Zombie and Woolly Hugs. Please join us, newcomers very welcome. Come and find out about Candy's Hugs.

[KnottyAndPistey]

Her legacy of Candy's Hugs will be one of love and strength, of coming together to show compassion, support and give and receive comfort.

Seven blankets already with women on the rocky road of cancer treatment in Candy's name. Love in every stitch we say and it really is true. Together we go on, Candy is with us every step.

For anyone joining us, and please do, this is an ongoing project, just jump right in, this explains what we are doing and all crafting info. Thank you EVERYONE! x

Just before Christmas, Zombie donated funds to Woolly Hugs and together we hatched a plan to develop an ongoing project with her, which she loved, to make comforting cosy blankets with love in every stitch for women going through treatment for breast and other cancers, and at times these may form part of palliative care.

So glad we could establish Candy's Hugs with her and thanks to you wonderful people achieve her ambition of seeing it all well underway before her death. Her legacy of Candy's Hugs will be one of love and strength, of friendship, learning and developing crafting skills, of creativity, of coming together to show compassion, support and give and receive comfort, Such a beautiful inspirational woman. How lucky we were to know her.

Anyone seeing this project for the first time, wondering about joining in, make this the day you do! This project is ongoing, and a friendlier more supportive bunch of folk you couldn’t wish to meet. We would love to have you on board, from someone who is keen to learn crochet or knitting to the more experienced, ALL are welcome here. And a lack of funds is no barrier, we have wonderful donors who want to take part and need a crafter, so we can send you yarn, needles and hooks if necessary. It is all about being inclusive and team work.

Our previous threads are the first one here and the second one here.. and third here

[[https://www.facebook.com/pg/Woolly-Hugs-349028448480855/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1339798112737212
We are keeping a photo album on our Facebook page.]] All welcome to join us over there too.

Zombie was a bright and beautiful woman so we chose a palette to reflect this which we call Vibrant Riot; it is inspired too by a blanket that was made for her to give hugs and comfort as she went through treatment. She had it with her at the end, we were so glad to know it still gave her love, big woolly hugs and comfort.

If you would like to be involved in any way, we’d love to have you on board. Please post on this thread and PM with your offers: crafting, donating, need wool, etc, we can help you with all of it.

The yarn is Stylecraft Special DK. Just this please for consistency, and in these colours...

Vibrant Riot Palette
Boysenberry
Claret
Empire
Fuchsia
Grass
Kelly green
Lavender
Lime
Lipstick
Magenta
Meadow
Petrol
Plum
Pomegranate
Saffron
Sherbet
Shrimp
Spice
Turquoise
Tomato
Violet

Squares to be 12 inch or 6 inch, crochet or knitted equally welcome, please use 4mm hook or needles. No blocking necessary and please sew in ends, and make sure any colour changes are firmly knotted.

All crafting abilities genuinely welcome, squares made by beginner or expert will be equally cherished. Simple, complex, single colour, mixed colour. It really is the love and thought that counts.

If you would like to learn how to knit or crochet in 2017, let's do it! We have help for the complete beginner here…. And all on this thread are on hand to help talk you through as well. YouTube has lots of tutorials, you WILL find one that suits! :)

If you feel ambitious and would like to make a whole blanket, then that is wonderful, we are aiming for blankets approx 48 inches by 60 inches, certainly no smaller.

Candy’s Hugs will be an ongoing project, our next collection date is March 11th, then April 22nd. Do message for posting info when ready.

We are on Facebook - Woolly Hugs and Twitter too @Woolly_Hugs both are good ways to keep in touch. ALL welcome over there.

Thank you so much

Dear Ghost,
I am so so sorry, what a dreadful time you have all had.

Cushion covers is a lovely idea, less work and time than a blanket , but something to cuddle or sleep with. I suppose two large squares is all you need, plus an overlap for a button. I can never do zips myself.

Oh Ghost

I've never made cushion covers but am thinking two big squares plus a couple of half size ones to make the flap, & a loop to slip over a button - that would work.

Ghost i am so very sorry for your loss . I don't know what to say :(

I think that cushion covers are an amazing idea and whilst i have never made them i am sure they would be straight forward and i would love to make some if i weregiven the dimensions. The construction crews are fab.u.lous and amsure they couldcome up with something.

Your children are lucky to have you x

I'm really sorry to hear of your loss Ghost. I might have a pattern for a cushion cover with bobbles on if that would help?

So sorry to hear your story Ghost. I have made cushion covers in the past but the patterns were from a book so I can't link. I did both circle and square ones. What I would say is that they stretched a lot, I crochet loosely and they stretched as the pads gradually compacted with use so the pads used to get twisted around a lot inside the covers. I had to undo and re-pad thrm every now and then, definitely worth doing an envelope or buttoned pattern rather than fully stitched round IYSWIM. Also my cats liked using them as scratching pads.

I am so sad to read your story Ghost - cushions are a lovely idea, something to cuddle close.

Dear Ghost
I hope you can get the help you and your children deserve.
What a lovely idea to do your own woolly hugs. Re the cushions I would think knitting one square plus one same-size square with an extra bit at the end for the flap would work. Also, make the cushion cover slightly smaller than your inners, so for example match a 16 inch inner with 14 inch pads, so it always has a plump look (this is a tip a sewer gave me although I am yet to make any cushion covers myself).

Also i think i spotted some patterns on Ravelry.

lots of patters lots of lovely knitters and hookers qould happily give advice but in the spirit of wooly hugs perfection is not required, just love 💕

Almost ready to post a bundle, if someone could tell me who to send them to please?

messaged you Mamma :)

ooh, and just pop in who its from, and that it is for Candy's Hugs - they collect for a lot of different things :)

MamTJ, how exciting! If you pm KnottyandPistey, she'll tell you what address you need.

Have you taken photos of them?

38 pesky peskies!

Wow Acolotl, that's an amazing square! How long did it take?? I don't envy you those 38 ends though, almost a 'lie back and think of England' thing!

Ghost -

HappyAxolotyl - if ever there were a candidate for "carry on up the work" ...!

Ta dah!

Jux, the square itself is very quick and easy; it's called block stitch.
I think I may have to do a couple more to play around with different effects.
The peskies, on the other hand.... take as long as the crochet!

Thank you all. it has indeed been the worst year of my life.
I didn't want to read and run but I don't have the time right now to reply properly. Thanks for all the replies and I'll be back shortly.

wow Axolotyl - thats a nice square , lovely colour combination ,and true dedication to peskies

So sorry to have been awol, have got Edinburgh's 1st Eight staying, it has been mad catering and hostel like!

Hope are we all doing? xxx

Could be worse: Durham forgot to put all their boats on the trailer, and Berlin have three rowers stuck in stricken airports.

Very best of luck to them. Will look out for the results.

Ghost, I'm truly sorry for all that you have been through.

I don't know if crochet patterns are okay, or if it's just knitting patterns you're after, but I have found some squares from this blog here:-

www.lillabjorncrochet.com/2015/06/circles-of-sun-mystery-cal-general.html?m=1

It's for 9 squares intended to make a cushion cover, you would sew them to a fabric back or alternatively you could make 18 and have a front and back.

Hope that helps x

Just popping in to say that I passed my theory test! Just the driving test to sort now!

Just trying to decide what colour and stitch to do next. I wish I hadn't given my ball of meadow to my Mum as I quite fancy that!

Ghost I'm so sorry This thread is absolutely full of fabulous and supportive stitchers and hookers, I'm sure no one would mind you popping in to chat while you work on your own Woolly Hugs - friendship and support are at the very heart of the project . Your cushions sound lovely.

Oh Vitty well done, for you!