Charity Knitters

Hats for the Homeless will be having a fall “kick-off” for all the charity knitters in the community. Join us for this fun filled day of knitting and connecting with other knitters in our community. Bring your current charity knitting project. Also bring along a snack to share and we’ll provide the beverages. We have some new patterns to share and as usual, Steven will have bargain baskets of yarn for us to dig through....yarn ideal for hats. We will have experienced knitters on hand to help. Come for the day ...or as long as your schedule permits.
Date: Tuesday, October 15th
Time: 2:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.
Place: StevenBe Yarn Shop
35th and Chicago Ave So
Minneapolis, MN
RSVP: bjm@visi.com

 

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Upcoming Events

We are into our 5th season of knitting “Hats for the Homeless” that are donated to shelters and schools in Minneapolis. We are off to a good start – over 300 hats have arrived so far and it’s only September and was 95 degrees outside a few days ago, but we all know cooler weather is on the way.

We have several events on the calendar, our way of connecting the knitters in our community. We will be knitting in public at these two markets:

• Saturday, September 15 at Midtown Farmers Market on 23rd and East Lake Street
  from 9:00 am – 12:00 noon.

• Saturday, October 5 at Fulton Farmers Market on 49th and Chowen Avenue South
  from 9:00 am – 12:00 noon.

Bring along a knitting project, a chair and shopping bag for picking up fresh locally grown veggies. We’ll have patterns and experienced knitters on hand to help out newer knitters.



 

 

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Calling all “Charity Knitters in the Community” for a big get-together on Thursday, October 10th at StevenBe’s located at 35th and Chicago. We’ll begin at 5:00 pm – bring along a snack to share, beverages will be provided. RSVP for this event to bjm@visi.com. Bring your knitting, such as your current hat project, to work on and invite a friend to enjoy this gathering.
Please note: date for this gathering has changed to Tuesday, October 15th, 2:00 pm - 8:00 pm.

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Drop off sites are as follows:

Linden Yarn & Textile, Inc.
5814 Excelsior Boulevard
St. Louis Park, MN 55416
952-303-3895

StevenBe
3448 Chicago Ave. So.
Minneapolis, MN 55407
612-259-7525

Ingebretsen’s
1601 E. Lake Street.
Minneapolis, MN 55407
612-729-9331

 

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Hats are due the first week of December 2013.

 

Summary of 2012

GIVE THE GIFT OF WARMTH

HATS FOR THE HOMELESS

 A big warm thank you to knitters and stitchers all across the country who sent beautiful warm and wooly hats and scarves to cold Minneapolis to be given to the homeless and other people in need. Close to twenty agencies received donations from us. Several of the shelters allowed us to come in and hand out our hats and scarves….as the folks inquired about where the items had come from, they were really touched when told that the hats and scarves were made just for them. It was very heart-warming to watch the folks look over the new hats/scarves and choose one they really liked.

With the help of Ravelry and other social media, the number of hats received this year exceeded 1,550 and as of today, January 23, 2013, hats are still arriving in the mail and knitters are dropping off items at our local yarn shops. Scarves numbered over 200.

Just this week on the front page of the Star Tribune was this article “Homeless numbers hit highs not seen in a decade.” The Wilder Foundation research on homelessness in 2009 counted over 9,600 homeless adults, youth, and children living in shelters, transitional housing and on the streets. This increase in homelessness can be attributed to job loss, housing foreclosures, lack of affordable housing, and tough economic times. Keep sending hats and scarves our way!

Looking ahead in 2013, we will be scheduling several “Knit for Charity” days throughout the year at Steven Be’s on 35^th and Chicago Ave. In Minneapolis, we’ll continue to “knit in public” at farmers’ markets – talking to new stitchers about the project. Knitting groups are popping up in coffee shops and I’ve been told there is even a group of knitters who meet on Friday nights at an Irish pub to knit hats. Church and senior knitting groups also donate to the cause.

