January Newsletter from Handmade Especially for You

February 5, 2010
Today’s topics:
 2010 starts with a burst of energy
 Handmade had lots of good coverage in the press
 Yarn companies continue their generosity
 Female inmates at Moffat County Jail contribute comfort scarves
 Shelters are so grateful
 Chapter development continues
 We need every participant
 501(c)3 update

And now for the details:

2010 started with a bang. The photo above taken at our Knitting Club at Concepts in Yarn shows my energy and excitement. I am so excited due to all the activities going on at Handmade. Thanks to Lauren Krisch, we developed pages on Facebook and VolunteerMatch. We have had excellent responses to them so far. Thank you Lauren! All our knitting groups (at Concepts in Yarn, Golden West Tower, Rolling Hills Covenant Church, Culver City Senior Center) are busy and even though our monthly delivery goal increased from 250 to 300, we made it without a problem. Thank you, everyone! Barbara Klein donated the shipping by UPS to 7 shelters which saved me a lot of gas and time so I can keep making kits. Thank you Barbara!

Peninsula People ran a feature article about Handmade Especially forYou in its January issue. The article was short, but sweet, and really showcased our 2009 achievements. Remember Talking Crochet Newsletter? Last October, it featured Handmade in its on-line version and we received 1000 responses. They ran an update in January and responses started coming in before I even knew the article had appeared. Again, we received emails from many people who want to make comfort scarves. The plight of abused women and finding a way to help them really strikes a chord in so many of us. I am very moved to see such an outpouring.

June Grossberg, owner of Concepts in Yarn and Needlepoint, invited me to go to TNNA with her and her staff. TNNA is a convention for yarn suppliers and yarn shop owners. I used the opportunity to personally thank the more than 20 yarn companies who donated yarn to our project in 2009 and to meet many more yarn suppliers who want to donate yarn in 2010. Again, the response was enormous. The yarn companies were very impressed that in 2009 we actually donated 6,500 scarves to 22 shelters. They want to support us because we are really achieving our goals. Already we have received new donations from Berroco Yarn Co., Blue Heron Yarns, Brown Sheep Yarns, Crystal Palace Yarns, Mountain Colors, and Muench Yarns. Plymouth Yarn Co. suggested I visit them again at the end of the show. They gave me two huge bags of yarn on the spot. And Knitting Fever asked me to come back with the biggest suitcase I had. I did and they filled it with lots of their show samples. I have been using the new yarns in my most recent kits and the resulting scarves are incredibly beautiful. On behalf of those who make the scarves and those who receive them, thanks to all these companies for the very generous support!

Peggy Bomba, a volunteer crochet instructor at the Moffat County Jail in Craig CO read the Talking Crochet Newsletter. She told the group of female inmates she works with about our project. They were very moved by the idea of making comfort scarves for women less fortunate than they, and Peggy sent me two separate shipments so far of their scarves. Peggy told me that making scarves cut down on fights in the facility and gives the women a sense of purpose outside of themselves and their own problems. My husband made colorful cardboard rulers for them (we can’t send them our tape measures). The rulers are 5-inches wide, just the width of a scarf. Peggy is very happy with our project because she says women can continue making scarves after they have been released as part of their required community service and scarf making doesn’t interfere with their working at a job. A win/win situation for everyone.

I have noticed several times in this Newsletter that making scarves is beneficial to those who make them as well as to those who receive them. Here are a few more examples. Emilie wrote to me that she made 14 scarves. She said, “I was comforted making them while my son was hospitalized for 3 months.” Andrea told me she is “donating (the scarves she made) in memory of my son Brian who passed away two months ago. He was a fierce feminist who very much liked (Handmade Especially for You).” Francis wrote, “I was formerly in domestic violence situations, and so were each of my children. …So when I read the article about your organization, I felt an immediate desire to help.”

The shelters are equally enthusiastic about our comfort scarves. At the end of 2009, we had so many scarves we were able to add 10 new shelters to our list of recipients. Pat Butler, director of Sojourn Services for Battered Women and their Children, thanked us, saying:

Victims of domestic violence come to us because they are running for their lives, often literally with just the shirts on their backs. . . we want these women . . to feel safe and secure with us. To do that, we try our best to make sure . . . that those who have to spend the holidays in a shelter for battered women at least get really cool gifts. Because of you, we were able to present each of them with a luxurious hand-knit scarf which made them very happy and made them look really beautiful.

