Woolly Hugs. A blanket for lovely wafflenose who has tragically lost her daughter. Can you help us please?

[KnottyAndPistey]

We bring such sad news, lovely wafflenose has lost her younger daughter (L) through tragic circumstances and we are just so desperately sorry, thoughts very much with waffle, her family and all who loved her daughter. Really really devastating. Life has been desperately cruel. You may well recognise waffle from music/education/Extra-curricular threads here on MN. Both her lovely daughters have been involved with Mumsnet.

We are so glad waffle would like to receive a Woolly Hug. For those new on here, this is a long standing tradition on Mumsnet where folk come together to make a blanket for one of our own who has been bereaved. There will be love crafted into every stitch. We want it to be a tribute and full of memories. We hope it may give whatever comfort it can.

People have described L as a quiet light, the gentlest of souls. Let us make something truly beautiful in her honour.

So we come again asking for help and shall need both crafters and donors of funds of wool. Can you help us? We would be truly grateful. Thank you

Important crafting info
Squares to be six inches, using 4mm needles or hook. Please knot off VERY carefully when finishing or changing colour and sew your ends in, thank you! No blocking please, makes it much easier to join squares.

Simple or complex, made by beginner or expert, we genuinely welcome them all. It really is the love and thought that counts.

We have some ideas for themes..
Initials please E, G, L and K

She played the recorder, the clarinet and the cello, but focused mainly on the clarinet latterly and played in the National Children's Orchestra Under 10s for a while. Her NCO hoodie was bright blue - a bit like Yarnsmith dark turquoise.

She loved art and reading and was very creative. Loved Harry Potter and would probably have been in Hufflepuff house had she been at Hogwarts.

She had a quirky mind and used to love lego.

She was quite a fashionista. Loved Vogue magazine and Miss Dior perfume

Favourite colours were pink and white (pink more than white).

English literature was the love of her life. We are hoping someone can recreate a bookshelf square? One of her favourite books was Jane Eyre. She had also been studying Plath and Hughes.

She loved swimming and the great outdoors, particular the Quantock Hills. (Photo) We are hoping this may act as an inspiration.

Work/volunteering: she did Brownies and Guides and volunteered as a Rainbow Guider and also volunteered on a hospital ward for a while. She worked as a waitress and at the village pub.

She was interested in philosophy and was planning to become a psychologist/counsellor.

She liked Fleetwood Mac.

She kept tropical fish, hamsters and gerbils and loved all other animals especially cats.

She also liked art and photography.

She was very passionate about being an organ donor - and several people have now received life-saving operations because of her. A truly wonderful young woman.

Lots of ideas and ways to get to know L better. If you can recreate a theme on a square, wonderful, but we also need simple squares, A square in one of her favourite colours is perfect too.

The MAIN Colours. We will be using her favourites,
Pinks from pale baby pink through to magenta.
Cream, but only please Drops Merino Extra Fine - Off White (01) or Yarnsmiths Merino DK Superwash - Off White (3045)
Lighter silvers
Greens pale to mid. Think nature inspired

Then embellishments and accents ONLY please (not whole squares)
Blues - sky to navy inc turquoise.
Sunset shades - red, orange, yellow, gold, but only if creating a sunset!
Browns taupe to mid
Charcoal grey
Black

The Yarn we will be Using for Consistency ….
Yarnsmiths Merino DK Superwash - a BIG sale at Wool Warehouse. Has the widest range of colours
Debbie Bliss Rialto DK only available on Love Crafts
Drops Merino Extra Fine DK.
Katia Merino 100% DK
King Cole Luxury Merino DK

Just from the brands listed please because we know they combine for wash and wear. If you still have any of our wools that have been discontinued or have become less easy to find- Artesano Superwash Merino DK, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino DK, Jenny Watson Pure Merino DK, Patons Merino Extrafine DK or James C. Brett Pure Merino DK in your stash, please do use them.

Posting will be Teddington, please message if you need the address. If you'd like to include a card for her family , please send with your squares. And please don't forget to include your name!

If you can upload photos of your squares on here as we go along, that will be a lovely record, especially if you have donated yarn.

Will set the last posting date once we are underway but it will be approx 6 weeks hence

Thoughts and love very much with waffle, we are so so sorry. Remembering L

That was for me and Maud last night. Lil midnight feast

This is the most perfect it can be @AlexandraLeaving - I remembered your knitting skills from when we helped Swashy. The music at the funeral was chosen specially for a very musical young woman, so memories of that are intensely precious. That was hard I know so a huge thank you for this

So Im looking back at the Op to check we have themes covered because I have someone who will have a go at anything we want included.