A few reminders:

·         Adult large and extra large

·         Preferably washable wool

·         Men prefer dark solid colors

·         Women and kids like more colorful hats

·         When in doubt, knit the hat an inch or two longer, to give the ears extra protection

·         Drop down a needle size to get a nice tight stitch

Hats for the Homeless drop off sites:

Linden Yarn & Textile, Inc.

5814 Excelsior Boulevard

St. Louis Park, MN  55416

952-303-3895

StevenBe

3448 Chicago Ave. So.

Minneapolis, MN  55407

612-259-7525

Ingebretsen’s

1601 E. Lake Street.

Minneapolis, MN  55407

612-729-9331

Again, With Warmest Wishes and Thanks to all the stitchers,...to the yarn shops for collecting the items and being there to answer questions,...to those who helped sort and count the hats and scarves,...those who helped with delivery,...all of you who showed up on Saturdays to knit in public at the farmers’ market,...thanks to the knitters who helped new people learn to knit,...to those who donated yarn,...the tech support – hope I didn’t miss anyone. Hats for the Homeless is truly a community wide project that brings people together – knitting for a cause.

Barbara Melom

bjm@visi.com
babzzzym@gmail.com

Interview with KARE11

I did an interview with a local TV station a few weeks ago regarding the Hats for the Homeless project. The filming took place at Steven Be's. It was on air during the 5:00 pm news on KARE11 last night. Here is the link to the interview.

http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=1000111

Keep knitting!

Charity Knitting Day

CALLING ALL CHARITY KNITTERS

Help us make a difference in our community this Holiday Season!

Charity Knitting Day and Collection Drive at StevenBe

Saturday, November 17th - 11am to 3pm

We're just like you. We're teachers, business executives, parents, retirees, students...you name it. But the one thing we all have in common is our dedication to those in need. Join us at StevenBe for this day where we combine our Passion, our Neighbors, and our Community in the ultimate acts of charity. Barb Melom and Joan Gilbertson head up this charity knitting day bringing groups and individuals from all over the city to support Hats for the Homeless and the StevenBe Creative Community Foundation.

POT LUCK - CHARITY KNITTING - FREE PATTERNS - HAT DONATIONS

Let us know you are attending

RSVP to bjm@visi.com or

StevenBe at 612-259-7525



Your Passion
Knitting for charity allows you to follow your fiber passion
while contributing to a cause that's important to all of us.




 Your Neighbors

We're all in this together. And volunteering is  a great
 way to meet and get to know others in your fiber
community and beyond.





Your Community

Your contributions will be distributed to local
organizations recognized by hats for the homeless.

 



 

HATS FOR THE HOMELESS



 

Updates

Hope you have been able to do some knitting with the weather changing to much cooler.

Another place to drop off your completed hats is Ingelbretsen's at 1601 East Lake Street, Minneapolis.

Regarding the day of charity knitting at StevenB's, Saturday, Nov. 17 from 11:00 - 3:00 p.m. This is going to be a potluck lunch instead of a catered lunch which was stated in the last post. Please bring a dish to share.

Enjoy all the great colors fall brings.

October/November event updates

Leaves are falling and temperatures are dropping which is a sign that winter is on its way.  We are hoping to have one more outdoor"knitting in public" before the snow falls.

Sunday, October 21st, we'll be at the Linden Hills Farmers Market at 43rd Street and Upton Avenue So.--in the parking lot next to Settergren's Hardware Store.  We'll be there from 9 to 12 noon with hat samples and patterns.  Bring your knitting and join us.


Saturday, November 17th, we'll be getting together for a full day of charity knitting at Steven B's Yarn Garage over on 34th and Chicago Avenue So.  There will be be yarn, patterns, hat samples and lunch will be served for $10.00  Be sure to RSVP for this event so that we know how much food we need to order. 
RSVP to : bjm@visi.com or call the yarn shop at 612-259-7525. Time:  11:00 to 3:00 p.m.