About 20 people want to start local chapters of Handmade Especially for You. So far, they are locating shelters, scarf makers, and supportive yarn shops. They are in Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington. In California, we already have chapters in Rancho Palos Verdes, Long Beach, San Diego, and the San Fernando Valley. We hope to add Lompoc and Fresno. The Naples, FL and Nelson, BC chapters are doing well. If you don’t see your area on the list and you want to start a chapter, please contact me. I’ll do what I can to help you get started.

I remember how I felt before I started Handmade Especially for You, when I donated socks to Warm Woolies and preemie hats to Stitches from the Heart. I felt they had so many participants that my contributions just wouldn’t be important. I hope you don’t feel that way about Handmade. We need every scarf. We built our success in 2009 ONE SCARF AT A TIME. Every scarf is important. We want every woman who is brave enough to escape her abusive situation to receive one of our scarves. I found a 17-page list of shelters in Los Angeles County, a 13-page list for Orange County, an 11-page list for San Diego County. We have donated to only 22 shelters, a very few of those that exist in our own area. We need your participation. The scarf you make is very important to the woman who receives it. Thanks in advance for whatever you contribute. Keep up your good work. I count on your dedication.

Hilary Huebsch Cohen, our lawyer who has volunteered her services, has filed all the papers for our 501(c)3. Thank you, Hilary! I have received back from both the State and Federal governments acknowledgement of the application. I’ll let you know just as soon as the number comes through.

So, if you want to donate scarves or yarn or if you want to send a check, please mail to:

Handmade Especially for You c/o Leslye Borden
30065 Grandpoint Lane
Rancho Palos Verdes CA 90275

Thanks in advance, Leslye
www.handmadeespecially.org

Where Does the Time Go?

I haven't posted here in a really long time but I still make hats and booties. I basically suck at sewing seams together and I'm not that fond of DPNs but the magic loop on circulars is awesome. These are the first of the 25 count.


I love the colorways in this yarn but it's quite bulky...too big for a baby hat but it will fit somebody!

Question

I know this site is more for show and tell but I am just curious to know if anyone else is having the same problem as me.......

In the past you could buy a skein of yard and there was even directions printed on the wrapper of how to pull the one end out and then find the other end to begin your project and it would flow nice and smooth.......Now, I am having a hard time trying to find any end to start with and end up with this big ball of yarn that I have to work through just to get started. Anyone else having these problems? Any solutions you could offer?

Hat fest 2

Hat fest 2
Originally uploaded by rubylulu

I started my second hat fast on Dec 12 and so far i have 22 hats..Some have been sent already, others are going when i can send them..My goal for this year is 10 more than last year, 70 baby hats..

December Newsletter from Handmade Especially for You

December 23, 2009
Today’s topics:
 We delivered more than 2000 comfort scarves in time for Christmas
 Our comfort scarves mean a lot to the women who receive them
 Our list of recipients now includes 22 shelters in CA alone
 Widespread network of contributors
 The generous contributions from yarn companies and individuals continue
 All the forms, etc. for the 501(c)3 have been filed
 Looking back on 2009 and getting started on 2010

And now for the details:

We delivered at least 2000 comfort scarves in December. Honestly, I didn’t think we would be able to achieve this goal, but with all of you working so hard, we did it. Your output and dedication to reaching the goal were amazing. You really care about the women and changing their lives. It shows in the beauty of your work, your attention to detail, and your determination to get your completed scarves to me in time.

The shelters very much appreciate your hard work. I have already received several wonderful and heart-warming responses from the them. Here are a few. Shelly Ross, Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator at the South Bay branch of 1736 Family Crisis Center, wrote:

I can't thank you and your group enough for all the scarves made for us - we gave them out during our holiday store - we went through two huge boxes of them - everyone loved them. Today is our last day and have enough for today which will work out perfectly. Please send my thanks to all!

Kitty Glass, Community Outreach Coordinator at the Family Violence Project of Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, wrote:

I would like to thank you all so very much for the gorgeous scarves you knit and donated to our program. They are incredibly beautiful and will be so deeply appreciated and enjoyed by our shelter residents. The clients are always overwhelmed by the “kindness of strangers.” Our women will proudly wear your scarves knowing they were knit by loving, caring, and thoughtful hands.

