Zombie and Woolly Hugs. OVER HERE!! Come and find out about her legacy of Candy’s Hugs, newcomers and old hands, all very welcome

[KnottyAndPistey]

Welcome to the most beautiful corner of Mumsnet, here the love and support is boundless, these are the folk you need to be around, come and join us, you'll not regret it :) Our inspiration comes from the wonderful Zombie, a true legend who continues to inspire us.

We knew her time left with us was short, but the news of Zombie’s death on January 30th was still a shock, we send so much love to her family and her many, many friends who love and will miss her greatly, we hold our happy memories of her very dear. Bless her.

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. X

So many blankets with beautiful women going through treatment now because of your love and support. Thank you doesn't even come close. xx

Raising a glass or two to the fabulous Zombie, we go on together

Anyone seeing this project for the first time, wondering about joining in, maybe a bit unsure, 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..

[[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 xx

Good morning. So, inspired by the wonderfully bright and enthusiastic Zombie, I've used you tube videos to learn how to crochet over the summer. I managed to source a couple of colours from the Zombie palette and now have a few squares to offer you. They are quite basic I'm afraid, but hopefully you can use them. How do I get them to you, please?

Okki and Spiral, my thoughts and love are with you both

Jux you've brought back memories of three years ago when we were doing the grand tour of universities with our oldest and his then girlfriend from-hell (who hated them all and tried to put him off). It really doesn't feel like three years, time has flown. He ended up choosing exotic Wolverhampton, a sort of compromise as his girlfriend didn't want him moving away (actually, she even said that she didn't think university was for him) but he wanted to live in halls and with that being local it meant that she could easily get a bus to see him every night.
Thankfully they split up a few months afterwards. I should send her flowers as a thank you really, if he hadn't gone to Wolverhampton he wouldn't have the fabulous group of friends that he now has or his really wonderful girlfriend

Banana, good morning! Welcome aboard!
If you PM KnottyAndPistey they'll give you all of the details.

Banana, hello! Welcome!

You should have seen my early squares! Very basic and not very even completely mishapen little things but boy was I proud! Truth is, my squares are still rather like that, my tension is a bit uneven (a bit!!! who am I kidding? ) but the fantastic KnottyandPistey somehow works magic on them and they end up looking great!

Madison

Morning
Banana - welcome! - I only started crotchet in February , and do it all wrong technique wise, but I do love it so , mine were very interesting to start with ( we are not allowed to cal them ....wonky :) ) but have gradually got more confident .
Madison - no doubting that your DS managed to swerve a problem with the girlfriend :). Do all children choose the Unis furthest away from home to look at? - we went up to Stirling - what a trek ....luckily she didn't choose it, but we still ended up with a 3 hour car journey to the one she did go to ....

Wow Claire that's amazing! Get some alpacas too. Lovely wool and they make cute noises.

book fabulous news all my deliveries have come too. So much wool and so little time! When I started I diligently finished one project before starting another. Now I have WIPs all over the place!

Hi Banana welcome aboard K&P love all kinds of squares, when they're all mixed up together they look wonderful!

Thank you for the welcome and the advice. I'll pm now.

Life is sooooo wonderful! I have come home from with a very large basket of Stylecraft Special DK!!! My bestest ever friend colleague and I were chatting about knitting and crochet and wool (she's into the expensive artisan stuff - but she has a background in the game so surprising) and when I said I worked mainly in Stylecraft SDK she disappeared off downstairs and came back with this basket full of the stuff! Which she then pressed onto me - as if I would refuse it! - and so I have now got loads of it. Best of all? DH can't argue about it

There are a couple of Candy's Colours as well as a couple for the children's hospice - the rest will be great for the refugee project, and possibly other upcoming projects. I have yet to go through the whole basket, I need to do it at my leisure (tomorrow morning, when I get the kitchen table to myself).

I am so happy! I think a couple of bottles of nice red? I'll check what colour she likes.