It appears that knitters have been busy working on hats, as we have close to 200 on hand and quite a few scarves.  There are many variations to the basic Watch Cap pattern.  A hat that I recently received called "Classic World War II Watch Cap" has a beautiful star finish on top of the hat.  If you Google, "Classic World War II Wtach Cap", you will be given a Ravelry site for the pattern....scroll down and choose the direct download...pdf option.  This might be a pattern you'd like to try.

HATS ARE DUE BY MID-DECEMBER. Drop off sites:  Steven B's Yarn Garage on 34th and Chicago,
Linden Hills Yarn Shop at 2720 W. 43rd St. and First Universalist Church at 3400 Dupont Ave. S

Classic World War II Watch Cap

Upcoming events for 2012

HATS FOR THE HOMELESS

Hats for the Homeless will be launching its 4th year of knitting hats to be distributed to local shelters in the Minneapolis area.  In 2011, we collected over 1200 hats.  Winters are cold in Minnesota, so we prefer washable wool for the extra warmth it provides.  Dark solid colors with no pom-poms on top seem to be the style preferred by our recepients. Patterns will be available.

September Events

September 15th on Saturday, we will be knitting at the Midtown Farmers Market on Lake Street and Hiawatha Ave. from 9:30 to 12:30.  Bring along your needles and yarn for working on a hat.  Also a shopping bag for picking up some fresh locally grown veggies. Bring along a lawn chair.

September 22nd on Saturday we will be knitting at the Fulton Farmers Market on 50th Street and Chowen Avenue So. from 9:30 to 12:30.  Again bring along your knitting supplies for working on a hat.  There is also a vendor selling beautifully hand-spun yarn at this market.

Both markets have great food vendors for a mid morning snack.

Rounding out 2011

We are humbled and honored to report that we have received and distributed 1,200 hats and 200 scarves this winter season thus far. TWELVE HUNDRED! Wow. Knitters, you have outdone yourselves with the amazingly beautiful and warm hats and accessories that you have made with your own two hands for our homeless friends. Each and every one was given to a person in need and each and every person in need was grateful. And we are continually grateful for your efforts, handiwork and kindness.

A complete list of collaborating organizations will be posted soon. For now, we are still weaving in a few loose ends and still collecting and giving hats (Old Man Winter seems to have finally arrived here in the Northland, and it's cold). And...we're still knitting too.

Please continue to send in hats throughout the winter and we will be sure to share them with those in need.

Thank you! May 2012 find you happy and warm.

Halfway There!

With the addition of another beautiful 72 hats just today, we are now officially at our halfway mark to our goal! Keep 'em coming, wonderful knitters! We can totally do this.

So many beautifully warm hats have been coming in, see the tally to the right! -->

The only trouble with these incredible hats is that the vast majority of them are for women and children. We will gladly (happily! joyously!) distribute these hats to the women and children, but our male homeless neighbors may be left in the cold at this rate.

Please consider knitting a much larger hat with very plain, dark wool and don't put any creative flairs on it. I know, I know, that's very hard for creative knitters to imagine! But trust me, they will be warmly received and very much appreciated. See pattern notes above or previous blog posts below for details on the hats for men.

And...THANK YOU!!

When in doubt, knit it LARGE!

We are in need of LARGE HATS FOR MEN. As you think about your knitting for Hats for the Homeless, please consider knitting a hat for a man. Make it big (bigger than you think, really large), dark, and solid-colored (time and time again, we've been told by the men who've received our hats that they just don't like the patterns, brights or even stripes). We have so many BEAUTIFUL hats for women and kids, but now it's time to focus on the men for a semi-balanced ratio to distribute this year. Thanks!

