BONUS CRAFTIVISM CHALLENGE

Have you heard of Harrisburg, IL?  It's a small town in downstate Illinois that was recently flattened by an EF4 tornado.  It's bad enough that these folks have lost pretty much everything, but they have been denied direct assistance from FEMA.  They can get low interest loans from the Small Business Administration, but no grants. You can read more about the situation in this story from The Huffington Post.

God really put a burden on my heart for these people.  I can't imagine what they must be going through.

And then I remembered a lady who collected sock monkeys for the children who are now homeless after the Texas wildfires.  And that Still Small Voice said "you could collect sock bunnies for them for Easter".  And you know what happens when those types of seeds get planted!

So I'm appealing to you today to make stuffed bunnies for the children of Harrisburg.  The goal is to collect 100 bunnies and have them to the church by Easter.  Princess gave me three bunnies this morning that she's crocheted, and Glove Bunny will be joining them in the journey south.  So that makes 4 down, 96 to go.  There are TONS of free patterns on the internet, and  I'll be posting some other ideas over the next several days to inspire you.

Feel free to give your bunny as much personality as your heart desires.  Keep in mind that there are both boys and girls, so if you feel your little bunny needs a bow tie instead of a dress, that's ok.  Also, please remember that buttons, etc. can be a choking hazzard for little ones 3 and under.  Only new, handmade bunnies will be accepted.  Place your bunny in a plastic bag to keep it clean and label it "Safe for Under Age 3" or "Ages 4+" so the folks will be able to distribute the bunnies to the age-appropriate child.

Ship your bunny directly to:

First Church of God

1520 Mchaney Road

Harrisburg, IL, USA 62946

Be sure to leave time for your generous gift to get there in time for Easter.

When you make and ship your bunny (bunnies), please leave a comment below and tell us.  Your story can inspire others!

Feel free to pass this on to your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, church members

And thank you!

February Craftivism Challenge - Knit HeartScarf Pattern

Let's practice our knitting skills some more, and learn something new...

You will need about 3 balls of Lion Brand Hometown Yarn (or similar super bulky yarn) in red.  Just make sure your bulky yarn is red for the HeartScarf project.  Lion Brand has Tampa Spice or Cincinatti Red in the Hometown.  Red Heart has Red Heart Chunky in Berry Breeze (which appears to be reds and hot pinks on the screen).  I am using a red super bulky which was donated to me by a friend, and the amount is approximately 8 ounces.  You can also hold together 2 strands of worsted weight yarn in red.

You will also need chunky size needles.  Mine are 17's.  I think you could use anything size 13 or above.

So let's start with the basics.  Start by casting on 12.

So the pattern goes like this:
Row 1 (and all odd rows):  Knit across
Row 2 (and all even rows):  K2, p8, k2.  The k2's on each row keep your scarf from curling in on itself.

This pattern (knit one row, purl one row) is called stockinette stitch.  This produces the texture we usually associate with a knit item.  The Special Olympics Scarf we made in November and the dishcloth we made in December are all knit.  This is called garter stitch.  If you ever see these terms in a pattern in the future, you'll know what the designer has intended.  Let me show you a couple samples so you can see what I mean.

This is the back of my scarf (in progress).  It has all the loops/bumps.  This is what garter stitch looks like on both sides.

This is the front of my scarf (in progress).  It has the smooth columns of v's.  This is what stockinette stitch looks like.

Did you catch my crazy trick?  I have made projects in stockinette stitch in the past.  While making them, I would {NEVER} be interruped and then, of course, would {NEVER} forget whether I was knitting or purling.  NEVER - HA!  So, I find a way to mark one of my needles to represent the purl.  In this case, I happen to have 2 sets of size 17's in 2 different colors.  I use the purple for the purl.  You can put a piece of painters' tape or masking tape on the head of your needle, mark a plastic needle with a Sharpie, whatever works for you.

Continue knitting and purling until desired length (60"), knit one row and bind off.

Now, one of the neat things about stockinette stitch is that you can use the v's to do cross-stitch on.  You can stitch on stripes, or shapes (like a heart), or a monogram.  That's if you want to.  I chose not to do that this time.  By the way, if you want the LOOK of argyle (you know, all those really cool diamonds with the intersecting lines), but don't want to try to knit it - think cross-stitch!

If you'd like a fancier border, you can crochet around the edges (like we did for our cup cozy).

Add fringe if you want to. You could use a thinner/lighter weight red for the fringe.

If you need a practical present in a hurry, these are GREAT!  Make a bunch in different colors for all your friends and relations.  Or, make a bunch, then stitch them together to make a nice throw.  Use the basic stockinette pattern with a longer chain to make a baby afghan.  Use smaller needles and lighter yarn or use multiple strands of yarn and Speed Stix (size 50's).

Next weekend, I'll have a linky up again, so we can link to each others' projects.  Come back and link up!

Have fun knitting!

January Craftivism Challenge - Round-up

Well, we've spent the last 3 weeks making pillowcases, Little Dresses and Little Boy Shorts.



These are my pillowcases (all 12 of them) - they are headed to Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

Now it's time to show off what you've made, and tell us where your goodies are headed!  Sorry, no photo thumbnails, but you can list your blog, or a link to Flickr or other photosharing website.  Be sure to go visit others who've worked hard for these challenges, and leave them some blog love!

Here we go!




Thanks so much for your participation!