Getting all the scarves to all the shelters took a lot of time; I drove many miles; often I couldn’t see out of the back of my car, and apparently I didn’t learn from my experiences last month trying to locate shelters through my car’s GPS that the shelters are not findable by usual means. After one more incident of not knowing where I was and having to call the shelter for directions, I made sure to get the directions before I left. Even then, the idea that the shelters are hidden and hard to find because the women in them need to be protected comes through. One of the shelters lists only a PO box as its address so the director gave me their street address. I looked it up on Google, got the directions, but the print out listed the PO box, not the street address. Amazing!

We were very lucky that so many scarves came in. We hoped for 2000 but more than 3000 arrived. They came from all over. We received them from knitters as far away as Germany and Scotland. Because we received so many scarves, I was able to offer them to more shelters. We donated to 10 more shelters! I remember when I was worried about providing 5 shelters with scarves. Now I have 22 in CA to worry about.

As I have mentioned in prior Newsletters, chapters of Handmade Especially for You have been created across the country. These chapters are doing well, too. Gabriella Bittner, leader of the Handmade group in Naples FL was thrilled to make her goal of donating 50 scarves to her local shelter; Margie Grieve, head of Giving Hands, our Canadian offshoot, wrote the following to her group, after making her deliveries:

What an exciting time I had on Monday! I got to deliver all of your hard work to those who need it. My first stop was at Stepping Stones - who by the way was soooo excited and grateful for the bag full of goodies. They asked that I be sure to pass on their appreciation to the group.

The second one was Cicada Place. When I handed over the bag to them, such excitement!!! They thank you also.

Susan Van Winkle, leader of San Rafael Yarn Ministry, Handmade’s San Diego chapter, also wrote with great excitement about her chapter’s delivery of scarves:
Rose, one of our ladies, delivered 30 Comfort Scarves to St. Clare’s Home in Escondido. These include the 3 you made as samples, and the 4 kits you sent which all got made up. These were the inspiration for all the others, so thank you very much. We will continue to make scarves in the new year as well.

About 20 more people have inquired about starting chapters. We will work with them to do so in January. Since domestic violence occurs everywhere, in every community, in every socio-economic and religious group, chapters of Handmade Especially for You need to be everywhere. The impact of the scarves on the women who receive them has been so positive here in S. CA., we hope this experience will be repeated throughout the country.

By the beginning of December, I was really out of yarn. I had made and distributed so many kits and attended so many knitting groups that the piles and piles of yarn in my house were very, very depleted. I think readers of my November Newsletter sensed that, because yarn donations have been coming in. Crystal Palace Yarns continues to be an exceptional donor. I received one huge case from them soon after the Newsletter went out and then another today. Knitting Fever, another very loyal and committed yarn donor, sent two huge cases immediately. Trendsetter Yarns sent a big case of just the kind of decorative yarn we need to individualize each scarf. Our project wouldn’t be as successful as it is without their donations. The secret behind the positive impact of our scarves is that they are so beautiful. They are so beautiful due to the generous donations of Crystal Palace, Knitting Fever, and Trendsetter Yarns. The scarves are so beautiful also due to the excellent craftswomanship of their makers. What a combination!

I am really lucky to have so many committed friends, volunteers, knitters, crocheters, donors, and people who believe in our mission of supplying comfort scarves to abused women. As our project grows, more and more individuals have contributed to our success. Thank you all.

We accomplished a lot in 2009. We delivered at least 6000 comfort scarves to 22 shelters in CA, and more if you count our chapters in the rest of the US and Canada. For the most part, we focused on only the women victims of abuse. But there are so many children in the shelters with their mothers (on average, each woman brings 2.5 children with her to the shelter) that I think we should consider making something for the children as well. The children also undergo counseling to reverse the negative impact of abuse (abuse they personally have experienced and/or abuse they have observed) and maybe whatever we make for them will help them move on to a better life. I’d appreciate your comments on this idea.

