say Knit Wit is my fave.

This yarn is mostly wool with some linen mixed in. That explains the slight fuzz coming from the hat. The yarn is definitely soft and was a joy to knit. I hope that it works well as a hat in terms of durability and shape as well. 

The pattern is my go-to recipe for basic hats – Kim’s Hats (rav link) by Kim Hamlin, found in Last-minute Knitted Gifts. The fit came out great. I love it when that happens with a hat. Of course, chemo caps are a little easier on that front as you don’t know who the receipient will be!

Charity knits always give me a chance to reassess my queue and my priorities. I always have sooooooo many things I want to knit: that is a constant challenge for me, not only within the realm of my queue but within the larger landscape of my life.

When to knit, and what. Those are the questions!