I can’t believe it. As of today, I am all caught up on work. My newsletter project is finally at the printer and all of my other jobs are up to date. I might be able to finish up some holiday gifts today. I’m even going to make it to knitting tonight. Speaking of knitting, I know I said I was done with fuzzy scarves, but never say never.
I was only going to knit one. I even wrote that in my email to Kay: I’ll try to get at least one square done before the 30th. I’ve got UFOs coming out of the woodwork. Why do I keep casting on new projects? Another case of hopeless startitis? I’m on my FOURTH square. They’re just too easy and too fun. They take less than an episode of CSI to knit up and besides, what else am I going to do with my leftover sock yarn. After this one, I’m putting them in an envelope and sending them off. Seriously!
Yes, you read that right. Pictures of the finished blankets are on Mosaic Yarn’s blog.
I admit, I was a bit of a square pusher for this project. I believe I told Lauren she’d be knitting Hokie squares as a statement of fact, not as a suggestion. I might have also put a crochet hook and skein of maroon yarn in Frances’ hands and told her to Make. Square. Now. This was a few days after the deadline, and I sent her home with the address and strict instructions to put it in the mail as soon as she got back to Virginia.
Gina posted a video on the blog asking people how they felt while knitting their squares. I can say that I felt a sense of purpose. I needed to knit these squares. All of my free time was spent knitting them. My wrists got tired because I didn’t take enough breaks. I thought of the families while I was knitting, trying to somehow knit love and comfort for people I’d never met into every stitch. I wondered if when the blankets were finished they’d feel that love and comfort. Now, after reading Gina’s last blog entry, I know they will.
I’ve been knitting away during the month of May on Hokie Healing squares. I thought my total was pretty impressive. I knit 11 squares.
Then I got a comment from Christy on the blog. Susan from the Omaha Guild crocheted 32 squares! When I started this I thought if everyone I knew made just one square, I’d have a nice package to send along to Mosaic Yarn. The grand total: 65 squares!
All of the squares are packaged up and waiting for the mailman as I type this. Thanks everyone who participated: Susan (who deserves a maroon and burnt orange star!), Karen, Sue, Kim, Christy, Tara, Joanne and Lauren. (Did I leave anyone out? There were some unlabeled squares from Omaha.) I also want to thank Mary Pat for contributing toward shipping. The package was over five pounds! Most of all, I want to thank Gina for coordinating this effort. It’s such a wonderful project and I wish I could help with the seaming, too!
Squares are flying off my needles. I’m already on number seven. I have an update for square drop offs:
I’m thinking of mailing the squares on Saturday, May 26th to make sure they get there by the end of the month. Does that deadline work for everyone?
It’s been awhile, and I’ve already thanked Yvonne in person,* but I just have to flash what a great knitting buddy she is. I can’t wait to use the alpaca to knit the teddy bear pattern for Mirabella—it’s so soft! I’ve already made a few dishes out of the Indian cookbook and they’ve been fabulous. The shower creams are nice and different scents than you would normally find in the states. Orange and fig are my favorites so far. Thanks, Yvonne!
*ok, I thanked her via email, but when compared to a blog post, it’s almost like
I’m sure most of you have at least some black or white yarn in your stash for the Hokie Healing squares, but for those who need maroon and burnt orange, Sue from Yarn for All is planning to do a group order from Brown Sheep:
Autumn Harvest: orange
Medieval Red: maroon
Onyx: black
White Frost: white
All colors come in both worsted weight (190 yds, needle size 8) and bulky weight (125 yds, needle size 10 1/2). Contact Sue by Thursday, 10 am to get in on the group order.
Mosaic Yarn Shop in Blacksburg, VA is collecting 8 x 8 inch squares to assemble into blankets for the families of the fallen Hokies. The squares can be knitted or crocheted in maroon, burnt orange, white or black out of the nicest, softest yarn you can afford.
I am going to coordinate a shipment of squares at the end of May for anyone locally who wants to contribute. You can drop squares off to me at the following events:
If you can’t make one of those events, let me know in the comments and we’ll make other drop off plans. I’ll be posting reminders throughout the month of May. Let’s make sure the Hokie Nation knows that they are in our thoughts!
Ok, enough is enough. I ordered replacement needles for you last Friday. The game is over. You won. There’s no need for you to wait for your replacements to actually be delivered. Seriously. You can come out now.
When people ask me what M needs these days, my first answer is always, “No more stuffed animals or dolls!” However, I’m her mom, and I haven’t really bought her much of anything, so the rule doesn’t apply to me. Yesterday I had to buy some yarn from Knit Picks to finish a project that is on the needles and I was below the minimum for free shipping. I decided to get the yarn I need to make Lulu. I’ve been planning to knit her for awhile, but I really needed a reason to spend the money. Running out of yarn for my current project was just the gentle push I needed. I also bought replacement size six needles for the ones I lost a few months ago. I predict I will find those little buggers in the next few days.