In January, I will poll the shelters to find out how many comfort scarves each needs per month. In general, the women stay at the first shelter 30-45 days. They then move on to a transitional shelter where they stay up to 2 years, in some cases, as they acquire the skills to lead productive and independent lives. Our comfort scarves go to each woman when she enters the shelter. So the shelters need a new donation of scarves every month. In 2009, we delivered about 250 per month. With 10more shelters, I expect that number will be much bigger.

Finally, Hilary Cohen, a lawyer who attends the Knitting Club at Concepts in Yarn, has taken us under her wing. She filled out and filed the remaining papers for the 501(c)3. I am so grateful to her. We should receive the preliminary OK from the State pretty quickly, but will have to wait a little longer for Federal approval. I’ll keep you posted. Once we have the 501(c)3, we can begin fund raising, put PayPal on our website, etc. We need funds to expand our operation. I alone cannot continue to make all the kits. I need help. And that means some kind of workshop, rent, utility bills, etc. One thing leads to another. We needed to reach a certain size to make the 501(c)3 imperative. But that size makes a workspace necessary too. You know my motto: Keep that movie rolling. We’ll see what happens next.

In the meantime, if you want to donate scarves or yarn or if you want to send a check, please mail to:
Handmade Especially for You c/o Leslye Borden
30065 Grandpoint Lane
Rancho Palos Verdes CA 90275
Thanks in advance.
Leslye
www.handmadeespecially.org

November Newsletter from Handmade Especially for You

December 4, 2009

Today’s topics:
 1000 comfort scarves delivered in time for Thanksgiving
 The meaning of secure shelters
 Center for the Pacific Asian Family included on our list of recipients
 The work ethic and determination of our knitting/crocheting volunteers is amazing
 The generous contributions from yarn companies and individuals continue
 We have at least 1500 comfort scarves in process for Christmas

And now for the details:

We delivered 1000 comfort scarves before Thanksgiving. I am very proud of all of us who have worked so hard to achieve this goal. It was really something to deliver that many scarves. Usually I deliver 250 scarves to 12 shelters. That fills up the car. You can just imagine delivering 1000. It took 3 days and many trips, all worth it!

Making these deliveries was an eye-opening experience for me. I have theoretically understood that the women and children in the shelters have gone to them for protection and that the locations are secret to protect the women and children from their abusers. The consequence for me was that the shelters themselves were hard to find. Usually I deliver to the administrative offices, but this time it was different.

At the recommendation of Grace Whitcomb, S. CA Gas Co., we added the Center for the Pacific Asian Family to our list of recipients. I met Debra Suh, the executive director, at a Jewish Federation building on Fairfax in Los Angeles. I thought the address was odd, I was surprised at the building, but thought CPAF must be small to rent space in that location. Debra and I talked for a bit there, and then she announced that she would take me to the shelter. I followed her on a twisty curvy route to the shelter. Once we arrived, just about the first thing I had to do was sign a document promising never to reveal where the shelter was. Believe me, I didn’t know where I was, much less where the shelter was. I had to use my GPS to get to the next place.

But, my GPS wouldn’t accept the address of the next shelter. And it couldn’t find the location when I searched by name. I had to drive up and down the street until I found it, hidden behind a fence with the address barely apparent. The receptionist explained they had to keep their location secret. That was the reason the GPS couldn’t find them.

Finally, along these same lines, one of the Orange County shelters asked me to deliver to the actual shelter rather than to the office. On the phone, the director of the shelter started giving me directions, such as go South on the 405, exit at Jamboree, turn right at the next street, turn left, turn right---“Wait a minute,” I said to her. “Just give me the address and I will put it into my GPS.” “No,” she said. “I can’t do that for reasons of safety.” I did find the shelter, but it was hard to do.

Those three experiences reshaped my understanding of the meaning of these shelters. They really do provide “shelter.” You cannot find them or the people in them easily. You have to know where you are going. The people inside need protection. They are not open to the public. The women and children in the shelters are not there for a free ride; they are at the shelters because they have been hurt. They need to be kept safe. We must remember this at all times. Delivering the scarves to the shelters, as compared to the administrative offices, brought this home for me.
The visit to CPAF was an uplifting experience, as is visiting all the shelters. Originally a home for teen girls, so there are two kinds of rooms: a small room fitted with a bunk bed and single bed and a large family room that sleeps at least 6. CPAF has a policy of one family to a room. The occupants of the small rooms share a communal bathroom. Occupants of the large family rooms have their own bathroom. They have on-site counseling and job training and do a lot to help the women and families get back on their feet.

