The Draw this Year - Oceanwind Knits

We're having another raffle! This year, we're raffling a kit from Oceanwind Knits. It came in the mail today and its beautiful and knittable and hand-dyed but I'm not giving away the store. So it could be this:

Or like this:

Or maybe this:

And maybe you could make this with it:



So the rules are the same this year: Knit something, send it to us along with your name or ravelcrack link, and we'll put you in the draw. Knit 2 things and you get 2 entries in the draw. We'll draw in March and one lucky winner will get it. But you're all winners - you know that.

The Knit Cafe

Okay, I just wanted to write a little bit about our first LYS in Toronto - the Knit Cafe is owned by the lovely and talented Iwona - say hi when you go in. It was amazing from the very start - the first time I called, they let me blather on for 10 minutes, then said calmly "no problem" to being our first drop off point.

The store is adorable - have a cupcake during Sunday high team.

The yarn is great though: they carry fleece artist, and you know I love me some fleece artist.

Here's what the store looks like inside:

You need more reasons? How about Lorna's Lace, Peace Fleece and Cascade Yarns?

Get yourself over there - and tell them you've got warm hands!

Anita.

PS We did a presentation to the Rotary Club - looks like we might be shipping some boots to go with those hand-knit socks for Labrador, so keep 'em coming.

Take care,

ab

Wool 'N' Things is In

Just a quick note this time,

Gisele at Wool 'n' Things in Orleans (or Orléans, depending on whether you can find the "é" on your keyboard) has joined our little Warm Hands family.

You can drop off your stuff at their store on Youville drive any time. I'm going to try to get down there myself, and take some pictures of the store ASAP.

Glorious Knitting!

I mentioned how great the Ottawa Knitting Guild is on Ravelry, but I can't help saying it again. even on that cold, damp night last week, the room was buzzing with conversation and I was very kindly welcomed as a guest. The show and tell was great, too. I missed Joyce showing off my son's elephant sweater (a labour of love if there ever was one!) the previous meeting. The knitting this month was great - some gifts ready for shipping, some great shawls and more.

Nice to meet you, and thank you. First, thanks to Suzanne for her great presentation about charity knitting. I learned a lot and we appreciate your kind words. It was also a great chance for me to put faces to names. Names I have been seeing on tags tucked in with wonderful knitting. Like these:

Daphne's mittens. I am glad you are feeling better, and I know these will warm many hands. I have several balls of washable merino if you'd like them! I was impressed to learn that you just knit these, without a pattern!

These are also some very overdue photos from May's last drop off. We love your sweaters, too, and they got a bit of a goodbye pat from these models as we packed them into a box to ship off. The owl is modelling a lovely doll hat that was tucked in with these other lovely hats. The owl is not leaving the house, its owner clearly informed me. (why do some little boy voices carry so well?!!)

And last, but not least, a surprise sweater donated by Joyce. She says it is easy, but I am a bit wary of having to line anything up. A classic with ladybug buttons for a lucky child!

A few other recent donations are a few scarves, and this sweet granny square rose.

Thanks again, Ottawa! Amy

Alix, Maria, Jeanine, Daphne, Julia, May and Peggy

Hellooooooo,

Look at all the fab stuff I picked up in Ottawa and from Canada Post (May, we'll have pictures of your stuff up here shortly!).

From Alix in Toronto. Alix, you didn't give me your address, but I got your email so I'll put you in the next draw.

Okay, next from Maria Koulis, the felting queen - Queen Maria, every time I look at one of the felt hats, I try to figure out how you did it - I'm trying to make a felted painting and I can't get the colours to blend. What's the secret? My plan is to sell it for two THOUSAND dollars (said a la Dr. Evil) and buy the boots for the Innu kids. I may have to come up with a Plan B - still looking for ideas....

Jeanine Turcotte is the sheep-lady - she used to raise sheep, but now she just raises sweaters. Jeanine, I took a close up of this particular sweater, because the buttons on it are going to make some little boy very happy - planes and horses - what more could you want?

Right here is Daphne Edmunds work from the Ottawa Knitting Guild. Amy tells me she just picked up 20 more pairs of mittens from Daphne this week - thanks for being on our team, Daphne (I heart my librarian ;)

And over here, its Julia Yeung of the OKG who makes these very cute creations (I'm thinking for the 3-7 age set).

And finally, Peggy Holton of the OKG - cute stripes!

I can't go without mentioning sweet Suzanne who did a chat about us at the Guild meeting this week. Suzanne was one of the first ladies who put her hands up two years ago and said, "I'm in - Amy and Anita are having their mid-life crisis, and I will knit hats for them!". Thanks S for everything you do. To see Suzanne's princess hat pattern, link up here.

Okay, if I've missed out on anyone, its not from lack of love. Send me an email and I will see if I can dig through and find a note or a label or something with your name on it.

This is what the new poster looks like - keep your eyes open in the LYS for it!

This store is a Warm Hands Network Drop-Off Site

What: We gather your hand-knit socks, mittens, baby blankets and hats. Wool is preferred, and no scarves please.

Where: Then we box them up and ship them to two Innu communities in Northern Labrador. The women in the community distribute them to kids in need.

When: Our drop-off deadlines are September 30th and December 31st 2009.

Why: Check out our blog at: http://www.findingfortygatheringknitting.blogspot.com/ for that info.

Knit us stuff, include your name and we will post a photo on our web-site. Check out the details on our draw!

And the Winner Is....

Kara Lefevre of Quebec City! Congrats, Kalyle, I will be sending you your lovely Fleece Artist yarn soon. Thanks to everyone for submitting your name, address and info for the draw.

Should we do another one?

We got a package today from Teri of Englewood, Florida. Teri, I have to say that I love the fact that you addressed the envelope to "The Warm Hands Network, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada", and it got to us. Canada Post, this Bud's for you! I have to also say that you know what little girls like, because my own girl's eyes opened wide when she saw the hats and mittens you sent in. Everything has a girly touch to it, with the little sparkly trim and pom poms. My photo doesn't do them justice, but these are my favorites.

Okay, to answer the questions of some of our readers, the items for the next Innu shipment can basically be any size, though the community would really like stuff for the age 5 to 17 crew.

They'd also like blankets for the babies again - those are a huge help, because there are many many young new mothers in the community. Scarves: we don't really ship 'em. We've got a limited budget and we want to spend shipping dollars on those items that will be used the most, and that the community requested.

In terms of materials: wool is best. For both Mongolia and the Innu, we're looking for warmth over washability (is that a word?).

Okay, finally, in other news, Wabi Sabi is a funkster of a store in Ottawa. Its more than just yarn (though the yarn is absolutely incredible - wierd stuff that I have never seen before, and absolutely beautiful). They also carry rovings, and little kits (my daughter and I just made the cutest little felted flower from a kit there - they are kind of like this one from Feltwerker at etsy:









), and these incredible handmade, uncolored silk things (they call them hankies but they are bigger than any hankies I've ever seen), that you kind of hand-paint yourself. I'm going to try to post pics of the store at some point, because you have to see it. Its the store I would have, if I had a million dollars.


Sometimes I get a bit off topic, but I do have a point, and here it is: Wabi-sabi is going to be our newest partner. So you can drop off your stuff there (I'm going to put up a poster with them).

Stay tuned, because they are going to run a charity knitting workshop soon, and guess who the featured charity will be?


Cool, eh?