Going Strong

We are off to an amazing start this year and just wish that we could broadcast an ongoing THANK YOU ticker on this blog and elsewhere to all of those who have knit hats (and scarves and mittens...) and to all of those who are telling friends about Hats for the Homeless. It's truly an organic project and is so fun to see it grow. We have received 20% of our goal for this year and have already put a lot of those warm woollies out into the community. Just today, 55 hats went to a Minneapolis ECFE group for under-privileged kids whose families can use some help this winter. It may be 75 degrees now, but we all know it won't be for long.

We spread the word to piles of knitters at two local farmer's markets this fall--Fulton Farmer's Market and the Midtown Farmer's Market--and had a lot of fun sitting and knitting with so many of you in the presence of good food, great fun and lots of curious people. These knit in public charity knitting events are a great tool to spread the word and create excitement about Hats for the Homeless, so watch for details of more events to come!

Here's another great article about Hats for the Homeless too: "Knitting for a Cause: Hats for the Homeless." Thank you, Allison Nowak of the Southwest Minneapolis Patch!

Kick-Off Party

Bring your knitting supplies and join us for an afternoon of knitting as we kick-off our “Hats for the Homeless” for the upcoming winter. We will have patterns and experienced knitters on hand to help with questions. Spread the word and bring a friend!

StevenBe's Yarn Garage
3448 Chicago Avenue South, Minneapolis, 55407
Saturday, August 27, noon-3pm

RSVP: bjm AT visi DOT com ~or~ joangilby AT gmail DOT com

900 Hats!

We are proud and--at the same time--deeply humbled to share the total from last year's Hats for the Homeless effort: 900 hats were collected and distributed to our homeless neighbors here in Minneapolis last year! This project has taken off with very little effort on our part and we are beyond thrilled with this total, which represents a 200% growth over the year before. In just two years, we've shared 1,200 hats with people in need and it's happened all at the grassroots level, by word of mouth and with zero exchange/cost.

2011 Details Posted!

The 2011 details for Hats for the Homeless are now posted here. Thank you for participating!

Parker the Dog with some of the hats from 2010

Knit, Knosh and Meet Other Knitters

Please join us for this event!

Saturday, November 20, 1:00-5:00 p.m.
StevenBe's Yarn Garage
3448 Chicago Avenue South, Minneapolis (door in the back)
RSVP to Barb bjm@visi.com

See for yourself what's happening at StevenBe's Yarn Garage! Meet other knitters who have been knitting Hats for the Homeless, see the display of beautiful hats that have been turned in so far, pick up hat patterns and purchase a hat kit. There will be experienced knitters on hand to help. If you have never knit a hat before, come with a US7 16" circular needle and we'll get you started.

Music! Refreshments! Ongoing knitted fashion show!

Hope to see you there!

The wind is blowing...

Wind speeds in Minnesota last night were up to 60mph. I heard it mentioned that the combination of the low pressure system that planted itself over our state and the high speed winds created--in essence--a level 3 hurricane right here in the midwest. Temps dropped into the 30s in these last few days of October and we all received a wake-up call that winter is most definitely coming.

I immediately started to get the hats, mittens, scarves and boots located, sorted and ready to go for my family. But for every hat that I pulled out of storage and dunked into a warm bath in the sink to wash for my loved ones, I thought of all of the people who aren't so lucky this year.

Homeless shelters in Minnesota have already turned families away due to overflowing capacity this month and (up until yesterday) it's not even that cold yet. With this flat economy that we're still stuck in, this news doesn't bode well for the coming winter.

What can we do? One way we are choosing to help is to knit warm hats for the people who aren't so lucky as to have a bed--either in a home or a homeless shelter--this winter. This handmade gesture is for more than just warmth. We are sending a message that our homeless neighbors matter and are not forgotten.

Our numbers are way up in this second year of Hats for the Homeless and we are astounded, amazed and grateful! Already, more than 160 hats have been collected and distributed to needy folks and we have another 330 sorted and ready to go.

Folks, that's almost 500 hats and we're not even at our "deadline" yet!