What a lovely thing to do - a great friend Jux . A happy winter hooking :)
I would check the kinship colours too - there is quite a range, and the Chernobyl appeal for this year has loads of new , additional colours too ( that was an early warning on fb for January ! ).

Yes, very wonderful she is -- we've only known each other a few months so we really are more colleagues, but I'd be happy and flattered if she counted me as a friend. I am quite blessed in my colleagues, the kindest people you could hope to meet.

I will check those projects out in the morning. I am losing track again already, and I've barely got started yet. Htow do others organise their different projects? I've run out of jute bags! Not to mention space for them.

How wonderful Jux

book I missed that on Facebook about Chernobyl and can't see anything when I check back. Hard to believe we're not that far off a year since the last one!

Claire how exciting!

book we didn't actually have to go north of the border with our son when looking for universities but he did want us to traipse across to Aberystwyth and Portsmouth but for both he changed his mind the night before both. Yes, he definitely dodged a bullet with the girlfriend. Quite sad really as she'd had a really horrendously traumatic event in her childhood which had messed her up no end, poor kid, and I think she was just looking to settle down and have a happy ending.

Madison - it was over a week ago , with a link to the webpage

One for the Early Birds - Chernobyl 2018!
Lovely folk are asking, and yes it will be happening, we are both DELIGHTED, we have a new palette we will be using for 2018, hopefully it will make things easier, we will be starting officially in the new year, but if you want to be an early bird - here you are and THANK YOU! xxxxx

www.woollyhugs.org/2017/09/15/for-the-early-birds-chernobyl-2018/

It was rather useful to know, as Deramores had 30% off everything just after I read it, so I ordered (hopefully! ) enough to see me through winter - fat chance I suspect ....

When DC go to Uni, they often don't come back ( though mine did ), so good that he din't go far :)

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
(Or yarn enabling, if you prefer )

Wise Badger have a 5 day limited offer on yarn, including WH favourites SSDK at £1.39 and Debbie Bliss Rialto DK at £3.99.

Go on, you know you want to...

Oooooh, did you have to?!
Thank you!!

Argh Seven! I have a basketful of SSDK and no excuse at all to buy more, and then you tell us this!

I was being so good and thought I would just tell everyone else and not buy any myself...

...BUT I BOUGHT THE YARN!!!

I have a big plastic crate that is overflowing and I still succumbed.

No-one will notice another bagful going in, right???

No, Spiral, not a chance, no one will notice, definitely not.

(Was that convincing? )

What did you get?

Spiral - you are so naughty!
Jux

Jux
I got 11 SSDKs - replacements for colours I'm getting low on, plus the few colours I didn't have in the new 2018 Chernobyl palette. And some lovely blues and purples in the DB because they're the most used for the MN blankets.

I am actually going to have to start hiding yarn...

I can't hide yarn any more - DH has got wise to the fact the WW bags never empty, regardless of how many squares or blankets I seem to produce. The joint credit card statement doesn't help either...

Although I have resisted this time - but only because I really should use up the two full bags I've got before I order any more. But in my defence, there are a lot of projects going at the moment, so I do need lots of wool. At least that's my excuse!

Morning loves!

I'm working through my SSDK stash so I can shut the lid on its box; I can then get on with doing some little hugs with the wool that I've bought on sale in various places.

I've gone about this by buying loads more SSDK (in butterfly blanket colours) and some other yarn to make up the order to get free postage.

Oh, wait....

My wool is everywhere
my original wip bag ( a thing of beauty which my DH bought me years ago) is full of Candys wool . I have a big shoulder felt bag ( a freebie)that holds the kinship . Inside that is a plastic carrier bag with the current Little Hug. Upstairs are two of the organza bags from WW , one with Chernobyl wool, one with Manchester wool ( which actually blends with the Kinship where necessary .......
It goes on .
Today I have just bought a lovely little box ( a bit like a small hat box) to hold the wool I an actually using at my feet, so its not rolling all over the floor

Look what DH just collected. The fleece is rank and stinks but I have been told not to wash it until it is spun, but it smells two rooms away.