Knitting For Munich!
I’m sure all of you have
heard about the worldwide Refugee problem as millions are fleeing Syria
and seeking asylum worldwide. One of my Ravelry group members, Andrea (aka Lakshmi07)
is a doctor outside of Munich who works in a public health office.
Needless to say she has been inundated at work, and I asked her how we
could possibly help out!
One of Andrea's concerns is that the winter months are coming and many of these refugees are not properly prepared for the cold. So, I am hoping some of you can take a little time out from your knitting projects and make them some warm items. They don’t need to be fancy, but they do need to be functional and bright!
Andrea has offered to be a “hub” for us to help get the woolens to those in need. Since she is on the front line of this situation and dealing with it daily, I feel sure that our items will be appreciated and used. In her town alone they are expecting 1,000 refugees and many of them will be living in tents….
Details
Shipping
When you have finished items please e-mail knittingformunich@nelkindesigns.com with a list of what you are sending and the country you are shipping from.
We will e-mail you the address to send your box to (we have shipping “hubs” in the US LauraNelkin, Canada HillJS, and Germany Lakshmi07. Please don’t include anything other than your labeled knitted items.
Dates
The first shipment will go out from the US and Canada on October 20th.
The second shipment will depart mid-November. (I will post here when that date is set)
After that we will reassess the need for more.
Include a Welcome Note
Most of these refugees are alone and far away from their families and all of them are lonely and scared. What they need most of all is a helping hand and some human warmth.
Please attach a tag with a small note of friendship and welcome, such as:
Welcome to the western world, believe in yourself and you can make it!
Or anything empathetic and encouraging that gives them the feeling they are a valuable person, not a burden or unwanted on this planet.
FAQ
Do we want them to be washable?
Yes, please! We expect the items to be worn daily for many months straight
What sizes are needed?
Two-thirds of the refugees are young men between 20 and 30, but they don’t have the big US-body constitution, they are rather slim and skinny.
There are a few families with kids and also pregnant woman, so basically any size is fine, but mostly items for men.
Color wise we think happy bright colors would be great, or at least light colors for those men, like white and beige and light gray, they have enough darkness in their lives!
What items would be useful?
Hats, mittens, scarves, cowls… anything warm and bright!
What pattern(s) should I use?
I have a few patterns that would be great for this project and many are free… but you do not need to use one of my patterns! Any simple hat/mitten pattern will do!
Ann Budd’s The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns is a great resource for simple/functional charity knitting in a wide range of sizes and gauges (I LOVE this book!)
We've been sharing favorite charity knitting patterns in the Knitting for Munich thread on Ravelry!
Please ask questions… I can “flesh” out this FAQ as we answer them!
Thanks for helping and knit with Love!
One of Andrea's concerns is that the winter months are coming and many of these refugees are not properly prepared for the cold. So, I am hoping some of you can take a little time out from your knitting projects and make them some warm items. They don’t need to be fancy, but they do need to be functional and bright!
Andrea has offered to be a “hub” for us to help get the woolens to those in need. Since she is on the front line of this situation and dealing with it daily, I feel sure that our items will be appreciated and used. In her town alone they are expecting 1,000 refugees and many of them will be living in tents….
 |
| Some hats I made for a Craftsy project ready to send onto Germany in the first shipment! |
Shipping
When you have finished items please e-mail knittingformunich@nelkindesigns.com with a list of what you are sending and the country you are shipping from.
We will e-mail you the address to send your box to (we have shipping “hubs” in the US LauraNelkin, Canada HillJS, and Germany Lakshmi07. Please don’t include anything other than your labeled knitted items.
Dates
The first shipment will go out from the US and Canada on October 20th.
The second shipment will depart mid-November. (I will post here when that date is set)
After that we will reassess the need for more.
Include a Welcome Note
Most of these refugees are alone and far away from their families and all of them are lonely and scared. What they need most of all is a helping hand and some human warmth.
Please attach a tag with a small note of friendship and welcome, such as:
Welcome to the western world, believe in yourself and you can make it!
Or anything empathetic and encouraging that gives them the feeling they are a valuable person, not a burden or unwanted on this planet.
FAQ
Do we want them to be washable?