But let's not get too comfortable with ourselves. This work is amazing and this engine seems to be running at steady pace. But we are intentionally not capping (pun intended) our limit this year, knowing that there are an estimated 13,000 homeless people on the streets of Minnesota every night.

We have a great stockpile of hats for women, teens and kids at this point. Our current need is:

1.) Hats for men. Big, warm, "pull down over your ears" hats for men. If you are a female knitter, the hat should be a bit big on you. (See the notes in the Knitting Patterns page at the top of this blog for details. The homeless men we met last year really wanted plain, dark hats. Please pay attention to this and avoid stripes, embellishments and patterns.)

2.) Hats for newborns, babies and toddlers. We have a new connection to an organization working with homeless teens and a lot of them have small children. We need to cover all the heads.

Please keep up the knitting and keep sending your hats in (details and mailing address here). The hats we've received so far are so beautiful and so warm. They are very much appreciated now and will be even more appreciated once they are given to our homeless neighbors.

Thank you!

p.s. USE WOOL! Minnesota winters are too cold for synthetics. 

Charity Knitting at StevenBe's

We had 25 knitters at our charity knitting event at StevenBe's Yarn Garage in South Minneapolis on Friday--what fun! Hats are already being turned in for our project, UU knitters came from all over the country for GA and stopped in to knit with us, and the food was incredible! Thanks, everyone, for helping us kick-off Hats for the Homeless 2010 with such a big shebang!

Come knit with us!

StevenBe's Yarn Garage is graciously hosting a charity knitting event for our Hats for the Homeless project during the General Assembly meeting of the UUA in Minneapolis at the end of the month!

Hats for the Homeless Charity Knitting Event
during General Assembly

Friday, June 25, 11am-2pm

StevenBe's Yarn Garage

3448 Chicago Avenue South, Minneapolis

612-259-7925

Details:

• Bring your needles and yarn or pick up a free charity knitting kit at the event.

• Lunch is $10 with an RSVP (612-598-4914).

Transportation options:

• A cab ride from downtown Minneapolis is about 10 minutes.

• The #5 bus runs between downtown and the yarn shop every 7-8 minutes during the day. 

• Local knitters are available to shuttle visiting knitters to the yarn shop. Leave a comment on this post if you are looking for a ride!

Hope to see you there!

Welcome to Hats for the Homeless 2010!

We are excited to officially open the doors for Hats for the Homeless 2010 and invite you to participate with us! Last year's effort was so JOY-filled that we can only imagine it growing this year. Please see the links at the top of this page (under the photos of the amazing hats from last year!) for complete information and check back often, as we'll be updating the pages with more links and details as we go along.

It seems strange to think about needing wool hats when today was a record-breaking 95 degrees in the Twin Cities area, but we know Mother Nature will blow her frosty air on us once again in a few months. Are you a knitter looking for a small take-along project for your summer vacation? Tired of working on those big sweaters and seeking a quick project to fill the gaps? How about knitting a Hat for the Homeless for this coming winter? Hats are fast, hats are easy and HATS ARE NEEDED.

Thank you, in advance!

Christmas Eve Joy Revisited

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.)

My friend Tracy from church just sent this story out over email and he gave me permission to share it here too. It's an insider's view of the preparations and celebrations that occurred at the Simpson Housing Shelter for Christmas Eve. Our Hats for the Homeless project was a part of this joy, but only a small part, as you'll see when you read his letter. So many other amazing pieces of the puzzle had to come together to make it all work and what a beautiful picture it made. I think of our homeless neighbors a lot these days since our temperatures are dangerously cold even in the middle of the day. Tracy's email signature is sticking in my head too:

"Everyone wants to help. The problem is that not so many want to get involved."

Let's make 2010 the year that we collectively get over the "getting involved" hurdle and help others whenever we can.