@AlexandraLeaving is there anything you've thought of since we started?

Had I had the skills I would have done a quidditch snitch or a wand.
And a shades of green moving diagonally across to the pinks and purples of the heathers, but scattered rather than solid rows. But I know that’s hard.
I’m heading off on holidays now, so won’t be checking in until after Easter probably. No WiFi and saving data.

Personal deviation alert, due to having no one to tell…
To nicely round out our general anxiety as holidays are for us a BIG deal and challenge (sleepless nights when we booked it), DH has been made redundant. It isn’t a problem for us, we are reaching an age when it starts looking attractive anyway, however we DON’T DO CHANGE well. We’re a ‘same lunch for 35 years’ kind of a family.
So we are fine, practically speaking and we are not fine with managing and processing change. I mean it’s probably a good thing because he wouldn’t ever have voluntarily made a change, and he’s been very very busy in recent years and slowing down will do him good. But, change! He’s been informed early due to our holiday so can’t tell anyone until the company news has broken.

Sorry to read your news @PrizedPickledPopcorn - that sounds tough. I'm not in favour of Change either, so I get that that will be a disturbing transition, even if things on the other side are ultimately better. I hope the holiday is as restorative as it can be in the circs. x

Sorry @PrizedPickledPopcorn and hope things settle for you. Hope the holiday brings rest and recuperation. ❤️

Just a reminder, because I had to remind myself

Last Posting for squares is April 13th

💐💐💐💐💐

We have more treasure arriving!!

Beautiful in pink and green, gorgeous waffles and gorgeous hearts.

💐 @PrizedPickledPopcorn ⭐️

thank you!

And this sweetheart from lovely @PrizedPickledPopcorn too. Perfect to go in the card.

Thank you 💐💐

That I will hide from Fawley. She loves little hanging decs.

Re themes: I've done 4 squares based on the great outdoors (though whether that'll be obvious to anyone else is a moot point), & I'm going to do a fashion-related one & a gerbil one. There may/not be more.

Love to Popcorn & Mr Popcorn. Redundancy can be a big thing emotionally - Mr Android went through it once & it was hairy at the beginning, but he ended up with a better job & we didn't run out of money in the meantime, so yay & I hope all goes well for you.

And there’s more. Including beautiful lettering, perfect all round.

💐 @MyrtleLion ⭐️ Gorgeous.

thank you!

@KnottyAndPistey Maud says will you please stop wandering off with a square to look at it properly. She is trying to get a shot of her with all @PrizedPickledPopcorn squares!

@MyrtleLion Maud loves the squares, but does send apologies on the filter. She was messing around and now can't get it back to normal! She knows you'll understand!

Maud, I’m sorry!

The reason I had to check the date was because this is how far my square has got. And as you can see, it’s not. Yet.

Is that delicious basil I see @KnottyAndPistey? highly recommended for gerbils 👍 😊

Oh Maud! I feel so honoured knowing you are admiring my squares. 💙

Maud doesn’t hand out approval lightly, so this is effectively a knitter’s peer-reviewed publication.

I would curtsey but ChatGPT says Maud will expect tribute yarn if I do. Just a small head nod...

Thank you

😊

Makes mental note of the stitch numbers on K&P's perfectly flat circle.

But how will it be squared off in time, before 6" is reached? Oh, the jeopardy!

I forgot: I've also done a flower (obvious) & a bookshelf (a bit... conceptual).

Balloons. One of the things that the waffle family did after the funeral was give out pink and silver balloons to lots of local children. The colours were important to Rara, and the giving of the balloons in her memory was important to wafflenose. If it were possible to have some pink and silver balloons I think that would be nice.

I have some more music squares lined up including a recorder but if anyone felt up to doing a cello that would be good. I was hoping to do something but may run out of time.

The quality of all the squares that Maud has been sorting is so high, the blanket is going to be wonderful and will be very much appreciated by waffle & co. I know I am guilty of knitting frantically in the hope that somehow it will reverse time and bring her back - intellectually I know it won't happen, but at an emotional level I am not sure I've totally accepted that yet. It is so special to be part of a community that is doing this together. Love in every stitch really does sum it up.

ta da!

Somewhat less of a Ta da!! 🙃

Balloons are straightforward. Just finding some silver. The cello less so. But we know people. Might need to find a pattern. But we can do this.