Squares 4 Survivors updates

[crochet.sandie]

This new thread is to keep folks who have donated squares to this effort updated on what's going on.

 

*See www.cenla.net for current status of effort.*

 

Squares remaining from Jackie's efforts were passed to me after her December drop. I am making afghans from them to be donated to Katrina victims.

 

If interested, you can see pictures of the first afghans completed at my yahoo photo page (go to Katrina folder)

 

If you want more info you can check my progress at my Crafty Corral blog. I try to update it several times a week.

 

The original thread for this effort is at

http://www.crochetville.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13274

 

Any questions, please PM me.

 

Thanks!

[schcrochet]

Many thanks Sandie for all your information. I'm checking yarn and hope to have an afghan (completed one) to you. You've been through quite an ordeal which makes your help to others all the more touching.

[crochet.sandie]

Many thanks Sandie for all your information. I'm checking yarn and hope to have an afghan (completed one) to you.

 

Thanks, Sandy!

 

Jackie (the original coordinator of S4S) has updated the Squares4Survivors web site if anyone is interested.

[crochet.sandie]

Here is a picture of the afghan I finished bordering tonight. Still need to sew in the ends. All ghans will also be washed before being delivered. Picture looks a little grainy I think because it was reduced from a larger one. Squares are placed randomly. 7 across x 10 down. Afghan came out 48" x 68".

 

[schcrochet]

Very nice! I'm heading to bed but have been working on one with my left over Homespun just really got started, but will post photo of progress. Have moved this to the forefront of my to do list.

[crochet.sandie]

Jackie is hoping to continue this effort. However, she needs assemblers and square makers. If you're interested in either, go on over to her web site and sign up.

http://www.cenla.net

 

Thanks for helping those in need in whatever way you choose to do that.

[schcrochet]

Posted reply on her site. Could you each indicate the area you're working on? Might be helpful for folks to know you're in two differnt areas and how you find and give to appropiate people.

[crochet.sandie]

Could you each indicate the area you're working on? Might be helpful for folks to know you're in two differnt areas and how you find and give to appropiate people.

 

That's a great idea. I am in the New Orleans area. The people I will be giving ghans to are people that I know personally, people that my friends know personally, and people that are referred to me by other crocheters or people I correspond with. It is very individual.

 

I do not have a specific drop off point. There aren't any here that I know of. Shelters are closed as far as I know and there wouldn't be any in this area anyway as this is the area that was evacuated. It is possible Red Cross would take ghans, but I like the idea of dealing with individuals that I know personally are in need and their situations. They then know that they were specifically chosen to receive this gift.

 

The ghans I have given out thus far were personnel at a large local hospital and college students.

 

With each ghan related to Squares 4 Survivors, I will be giving a letter explaining why they are receiving the ghan and what we hope it accomplishes in their lives. Also, for any future squares rec'd a card will be included with the crocheter's name and whatever other information they want to include. (I don't have that information for these squares.)

 

I personally include on squares that I make a small silver or gold heart that says "handmade with love".

 

And great news! I have found a few people (including some young people) who are willing to help me to join the squares I have on hand. If all goes as planned, we will meet next Saturday.

 

I have another scrap strip ghan almost complete. I'll post the picture when it's done, probably tomorrow if time works in my favor.

 

Thanks for those who have contributed in the past and continue to work with this effort.

 

I don't know Jackie's plan but as for me -- as I posted before I will accept complete afghans of any size, or 12" squares if you send enough for a comfortghan (12 squares). My only requirement is not to knot and cut the yarn at the knot. You can sew in the ends several inches, or leave them and I'll do them if you don't know how. Any color, any pattern is great!

 

I realize 12 squares is a great commitment that few can make. We all do what we can.

 

Have a GREAT day!

[crochet.sandie]

I worked on this ghan the past couple days, joining scrap strips. I still need to make and add a couple more strips to give a good width, but thought I'd share it with you anyway so you can see I HAVE been working. LOL

 

 

I have the pattern for this scrap strip afghan at my web site if you want to make a similar one. You don't have to use scraps, of course. You could make each strip in a different color or all in the same color or some pattern. I began the effort to use up all those leftover balls I had and it blossomed.

 

Pam Wingard is co-designer. Pam works with Love Afghans for PRR, joining squares for the Native Americans. She's much more skilled and creative than I am!

