NEW YEAR NEW PROJECTS

Happy New Year! Our first season was an incredible success with our enthusiastic group knitting and crocheting over 100 premie caps for Project Sunshine and 15 knitted "helmets" for Christmas-at-Sea.

In the Winter '08 season we are focusing on a variety of projects for one charity, afghans for Afghans, who have urgently called for blankets, hats and socks for Afghan newborns at The Cure Hospital in Kabul, one of the few hospitals to treat very sick babies in their neonatal unit. We have also added a child's vest for older Afghan children. All Afghans face a brutally cold winter this year.

ABOUT AFGHANS FOR AFGHANS
afghans for Afghans is a humanitarian and educational people-to-people project that sends hand-knit and crocheted blankets and sweaters, vests, hats, mittens, and socks to the beleaguered people of Afghanistan.

AFA works with reputable, experienced relief agencies to securely transport and distribute our hand-knit and crocheted blankets and garments to suffering Afghans. Their partners have included World Concern, Afghans 4 Tomorrow, Airline Ambassadors, International Orphan Care, Afghan Relief Organization, CURE Hospital, Church World Sevice, and Mobile Mini Circus for Children. This project is a partnership with the American Friends Service Committee, which has organized humanitarian missions for more than 80 years.

Visit afghans for Afghans for more information.

DEADLINES
Items for newborns will be sent to Afghanistan in February (exact date to be announced soon). In the Loop will send items for the group when the deadline is announced. We will send the remainder of items in March at the end of our season.

PROJECT PATTERNS & YARN
Patterns for vests, hats, and blankets have been posted on this blog (see left bar for links). We encourage you to use yarn from our stash, we have beautiful wool yarn in a variety of colors for these projects.

If anyone would like to start a project now, and would like yarn from the In the Loop stash, please email us and we'll make arrangements for you to pick up yarn from our offices.

RULES
afghans for Afghans has very strict rules. Visit their website for details, but here is a synopsis:

BLANKETS ARE URGENTLY NEEDED. THEY MUST BE A MINIMUM OF 40" X 30" (NOT SMALLER).
AFA HAS ASKED CROCHETERS TO FOCUS ON BLANKETS, AS THE FABRIC IS DENSER AND THE CROCHETING FASTER!
AVOID LACY OR AIRY PATTERNS.
FOR HATS, HEAD CIRCUMFERENCE IS 10" T0 15". CAPS NEED TO COVER EARS. EAR FLAPS AND UNDER-CHIN TIES ARE ACCEPTABLE. HATS NEED SOME STRETCH FOR COMFORT OVER FOREHEAD.
AFA DOES NOT NEED ITEMS FOR PREMIE BABIES.
USE WOOL (OR OTHER ANIMAL FIBER) TO PROVIDE MAXIMUM WARMTH IN HARSH WEATHER. SEE AFA'S WEBSITE FOR MEMO ON WOOL AND FIBER CONTENT.
AVOID WHITE AND VERY LIGHT COLORS THAT SOIL EASILY.
DO NOT INCORPORATE REPRESENTATIONAL IMAGES SUCH AS FACES AND ANIMALS IN YOUR DESIGN. ISLAM PROHIBITS DEPICTING SUCH LIKENESSES.
DO NOT INCORPORATE RELIGIOUS OR NATIONAL SYMBOLS.

FIRST AFTER WORK SOCIAL
Join us on Thursday, January 17 from 6-8 pm for our first After Work Social of the season. Remember, we'll bring the patterns and yarn, you bring the tools! Meet at the Winter Garden's marble tables near the glass wall.