Christmas Eve at Simpson Housing Shelter, by Tracy Jones

Months before Christmas, the infectiously wonderful Barb Melom called me and exclaimed "We got Christmas Eve." Immediately, I knew that she meant that our small group of volunteers from First Universalist would be serving the Christmas Eve meal at Simpson Men's Shelter. The level of her excitement was reached only by my level of nervousness. We've served countless meals at the Shelter before, and all have been successful, but Christmas Eve is special. And I was afraid that my friends who live at the shelter would be sad because of it being Christmas, and I wouldn't be able to help them with their sadness. But it's Barb, so I decided to join in her jubilation.

Almost weekly she would call me. One family had decided to donate 100 steaks. Another promised to make her special au gratin potatoes. One lady was going to make pies. Another family, dozens of Christmas cookies. She called to say that she had snagged tablecloths from a church group. That we had new socks so that each guest was going to get a new pair of socks. And toothbrushes. And toothpaste. We had centerpieces for the tables. Another evening she breathlessly explained that we had enough food for an appetizer table. That she talked to a chef friend who explained how to cook the steaks. That this was going to be an event of a lifetime for the Shelter.

And it was.

Just like the song says, "the weather outside was frightful." The Shelter staff opened the doors early to that the men could warm up. When I arrived, they were watching a movie on the TV and sharing bags of chips that someone had donated. When I went back into the kitchen to start working, there is only one word that can describe the scene. Joy. Joy in the family with their 5- and 7-year old sons who were already setting the tables with placemats and red and green napkins. Joy in the men cooking the steaks. Joy in the people chopping the greens for the salad, and those washing the pots and pans. Joy in Barb as she directed this crew like a conductor with an orchestra. Joy. Joy to our world in South Minneapolis, were we came together with like ideals, with like love, and with like compassion. Joy.

A young mother with her two children and husband in tow gave out the hand made hats knit by the people at First Universalist and our greater community. Every person who wanted one got a new, beautiful hat. Joy. The guests feasted on appetizers of meatballs, chips, dips, crackers, cheese and sausages. Joy. They sat at their decorated tables and ate wonderful steaks, potatoes and salads. They had dozens of desserts to choose from and I'm sure some ate dozens of desserts. Joy. No sadness or melancholy. Just Joy.

I'm sure that the guests didn't expect the decorations, or that there would be children at the Christmas Eve dinner. I'm sure that they thought that they'd be forgotten on Christmas Eve, because it's a special night when most spend time with family and friends, not at a Shelter. But I'm also sure that now they know that they are our friends. That there isn't a place in the world where we would have rather been. That the children, sitting quietly, were fascinated with their stories. That we not only wanted to see the hat that they had chosen, but wanted a keepsake picture of them wearing their new hat. That they could talk forever about their own children because we wanted to know about them. And that we could sit quietly with them and explain that perhaps they didn't have dinner with their biological families but they were now part of our family, their logical family.

Cleaning the kitchen took a little longer than usual on Christmas Eve, the special night. Not because we were slower, but because we didn't want the night to end. The night that we were supposed to be anywhere else. The night of Joy.

In past years, I always like to walk to the Christmas Eve services at church, because I like how quiet the streets are on the special night. This year I didn't have time to go to the church's Christmas service, but I did get to walk home from the Simpson Men's Shelter. It was quiet. It was a silent night.

It was the most Holy night.

Always,
Tracy

Speechless...

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.) 

Hats for the Homeless 2009
234 of the hats are pictured here, 50+ were already donated to the women's shelter and there were countless piles of homemade scarves, polar fleece caps and gloves...
...speechless...

Hats for the Homeless Program on the News!

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.)

50 Hats for Christmas Project Update

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.)

We have reached the initial goal of 50 Handknit Hats for Christmas for the Simpson Housing Shelter (that's 65 hats on the table there in this blurry cell phone photo...yes, sixty-five hats) and are so heartened by the generosity that is pouring in from all over. Thanks to our friends on Facebook, Twitter, Ravelry and fellow bloggers/loyal readers, we've received hats from all over Minnesota and as far away as Pennsylvania with Wisconsin and Illinois in between. These hats are multiplying like rabbits in their storage bags tucked in our dining rooms and it's truly a miracle to watch the stacks grow.