Yes, please! We expect the items to be worn daily for many months straight
What sizes are needed?
Two-thirds of the refugees are young men between 20 and 30, but they don’t have the big US-body constitution, they are rather slim and skinny.
There are a few families with kids and also pregnant woman, so basically any size is fine, but mostly items for men.
Color wise we think happy bright colors would be great, or at least light colors for those men, like white and beige and light gray, they have enough darkness in their lives!
What items would be useful?
Hats, mittens, scarves, cowls… anything warm and bright!
What pattern(s) should I use?
I have a few patterns that would be great for this project and many are free… but you do not need to use one of my patterns! Any simple hat/mitten pattern will do!
Ann Budd’s The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns is a great resource for simple/functional charity knitting in a wide range of sizes and gauges (I LOVE this book!)
We've been sharing favorite charity knitting patterns in the Knitting for Munich thread on Ravelry!
Please ask questions… I can “flesh” out this FAQ as we answer them!
Thanks for helping and knit with Love!
I am not surprised that Andrea is heading this up. She is a kind soul and so wonderful! Count me in. Thanks for sharing this here. I don't always have the time to peruse your group as much as I would like!
ReplyDeleteAndrea is a dearheart! I love that she wanted to do this with us! I'm glad you find it helpful that I posted here.... sometimes it feels redundant to post in two places, but I know not everyone has time for my super chatty ravelry group! : )!
DeleteI definitely plan to participate. Thank you so much for organizing. It's great to feel like we can help even in the smallest way.
ReplyDelete^^^Anna said it perfectly.
ReplyDeleteThis is a grand project, but I'm a bit concerned about using light colors for this project. Living in tents, the refugees may not be able to keep things clean. I think it would be better to choose colors that don't show dirt. Also, if washability is important, I'd recommend washable wool or at least wool blends. Acrylic is pretty useless at keeping anyone warm. Volunteers might like to check out the recommendations posted on the Afghans for Afghans website. They've been doing this sort of knitting for a long time.
ReplyDeleteThankyou for this feedback/advice! I will certainly share it with our group!!!
DeleteAre crocheted items also allowable?
ReplyDeleteOf course! I think of knit and crochet in the same way!
DeleteI am more than happy to participate in this wonderful humanitarian campaign. Congratulations for starting it. I can knit but not so good with a crochet hook. I already have plenty of wool on hand for a previous project.
ReplyDeleteI probably didn't look properly but where do I send my knitted items too?
Hi! Thanks so much! There are details above about that under Shipping!
DeleteThis is awesome and I am excited to help!
ReplyDeleteYEAH! Thankyou!!!
DeleteI have sent out a message to our church knitting group. They are a great bunch, and I'm sure we will be making things to send.
ReplyDeleteThat is wonderful!!! Thankyou!!!
DeleteHi, I am looking for a project to do with a group of young people and was wondering if you would be interested in fleece scarves? It needs to be something that they can complete in about an hour so these would be wide, scarf length strips of fleece with the ends fringed and knotted. We hope to do it at the end of November and as we are in the UK it would probably be easiest to ship them straight to Germany. Thanks, Sharon x
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon,
DeleteThanks so much... I'm not sure if there is a need for this, but will you e-mail us at Knittingformunich@nelkindesigns.com and we'll check in with Andrea and see if she thinks there is a need for fleece scarves? Thanks!
Ja sam odusevljena ovim projektom ,svaka cast.Ja sam iz Sarajeva(Bosna i Hercegovina) i rado bih ucestvovala u ovakvom jednom projektu :)
ReplyDeleteVeliki pozdrav za sve kreativce iz Sarajeva
Oh wonderful! Please do e-mail the address above for details!
DeleteJa sam odusevljena ovim projektom ,svaka cast.Ja sam iz Sarajeva(Bosna i Hercegovina) i rado bih ucestvovala u ovakvom jednom projektu :)
ReplyDeleteVeliki pozdrav za sve kreativce iz Sarajeva
The email address keeps bouncing. Any ideas? I hope I'm not too late!!
ReplyDeleteSorry about that! The e-mail address is forwarded to another address that is "bouncing" back e-mails, we are working on solving that now!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete