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More information about charities and organizations you should know about.

Create Your Own Adventure or Follow the Printed Instructions?

| Betsy

Today I ventured into a megastore to buy a gift requested in the Season of Sharing letter I was sent, which I talked more about the other day. To be honest, I was a little worried about venturing into the visual assault that is the megastore toy section. I was struck by all the instructions and brands that seemed to alienate and deviate natural curiosity into a more prescripted playtime.

Determined to make this little girl’s holiday a bit brighter, I spent 30 minutes looking for the #1 item on the list, “gilitor lava.” I asked a salesman, a woman with a young girl, and the young girl herself. Each time we sounded it out together and scratched our heads. The salesman and I agreed it sounded like a superhero. After poring over the entire toy section, I realized she meant “glitter lava.” Success at last!

Suddenly I understood the complete sense of panic and fingers crossed that parents must have when trying to buy gifts for their children. The dolls pictured above were a special circle of hell as when I walked down the aisle, they all started making creepy noises in unison. After finding the glitter lava, I then set out to find the other two things on the list. And then there I sat in the aisle debating which was the better present on the list as I could only choose one: glitter lava, Easy-Bake oven, or Polly Pocket Ultimate Party Boat.

This fieldtrip caused so much second-guessing that if I ever have children I’m going to have start buying their presents 6 months in advance complete with a researched list of pros and cons. I ended up with the Polly Pocket Ultimate Party Boat because not only did it have about a million extra pieces, it also came with a jetski for Polly to ride the high seas on. And who knew that being able to “chillax” was a sales point?! I had no idea it was so ingrained in our culture that it’s Polly Pocket approved, even while “ice cream” remained in quotes.

I’m crossing my fingers that my little Santa writer will not be sad when she opens up the gift and doesn’t discover glitter lava….which just seemed boring and too Mr. Wizard compared to getting a boat, a jetski, boating accessories and child-size sunglasses so the little girl can keep the sun out of her eyes while she’s rocking out with Polly on the boat. The obvious front-runner at first, the Easy-Bake oven, failed because I just couldn’t send an 8 year old I don’t know something you plug in the wall even if it meant there would be no little tiny tasty cakes.

I left the megastore feeling overwhelmed by all the shiny brand new things that mooed and baaed and said “Mama” as I walked past. It seemed completely impersonal with way too many warning labels and notes about choking hazards. Coming back home to my handmade crafty things was a welcome respite as my house was soft and comfy and warm instead of robotic and plastic and kinda creepy.

And I wonder what the future will bring, and if one day I’ll find myself sitting down in an aisle comparing and contrasting toys that my child desparately wants. Will they only want the mass manufactured? Will they choose Made in China over Made by Mom? Something tells me I already know the answer, I just hope it will be possible to instill a respect for the handmade so their hand-crafted items will give them as much joy and wonder as the ones made miles away by strangers.

And if I’m really really lucky, maybe they’ll understand the freedom and the power and the love that goes into their handmade gifts and create their own adventures instead of being told where their little busy minds should wander by chillaxin’ marketers who give them numbered lists.

Tuesday morning, December 16, I’ll be on Martha Stewart Living Radio! I’ll be interviewed for the show Whole Living, which is on air 10-11 AM EST. Not a Sirius subscriber? You can sign up for a 3-day free trial here!

Now In Stereo.

| Betsy

This Christmas card, from Fine Cell Work is by far, my favorite Christmas card this year. Maybe even of all time.

I like the humanity it brings to what is normally thought as inhumane or deviant. I like that it highlights a part of our communities that might have been forgotten about, people who might have been forgotten about. I like how it communicates quietly that the holidays just aren’t for the ones who are out shopping in malls or wrapping presents and setting up the tree.

The holidays are for the lonely, the forgotten, the abused, the ill, too, and not just for those who try to make this holiday “the best one yet!” And they’re not about money and acquisitions and wish lists. They’re about recognizing love and joy and kindness…wherever they might find you.

Fine Cell Work is an charity that teaches needlework to inmates and sells their work. From their site,

Fine Cell Work is a Registered Charity that teaches needlework to prison inmates and sells their products. The prisoners do the work when they are locked in their cells, and the earnings give them hope, skills and independence.

Savings reduce the likelihood of offenders returning to crime. Prisoners often send the money they earn from Fine Cell Work to their children and families, or use it to pay debts or for accommodation upon release.

The inmates are all instructed by volunteers, many of whom have been taught at the Embroiderer’s Guild, the Royal School of Needlework and the world of professional design. Once trained, they can be responsible for difficult commissions done to deadlines, and support other inmates who are still learning.

Much of their finished work is traditional, but my favorite piece is a cushion of a prison calendar. After going to a sale of theirs in London a few years back, it’s been a pleasure to watch their online shop grow in designs and medium. Their work is always well-done, so I wasn’t surprised to see this excellent holiday card pop up in my inbox!



And in book news:

Today! (December 9)
*An interview I did with Open Mind was broadcast, and will be repeated again on December 14!

Tomorrow! (December 10)
*I’ll be talking about how you can use your craftiness for good at 7.30 in Raleigh at Quail Ridge Books!
*After the event, I’ll be doing a live interview with the wonderful Feminist Magazine on KPFK in Los Angeles, which will be broadcast online and on Pacifica Radio! I’m the last person interviewed on the show tomorrow, so listen up around 10.40 EST!

on giving.

| Betsy

Two new projects have been brought to my attention lately, which I’d like to share, both of which are accepting donations until December 10th. Both of these projects are not only for wonderful causes, but they are both for causes that are very near and dear to my heart for two very different and very personal reasons.

Supernaturale 6th Annual Scarf Drive

All donations go to Sanctuary for Families, a New York non-profit that helps women and children affected by domestic violence. This annual drive is very special to me for two reasons. This is first drive I ever sent a knitted donation for charity to! It’s mentioned briefly in the book, and I still remember shipping those scarves off and being so happy to be able to do something for people who had been through so much.

While fortunately I’ve never been in a domestic violence situation, I have been in abusive relationships. They were long ago, in what now, thankfully, seems like another lifetime. But I will never forget the powerlessness, the helplessness and the confusion involved in them, and how they turned my little world completely upside down for a long time. I’m still quite gunshy when it comes to trusting people as a result, and still wonder what could have healed more completely if I had gotten help at the time.

So sending those scarves to those women for the first time, I felt like I was sending them all my love and hope and acceptance in those stitches created by my hands. It was my greatest hope that they would wrap them around themselves to keep them warm and know that somewhere someone was rooting for them and sending them strength. It is for reasons like this that I earnestly believe in the power and the sanctity of the handmade and giving and loving without expecting reciprocity. Clicking either the link above or the photo will take you directly to more information about what types of scarves to send and where to.



Mama to Mama: Caps to Cap Haiti Project

Mama to Mama is a new craftivism project started by the always inspirational Soulemama that is collecting newborn caps and receiving blankets for safe birthing kits for new mothers and babies in Haiti via Konbit Sante, an organization created to improve Haitian healthcare.

According to Mama to Mama, in northern Haiti:

* Just 1 in 5 women receives skilled medical care during childbirth.
* Haiti has the highest maternal mortality ratio in the Western Hemisphere.
* 1 in 40 women will die as a result of pregnancy complications, unsafe abortion, or obstetrical emergency.
* Twelve percent of children die before the age of 5

My personal interest in this is due to a long-time concern regarding the health and welfare and newborns and their mothers, especially those with premature babies. In 1975, I was born 3 months early, a thousand miles away from where my parents were from, while they were on vacation. When I was in my early teens, I visited the NICU I was in for 3 months, and was shocked at the teeny tininess of the infants. The fear for my survival can still be seen in the faces of my parents and relatives as they relive the first few months of my life and how I fit entirely in my uncle’s hand.

Thirty-three years later, my birth still evokes heavy emotions from them. And I was born in a modern Cincinnati, Ohio hospital! What about all the babies that are born with problems to scared new mothers in countries without all of our technological might? They, too, need to be comforted and held and listened to like my own mother was. But in countries where so many horrible things are happening simultaneously, how can everyone be heard and comforted and listened to? The links above will take you directly to more information and what to make and where to send donations.

Both these new mothers and new infants, as they begin their new roles in life, need the same warmth and comfort and hope that the women and children affected by domestic violence do in New York. Or the children of Iraq and Afghanistan. Or the hurricane victims still suffering from Katrina. Or any of the hundreds of thousands of people that receive donations all over the world from charities.

The trick to starting to live more compassionately and openly is by figuring out where you’d like to help and for what cause…something determined by your own life experiences and histories. And then to reach out and do some good for others, whether it’s for someone in your own life who needs some help and support or for someone across the world. By being a tiny part of the change you’d like to see (or even the change you’d like to have), you’re causing tiny ripples, ripples that perhaps one day will become waves.

knitting for good!

| Betsy

So, yes, I wrote a book that will be out in a mere 5 days! And yes, this book is called Knitting for Good!

But this is not the time to talk about what I’ve done, it’s the time to talk about just a few of the many knitters who inspire me each and every day.

Last week, the Saddleworth Salvation Army Thrift Shop in South Australia celebrated the collection of over 10,000 knitted items during the past 18 months. The photo above shows some of the knitters wearing some of the donations. The quote below was taken directly from the article which pretty much encompasses why I believe that knitting can (and should) be used for the greater good.

“At Bramwell House (supported accommodation for women) a woman and her four children who had left everything they owned behind, they received a very large knitted blanket among the goods they were given. It was made in lots of different colours a

Just a few of the other knitters recently in the news for their knitting and their giving:
*The CareWear project in New Castle County, Delaware
*A lovely group of knitters in New Bedford, Massachusetts
*Knitters in Truro who aim to cover Afghanistan like a blanket
*The Knit Wits of St. Edward’s Episcopal Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania
*The Baby Blankies Makers of the Seabrook active-adult community in New Jersey

What are you doing with your two hands at this moment? (When you’re not online, that is.) Do you have any idle time? Could you be using that time to make someone’s day better? This someone doesn’t have to be a stranger, even. This someone just needs to be a someone who may just need a little extra love, attention, care, pat on the back or hug. This someone needs to be a someone who could use a little hope or joy or comfort.

If you know someone who fits the bill and have some idle time on your hands, you could be helping them the next time you’re waiting for an appointment, watching television, riding public transportation, or in line at the bank. We all think we have no idle time, but if we really look, it’s always there. Waiting to be filled by kindness. I’m not suggesting that you need to be spending all of your spare seconds altruistically, I’m just suggesting that maybe some of them could be more wisely spent.

Knitting for good (the construct) not necessarily the book, is about looking beyond ourselves and the little bubbles we’ve created with our lives. The knitters noted above are examples of that quiet kindness that always exists in us always. Quiet kindness is in the tiny actions like a smile to a stranger, letting cars in front of you in traffic, telling someone they have toilet paper on their shoe. Teeny tiny actions that are rooted in infinite kindness. It’s there, I promise, all you have to do is look.

book review: ‘i will not be broken’

| Betsy

This post may not seem very crafty, and, it’s not. It is my belief that craft and creativity can help us work through hard times in our lives. Sometimes, however, we might need a little helping hand in order to get to where we feel like creating. Over the years I’ve worked with survivors of myriad causes in different capacities, and their fighting spirits never cease to amaze me. The most memorable individuals I’ve worked with have been refugees from countries at war, and it is with their resilience and fire that I wanted to mention this book. There are have also been times when I could have benefited from this book, too, as my acts of creativity are often acts of strength and fighting back.

Along with living with an open heart, I think that another thing people must strive for is refusing to be broken. But then again, I guess you don’t need to refuse anything if you’ve never needed to be fixed. But, if you have found yourself muddled and angry and frightened and screaming and running and alone and tired and hurting and lost all at the same time, you might know what I’m talking about.

Sometimes I get sent things in the post to have a look at, and when the book I Will Not Be Broken: 5 Steps to Overcoming a Life Crisis appeared on my doorstep, I wasn’t sure what was in store for me. It’s a new book written by Jerry White, co-founder of the Landmine Survivors Network, which is now known as Survivor Corps. Over the next few nights, I read the book before going to sleep, finishing it in just a few days.

According to White, the 5 steps towards healing after disaster are: face facts, choose life, reach out, get moving and give back. The 5 points work from inside out, from facing yourself to giving back to others. As he does a much better job than I would at explaining them, the chapters are online in PDF version here.

As White elucidates on these 5 steps via personal stories, almost each page was met with someone else’s story of genocide, war, illness, abuse and so forth. The first few chapters were sometimes hard, but as the book continued on, I started to remember all the fighters I know who’ve wrestled their demons and won. Some of them took years before they took the steps needed, while others started fighting from the start. All of them won, not because they were extraordinary, but because we’re stronger than we think.

I Will Not Be Broken, may not be for everyone, but for those who might need a little forward momentum in tough times, it may help generate some steps in the right direction. In refusing to be broken, we recognize that small voice of hope and love and kindness that still exists despite where misfortune or horror may have taken us. Sometimes that voice seems impossible to find and laughable to think of, but it’s there. Some of us take longer to find that voice than others. But it will be found, cared for, loved and nurtured. It just may take a little time, a little patience, and a lot of love.