But, IT'S NOT OVER YET!

Rest assured, everyone, that ALL of these hats will find a chilly head to rest upon and more are still graciously being accepted. There are 46 beds in the shelter which was the inspiration for the original goal, but more people typically come for dinner each night. And then you figure in that there are different people who come to the shelter the next day, and the next day. And then there is the women's branch of the Simpson Housing Shelter that has 20 beds so women's hats are needed too. Not to mention the 9,000 people who are homeless in Minnesota each night... More hats are always needed.

The deadline to participate in this awesome project is December 5, details repeated below:

1. Knit a hat for a man--or a woman. Any weight yarn (wool yarn is recommended, Minnesota winters are COLD). Any pattern. Knit something that you would feel comfortable giving to a person in your life whom you love. Complicated or simple, it's totally up to you.

2. Mail your hat to:
50 Hats for Christmas
First Universalist Church
ATTN: Catherine/UU Stitchers
3400 Dupont Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408 USA

Thank you for sharing your skill, time and love for our homeless neighbors!

Hats!!!

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.) 

In just a week and a half since I first wrote about the 50 Hats for Christmas project, we have 13 completed hats and at least another dozen on the needles (both in our community and out in the world at-large). Well done, Knitters! I knew I could count on you.
Please keep them coming in! If we keep up this pace we'll meet our goal before Halloween but we're just going to keep on going with it. It's a delightful problem to have too many hats and will not be difficult to find other charitable organizations and homeless shelters to share the love!

50 Hats for Christmas

(This post was originally published at yogurt & granola, 2009.) 

Remember when I talked about knitting for charity more this year? So it begins. And true to form, it's not starting out small.

Well, each individual knitting item is small. (We're talking hats here.) But combined, the effort can be BIG.
My friend at church mentioned that it would be super cool to have handknit hats to bring to the Simpson Housing Shelter on Christmas Eve to give as gifts to the homeless folks there. Our church has a strong relationship with Simpson House so it's a logical connection. She wondered if I could get the knitters at church on it and get a bunch of hats made up.

My reply to her was: "Definitely. Great idea. I'm on it."

But then I thought about all of the knitters who are so interconnected online (blogs, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and decided that it would be pretty awesome to open it up to all of my knitting friends, and their friends, etc.

The Deets:

1. Knit a hat for a man. Any weight yarn.* Any pattern. Knit something that you would feel comfortable giving to a man in your life whom you love (husband/partner, dad, brother, friend, etc.). Complicated or simple, it's totally up to you.

2. Mail your hat to:
50 Hats for Christmas
First Universalist Church
ATTN: Catherine/UU Stitchers
3400 Dupont Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408 USA

Deadline: Saturday, December 5, 2009

I'm putting this out here so early to give you all a chance to work it into your holiday knitting schedule and also to put a bee in your bonnet for the fall season when you may want to start working on something other than summer lace/socks (ahem, I can't be the only one?) and are thinking of winter woollies. Simple hats typically don't take very long to knit so it can be a very easy project to whip out. (You could do this hat or this hat or use this hat recipe or search this free knitting pattern site for ideas or check out Ravelry...)
The pattern for this "Turn a Square" hat is available on Brooklyn Tweed's blog here. (This is an AWESOME hat.)

*Remember: Minnesota winters are COLD. Being homeless in this state is a tragic thing (being homeless anywhere is a tragic thing) so having a warm hat to pull over your ears will go a long way towards keeping a person's spirits up and feet moving in the right direction. To that end, wool yarn is definitely recommended.

The goal is 50 hats for Christmas. Think we can do it?

Thanks, Knitters. I knew you'd agree. :)