By winifred3 for What Are You Working On? From Daily Kos
As some of you may know, Netroots Nation is being held in Detroit July 17 to July 20. There is a group set up, the DK VA Hospital Service Project. I am co-chair, along with Broths, to provide hand made scarves and hats for the vets. Sara R is chairing the committee overseeing the quilt project. She wants to have handmade quilts for all the vets residing at the nursing home part of the VA hospital. Follow me below the orange squiggle for more on this.
Broths and I are trying to get at least 60 scarves and hats for the vets. To date we have commitments for around 30. Broths has committed to making at least 10 scarves. I am committing to two hats and two scarves along with two quilts for the nursing home. I have at least 15 scarves and hats promised by people outside the Kos community. I am hoping that we can at least match that within Kos.The VA hospital will be given a list of who made each hat / scarf. I am looking at ways to have a tag in / with each item, so the Vet who receives the gift will know who has done the work. If a person prefers, it will just be a first name.
NormAl, who has only knit one scarf his whole life, and that was over 40 years ago, has said he will make a scarf, as well as be responsible, with some help from me, for a quilt.
Can we get some more volunteers to make hats and scarves?
Below are some basic patterns for hats. In general you will need about 100 yards of worsted weight yarn using size 7 - 8 needles. The first set of hats below are knit in the round usually using a 16" circular needle. As you decrease the stitches, as some point you may need to switch to double pointed needles.
and using size 10 needles, an even quicker pattern here
this one uses size 5 needles.
Here is one that is knit flat and then stitched together.
This is just a sampling. You can find many many more patterns for free on the web.
Scarves are even more simple: they do not need to be knit in the round, and do not require double pointed needles, although that last pattern doesn't either.
The scarf should be about 6" - 8" wide and about 4 feet long. A pretty basic way to do this is to cast on 20 - 30 stitches using a medium weight yarn, using size 8 to 10 needles and knit every row until you have the correct length.
If you crochet and not knit, here is a pattern for a crocheted scarf.
The vets have served this country; now it's time we do a little for them. Agreed?
And also: What are you working on?
Originally posted to What Are You Working On? on Sun Feb 09, 2014 at 04:00 PM PST.
Also republished by DK VA Hospital Service Project and IGTNT Advisory Group.
