I've found some awesome charities on my internet travels where kindhearted knitters can donate their work to a good cause, so I thought I'd share :)
First up is a charity local to me that rescues abused and abandoned donkeys.
Sidmouth Donkey Sanctuary sell knitted donkeys through their website and visitors' centre, with all proceeds going to help the animals.
To receive a free copy of the knitting pattern, with full instructions for a 'Woolley' (24cm/9 inch high) or 'Mini Woolley' (12cm/5inches high), contact Ruth on (01395) 578222 or email
ruth.burrough@thedonkeysanctuary.com.
Another inspiring British charity is
Angelbear, a web-based outfit that collects knitted bears and rabbits and distributes them to sick and needy children in the UK and throughout the world. All the patterns are available for free from the website. If you're a happy hooker, there's even a pattern for a crocheted monkey ;)
*** Ravelry Pattern Link ***If you prefer knitting dolls rather than animals, check out
the Uthando Project. I
love this charity and plan to make some dolls for donation in the near future.
*** Ravelry Pattern Link ***From the website - "Dolls for the children of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. KwaZulu Natal (KZN) is home to one quarter of South Africa’s children. Two in every three of them live in poverty and 1.5 million are younger than six. The HIV and AIDS pandemic affects everyone, and the ravages of the pandemic increase the vulnerability of all children. Children need the loving care of at least one adult for optimal growth and development. When one in five children has already lost one or both parents to the AIDS, the care-giving capacity of families is stretched and at times overwhelmed. While nutritious food, clean water, shelter and education are essential for a child’s wellbeing, so is play... To support this process, dollmakers around the world, provide handmade dolls, sewn or knitted, for the caregivers to give their children."
They do stress that the dolls must be "African style", ie. in the appropriate dress etc., but there's no need to worry about this because very detailed instructions are provided :) Several free knitting patterns for various types of dolls can be found on the website, as well as crochet and sewing patterns.
My nan works in a charity shop where she often sees people donating hand knitted baby items such as cardigans, hats and booties. The sad thing about this is that charity shops (at least the majority of those in the UK, anyway) seem to believe hand knitted goods don't sell, so they will scrap these donations in the 'rag bag', or will simply throw them away. I know, it's horrifying, right? All those heartfelt hours of work in the bin!! (Although I was gifted a beautiful baby's hooded cardigan because of this practice, rescued from an unfair fate at the dump by my nan - a fellow knitter who understood the work involved - who couldn't bear to throw it away. Now I just need a baby to put in it... Hmmm, was Nan trying to tell me something?!)
Instead of giving them to your local charity shop, give these lovely knits to people who will appreciate them! Many hospitals and women's shelters will be only too grateful to accept gifts such as this and they are always in demand - contact the ones near you to find out if they're accepting donations.
Do you know of another place asking for handcrafted items? I'd love to hear about it!