[schcrochet]

Beautiful colors. Fun to see how bright and cheery it can be. The beneit too of doing the stripes is totability vs carrying around a big afghan if you like to take stitching with you werever you go....and don't we all.

 

My plan for using up my stash, is to start with one kind of yarn at a time. Right now I'm working on my Homespun stash. Used it to make several hats for The Hat a Week crochet a long, several scrafs for The Red Heart Project, and am making a yellow, blue, red, and maybe white afghan for Sandie's cause, then we'll take stock of whats left of it...chipping away a stitch at a time.

[crochet.sandie]

Right about the colors. I thought this would be great for a child who could enjoy looking at all the different colors. I don't try to match anything. It's totally random.

 

If you do each strip a different color or carry a plastic ziploc bag of small balls with you, you could definitely tote these. There are so many options. You could do different shades of a color and mix them up. Do stripes on one, carrying the yarn so there's no ends to sew in. Just so many ways to mix this up.

 

The pattern is simple so doesn't require you to have notes right there. Each row starts with a single crochet, making it easier. And you begin and end each strip with a row of straight sc for strength.

 

I do find it easier to count solid colors rather than variegated colors when you're going for a specific number of rows. I doubled some thin yarn in blue and red for some of it and it was really hard to count the rows at that part.

 

What I do is count off every 50 rows and put a safety pin there. I count it twice because you don't want to be joining two strips only to find out you are 10 rows short on one of them. :-(

 

I joined these with a single crochet, but you could do a whipstitch or any other joining you like to also make them different.

[crochet.sandie]

Last night I received the rest of the squares from Jackie. I have to date (2/4/06) received 1206 squares, though a few of them aren't square. heh

 

I have created a page on my web site for S4S in addition to the picture page. This will contain updated information as afghans are completed. I also have my own rules for square makers and assemblers.

 

The information on this page is only for my efforts. They are not S4S rules though certainly are fine for everyone. They are just basic, common sense things I think.

 

Squares 4 Survivors at the Cabana

 

I am expecting a few ladies here next Sunday to help join these squares and I hope to have them ready by then, organized by size and colors. There are several groups where I think there may be enough for a full afghan.

 

The colors are varied. I am going to take a picture in a little bit of all the yarn on my living room floor which overflowed from the table as I was counting. I'll post it later today.

 

Thanks to all who donated! Check Jackie's site if you want to sign up to be a square maker or assembler.

[crochet.sandie]

Here is the promised picture (I hope)

 

 

These are all the squares I received from Jackie, minus the 152 already used in ghans. I rec'd 1206 squares (or other shapes) in total.

[crochet.sandie]

I thought you all might be interested in seeing what I'm doing with the squares. I've planned out a few afghans as I have some volunteers who are coming Sunday to help assemble. I put up pictures in my yahoo photos. The planned ones are in the folder Katrina planned... Photos of completed ghans are in the other Katrina folder.

 

There may be changes in the final ghan, of course, but these are the planned schemes.

 

Enjoy!

[schcrochet]

FABULOUS Pictures...enjoyed looking through almost all of them!! Nice work, beautiful colors, and interesting patterns. Love the heart one in your baby area.

[quirkyvirgo]

Sandie, thanks so much for sharing those pics.

You are doing such great work! And all the ghans have turned out so well.

I just signed up on Jackie's site and hope to start a scrap ghan soon to de-stash some of my acrylic.

 

Keep up the good work!

[crochet.sandie]

I just signed up on Jackie's site and hope to start a scrap ghan soon to de-stash some of my acrylic.

 

That's a wonderful idea! The scrap strips helped me to do just that. I love scrap afghans though I do try to finagle different ways to use the scraps without having to cut yarn too often. I hate sewing in ends. LOL That's why I did that striped pattern on the one pictured. I carried the yarn up instead of cutting it.

 

Thanks for sharing your skills with others.

[crochet.sandie]

FABULOUS Pictures...enjoyed looking through almost all of them!! Nice work, beautiful colors, and interesting patterns. Love the heart one in your baby area.

 

Thanks for the kind words. There are a bunch of heart afghans. Some use my Puff Heart Square and the others use a pattern from Crochet with Heart from a few years back. I have more information on all the ghans at Crochet Cabana. Here's the page for the baby afghans. I note where I got the patterns if I can.

 

Thanks for participating in this project and all the others you're involved in. Great work!

