Knit and Crochet for Charity

When I find myself with extra time and leftover scraps of yarn on my hands I like to find groups that distribute hand made items to people in need. Online searches for these groups have been time consuming, not always easy to find, and often outdated, so I'll keep track of what I learn here, and update it as I learn more. If you have a group or project to share, please leave a note for me in the comments section and I'll add your info.

Projects with Specific Due Dates:

Martingale & Co is sponsoring a campaign called "Share the Warmth". They're not collecting items themselves, but to encourage people to knit, crochet & quilt for charity they're offering prizes to people who donate items to the group of their choice & then submit photos to Martingale. The random drawings will be held Thursday, December 1, 2011, or when the tally reaches 3,500 donations, whichever comes first. Here's a link with all the details. You can send pictures of your donations to: Sharethewarmth@martingale-pub.com or kburns@martingale-pub.com

Smooth Fox Crochet is sponsoring a 2011 Winter Charity Square Drive with prizes. They're looking for 6, 7 or 12" squares. Check the link for complete details. Deadline is January 14, 2011.

Create scarves to gift to the athletes, coaches, families, volunteers and supporters of each participating Special Olympics Program. at the 2011 Special Olympics. They're accepting scarves made out of specific yarns:

Red Heart Super Saver 387-Soft Navy
Red Heart Super Saver 319-Cherry Red
Red Heart Soft 4604-Navy
Red Heart Soft 9925-Really Red
The colors as well as the size (6" x 54"-60") of the scarves will be the same for all participating Programs in the 2012 Special Olympics USA Scarf Project. They have 4 free patterns on the site, although they welcome any design. Individual states have organized distribution of the scarves, with a list of shipping addresses and due dates here. Due dates vary by state, and fall between Dec. 12, 2011 to Mar. 5, 2012. The yarn was available today at my local Joann's (and on sale even!) but you can also order online directly from Red Heart at a discount. You can post photos of your finished work, and see what others have made, on their facebook page.


Groups That  Continually Accept Items  

Shanghai Guild has a special place in my heart as I was lucky enough to join  in their weekly knit-ins during my time as a trailing spouse in Shanghai. They make assemble beautiful blankets that are distributed to orphanages in China; create dresses for stuffed bears that are sold to benefit young heart patients and make scarves, hats and other gifts for elderly residents of Shanghai. They're happy to accept 10" knitted or crocheted squares and have people in many countries that collect items and get them to Shanghai.




Knit4Charities Inc. is an Australian Internet based association of dedicated knitters and crocheters who give warm clothing and comforting items such as blankets and toys to needy people throughout our Country. 
They have a huge following and ongoing projects that serve a variety of charities.

In memory of their sister, two women have launched "Kaps for Kendall."

From their site: "Our goal is to raise money to fight Fanconi anemia, the disease that took the life of our sister, and to provide special hats for kids and adults, who have lost their hair from chemotherapy and radiation.









If you have a group or know of one, leave info in the comments section and I'll add you to this list."

Crocheted Hats for 'Knit One, Save One' campaign

I made these 3 crocheted hats using cotton yarn I hand-dyed. I didn't use a pattern - just made it up as I went along, something I really love about crocheting. It was a great project to keep in the car & pick up where ever I was and work without having to keep track of what I had done or where I was in the pattern.

Save the Children is sponsoring a 'Knit One, Save One' campaign where you can knit or crochet a newborn infant hat which will be sent to babies in developing countries and a note to the President-elect of the US indicating the importance of this issue.

Info from them:
Due to the overwhelming success of this campaign, Save the Children and Warm Up America are re-launching this effort in a campaign called KNIT ONE, SAVE ONE (www.savethechildren.org/knitonesaveone). This campaign is a grassroots initiative asking knitters and crocheters to make a cap to help warm newborn babies around the world. In 2008, we are hoping to double our previous impact by engaging 50,000 knitters and crocheters to make 500,000 caps!
Each year 2 million children die the day they are born. In total, over 9 million children — one every three seconds — die annually from preventable causes. Ninety-nine percent of these deaths take place in the developing world. One in every six children in sub-Saharan Africa still fails to reach his or her fifth birthday. Many parents even resist naming a baby during the first six weeks of life because they fear the child will not survive a reality utterly unthinkable in the United States.
Knit One, Save One offers an opportunity for crafters to use their time and creativity to make a difference in the lives of a newborn and family. In addition, anyone can take action beyond making a cap to take part in the larger effort to reduce newborn and child mortality.

• You can write a letter to the President-elect calling for increased support and resources for child health initiatives. You can host an event to raise awareness of the challenges that babies face and to make caps with friends, family and community members.
• You can also donate to You can also donate to the Better Beginnings for Babies Kit which contains items to improve hygiene at delivery and promote proper care of newborns. This kit will be paired with a hand-made cap, knitted or crocheted by one of our caring participants in the Knit One, Save One campaign.

Mothers shouldn’t face the uncertainty of a baby’s survival when known, readily available, costefficient solutions exist.
Please join us in this exciting campaign.
Your cap can save a life, your voice can help us save millions more!