One of our most productive groups of knitters is that at Golden West Tower. The women are Chinese and Korean. I met with them the day after I went to CPAF. I thought they would like to know that we had included a shelter devoted to Asian families among our recipients. At first they were shocked that abuse even occurred in the Asian community, but we know that abuse occurs in all communities, in all racial, religious, and socio-economic groups. Then they were ashamed that abuse occurs in their community. But I reminded them that they personally are working hard to help prevent more abuse by making comfort scarves. Finally, they told me they want to make comfort scarves for all groups, not just Asian, even though they are Asian. I assured them that we select the scarves for delivery to the shelters from big boxes and we never know who made them since the name tags are tucked inside. Our only criteria for selecting scarves is that every scarf be different from all the other scarves in the group so the recipients feel they are receiving a truly personal gift. I was impressed at the generosity of spirit, hard work ethic, and determination of the knitters. They will make comfort scarves for any woman who needs one.

All our participants share that hard work ethic and sense of determination to reach the goal. Wherever I go, they ask how close we are to making the 2000 for Christmas delivery. That is a huge goal, and I really didn’t know if we would make it or not, but it looks like we will. The woman in our local knitting groups are doing everything they can to make sure we will; the women who found out about our project on the internet also are doing everything they can to make sure we reach the 2000 goal. Every day more packages show up on my doorstep. Many are not packages from women to whom I have sent free yarn but from those who use their own yarn. We are part of a huge network of great-hearted women who not only want to help others, but actually help others by giving so generously of their time. Applause and thanks to all of you.

Yarn companies continue their generosity. This means a lot because I am making and sending out so many kits that I am going through miles of yarn every day. Crystal Palace Yarns continues to be an exceptional donor. Just when I was running out of yarn, another box arrived from them filled with just what I needed to continue making kits. Coats & Clark also sent a box filled with a variety of their products. I went through that box in a day—not because it was small, but because I was making so many kits. In fact, I made so many kits in October and November that my yarn-winding arm is actually tired. It was a race as to what would wear out first—my arm or the ball winder. I think it was a tie. Luckily, again, June Grossberg, owner of Concepts in Yarn and our biggest sponsor, lent me a ball winder so I could continue making kits. And an anonymous donor contributed money for me to buy another group of kit making tools (swift, yarn meter, and ball winder) so she can help me make kits next year. I am really lucky to have so many committed friends, volunteers, knitters, crocheters, donors, and people who believe in our mission of supplying comfort scarves to abused women. Thank you all.

We will continue collecting scarves for Christmas delivery until Dec. 11. We have about 1500 counted scarves now and plenty more uncounted and still in their boxes so I’m sure that we will have 2000 by the 11th. We will need a little time to prepare them for delivery, tie them with ribbons, etc. After that, all the scarves that come in will go toward January deliveries. As you may know, there is so much abuse over the holidays, the shelters all are jam packed in January. Incredible, isn’t it.
If you want to donate scarves or yarn or if you want to send a check, please mail to:

Handmade Especially for You c/o Leslye Borden
30065 Grandpoint Lane
Rancho Palos Verdes CA 90275

Thanks in advance.
Leslye
www.handmadeespecially.org

A most amazing thing

I have knitted and crocheted some time for charities and recently saw a clipping in my church bulletin reminding people of the "Homeless Christmas Party" that is held every year. It was to be a few months off so felt led to create an opportunity for any hidden crafter's to put their hands to work and created "No idle hands" to make hats, scarves, mittens and etc. to add to the all ready collected items. I hadn't gotten much response and was a bit discouraged when a lady called me yesterday and here is the story she shared with me:


I have always had a heart for the homeless and would often pray for them. I was getting a little angry with God because he didn't seem to answer my prayers asking him to help them, when one day, he answered me. He said...I made you. She went to the store and saw a loom and thought she could maybe learn to do that as she didn't knit or crochet. She was able to learn and began making hats. She was not sure where she would give them to or how she would get them to the homeless when her daughter who attends my church brought her the little notice of "No Idle Hands".............


Here is what she brought to me

100 beautiful adult hats and 50 baby hats from one amazing heart!

If you want to view my donations click here