Hats, hats... and more hats!

I've started a new craft project, which is a pretty regular occurrence around these parts. But much like my project last summer, the fruits of my labor are going to a good cause.
So over the long weekend, I got to work with some fun yarn like this:
And whipped up a comfy project like this:
Obviously this hat is not for me (since my head hasn't been that small in 20 years). I actually made it to donate to The Hat Box Foundation.
Have you heard of this wonderful foundation? They accept hand-made hats that they give to people with cancer.
The foundation prefers hats that are softer, since many of the patients have little to no hair.
They also prefer that the hats be longer to cover the ears and nape of the neck. (I tried this pattern as the brim can be folded to the appropriate length.)
And finally, the foundation prefers that the crochet stitch be tighter to provide adequate coverage of the recipients' heads.
As you can tell, I've been getting busy on these little hats.
I'm having a blast making them. And knowing that they'll be sent to people who need them is even better! I'll be crocheting during my time off this summer- I hope to have a nice little box of caps to send off to the foundation by the end of the season!
If you'd like to send some hats to be donated, the address is:

Hat Box Foundation
3471 Caminito Sierra, #P202
Carlsbad, CA 92009

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a wonderful day!

Sending some scarves

For the past few months, I've been crocheting scarves to donate to a couple different charities. (I mentioned it on this post a while ago.) This is that stack I've completed so far: So I decided that today I'm going to package them up, and send them on their way. But I wanted to take pictures of a few of my favorites...
I also wanted to make special tags for the Knit Your Bit donations (they'll be given to WWII veterans). So, I grabbed some patriotic paper, and printed some tags.
I try to save all my yarn labels, and I staple a few inches of yarn to each tag so I remember what was what.That way I can reference the label and complete the information for each scarf.
To make it easier on the organization, I put each scarf in a plastic bag. I did the same thing for the Hats for the Homeless donations- those scarves will be distributed to homeless people in NYC during the Christmas season.
Now that everything is packaged up, the next step is to carry the boxes to the post office... which is over 10 blocks away- wish me luck!

That's it for me- I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Rainy Saturday morning = HAPPINESS!

Happy Saturday! I awoke to the sound of rain outside... and since I don't have to be anywhere this morning, I couldn't be happier! I spent the morning catching up on my TiVo, watching AETV (and getting all misty-eyed when I see the "Pure Michigan" commercials every 10 minutes) and crocheting. I love to crochet, but since I'm pretty sure EVERY person in my family has already received a homemade scarf, I'd taken a break. But I recently came across a couple of organizations that have had me "hooking" with a vengeance! :)

First is Hats 4 the Homeless. This local group distributed hats/gloves/scarves to the homeless of NYC the week before Christmas. They accept donations (both store bought and homemade) all year round, and items can be mailed to:

Hats for the Homeless
905 Main Street
Hackensack, NJ 07601

I also found Knit Your Bit. This organization accepts handmade scarves, and donates them to WWII veterans. The specific directions are on the website, but the finished product can be mailed to:

The National World War II Museum
Knit Your Bit Campaign
945 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70130

With these two awesome groups to donate to, I've been busy the last couple of weeks... wanna see?

Here are some of the individual scarves, up close! On this one, I tried to make a "loopy" trim... I can't WAIT to learn how do to things FOR REAL!


This one is a definite favorite- I love the big tassels! Plus, I tried a flower...


And here are a couple more:



That's about it for today. I have a rehearsal at church this afternoon, and then the Easter Vigil service this evening... I can't believe tomorrow is EASTER! I hope you have a GREAT rest of your weekend!