[schcrochet]

Thanks for the kind words. There are a bunch of heart afghans. Some use my Puff Heart Square and the others use a pattern from Crochet with Heart from a few years back. I have more information on all the ghans at Crochet Cabana. Here's the page for the baby afghans. I note where I got the patterns if I can.

 

Thanks for participating in this project and all the others you're involved in. Great work!

 

Thanks they're all great, but I'm particularly fond of the nursery hearts, think I've got to check my stash, might have that pattern or something very similar. Made note of date and magazine name too, thanks:hug

[crochet.sandie]

Yesterday, six ladies and myself met to join S4S squares.

 

We finished one complete (70 square) ghan and another partial, which I will finish today.

 

One of the ladies will be delivering four afghans this week.

 

My husband will deliver the red, white, and blue ghan soon as I finish and wash it. It will go to an older gentleman who lost everything. As I understand it, he works in New Orleans and his family, including two grand-daughters who are living with them, are in Mississippi. He sleeps one week out of the month in his office. His home was in St. Bernard which was a very hard hit area.

 

The ladies expressed interest in meeting again so I will be setting up another gathering soon.

 

Since I like to border the squares first (which was really helpful to those who had never done this before) it takes a little longer, but the finished product is so nice. The pink one came out just beautiful. I hope to have pictures soon. It will go to a 70 yo widow who is hoping to be able to repair her home eventually.

[schcrochet]

Hi Sandie

 

Sounds like things are moving right along. Exciting and wonderful news. Glad you got some good help and sounds like it won't be a one shot deal...even better. I gave your name and email to a lady with an interest in helping the cause the other day from one of my other groups. I'm not sure off the top of my head even which one, other than I remember it was one of my yahoo grops. She had some completed afghans and other items and saw my post about working on an afghan for Hurricane Relief (by the way will try to get a picture up later....am over half done with it and feel likes it's coming along well). Anyway hope you hear from her. I gave your name and email, not your address; thought you'd want to do that once you two had made connections.

[crochet.sandie]

I gave your name and email to a lady with an interest in helping the cause

 

Yes, she contacted me and I've written her back. Thanks!

[crochet.sandie]

Several afghans made from donated squares have been or in the process of being delivered.

 

Frann Skolnik donated two complete afghans which are being delivered today.

YOu can see pictures of the ghans here.

 

The red, white and blue are going to Don, an older gentleman who lost everything in Katrina. The green gingham and long multi-color stripes pictured beside it are going to his grandchildren who are living with him presently.

 

The multi-color square afghan edged in black has been delivered to Nidia, a 70 yo widow who is hoping to be able to eventually repair her house. She is living in a FEMA trailer.

 

Later today I will be finishing the pink and white. That one, along with the yellow baby and the homespun toddler, will be delivered next week to Kathy, who is pregnant with her second child. She is a nurse in the NICU of a local hospital and lost everything. They are trying to repair their home.

 

That's the latest update.

 

Back to crocheting!

[schcrochet]

Loved seeing the pictures of Frann's completed afghans. Sandie, testing my memory is this the lady I put in touch with you?

 

Ok, so I'm going to try to post a picture here. Messed a while on photobucket. It's very different than the other photo places I've used so with the three options am unsure which one to use to post, for test one this is the 3rd option, the one that says IMG??

 

I've made it past the half way point now with my afghan for these hurricane affected people.

 

Clicking says url, not imagine? OK, That Did NOT work

--------------

Second try is the middle option that says tag ?? <a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a344/scmh/Stichery/hurricane.jpg" border="0" alt="Image hosting by Photobucket"></a>

 

not quite right, you see the picture but you go to photobucket, so will try the 3rd otion now which I thought was the one that took you to my album there, I'm looking for how to put the picture here in the post?

-----------

 

**I deleted picture because of it's size. Sandie redid for me down below.

[schcrochet]

Wow, the picture is huge, though I did get it in the text area. The process doesn't make sense to me, can someone explain? URL is the page right? Why does that not take you to page, but puts it herer. Tag I thought with the code is like what we post in blogs or webpages for a picture to show up? Adding the http...how do each of these items and processes differ? How do you know when to use what?

 

Thanks. And, if I don't want to load a picture directly to blogger, though so far that seems lots easier, which one of those 3 options do I use? Seems the benefit of loading to photobucket is you could use the same 1 picture in multiple places? Rather than loading to a blog on yahoo, msn, and blogger etc.?? Trying to understand, thanks folks.