Relief – win yarn and patterns

After the terrible earthquake hit Japan in March, relief efforts were almost instantaneous. The recovery process will be long and hard, though, and money will be needed continually for those relief efforts, long after the earthquake is gone from the news entirely. As always after a disaster, money is what is most needed. Donation of goods is costly and complicated and can hinder relief from going where it is needed, however good the intentions. Some knitwear designers have designed patterns, the income from which will go to charities doing work in Japan, and I may do something of the sort myself in the future, but for now, I’d like to hold a raffle to raise money for recovery efforts.

How to enter:

Donate $10 or more to a charity providing on the ground relief work in Japan. I used Charity Navigator to look up organizations working in the area, and am recommending donations to Direct Relief International, which gets a very high rating on Charity Navigator. If you’d prefer to donate to another organization, such as Médecins Sans Frontières or the Red Cross, that is fine with me.

Forward a copy of your donation receipt to knittingkninja AT gmail.com.

For each $10 you donate, your name will be entered once into a drawing to win one of the four prizes listed below. If you donate $20, that’s two entries. $50 is five entries. I will only give one prize per winner, though, to spread out the chances of winning.

The contest ends Monday, May 9th, when I will draw four winners.

Prizes:

#1: Becoming Art Gaia Fingering and Clothilde (click to see larger)

Becoming Art Gaia Fingering

Clothilde

This package includes a copy of the Clothilde  shawl pattern and a skein of Becoming Art Gaia Fingering in the Drawn colorway. If you already have a copy of Clothilde, you can either select a different pattern or I will be happy to gift Clothilde to the knitter of your choice. You can of course use the yarn for any pattern you so desire, but there is enough in the skein to knit a Clothilde shawl. Gaia Fingering is a 100% merino yarn in a single ply. It is NOT superwash, so care must be taken when washing it to avoid felting. I found this colorway unbelievably beautiful, and I hope you do, too.

#2: madelinetosh Tosh Sport and Beetle Tracks (click to see larger)

Beetle Tracks

madelinetosh Tosh Sport

This package includes a copy of the Beetle Tracks scarf pattern and a skein of madelinetosh Tosh Sport in the Charcoal colorway. The yarn is enough to knit a Beetle Tracks scarf, though of course you can use it for any project you see fit. If you already have a copy of Beetle Tracks, you can either select a different pattern or I will be happy to gift Beetle Tracks to a knitter of your choice. The yarn in this case is rather special, as I purchased it off of the madelinetosh Etsy store, and the full proceeds were already donated to charity work in Japan. This is a great way to pass it forward. Tosh Sport is 100% superwash merino.

#3: Rocky Mountain Dyeworks Bow Falls Fingering and Rosa (click to see larger)

Rosa

Bow Falls Fingering

This package includes the Rosa shawl pattern and a skein of Rocky Mountain Dyeworks Bow Falls Fingering, which is the yarn used in the original Rosa. I picked a skein in the gorgeous Strawberry Root colorway, a rich red with undertones of maroon and bright pink. If you already have a copy of Rosa, you can either select a different pattern or I will be happy to gift Rosa to a knitter of your choice. You can of course use the yarn for any project, but there is enough here to knit the Rosa shawl. Bow Falls Fingering is a 100% superwash Blue Faced Leicester yarn. I’m very fond of BFL, and I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as I do!

#4: Understory ebook

Understory is my new ebook of six accessory patterns knit in Malabrigo yarns. The winner will receive the ebook as well as each individual pattern PDF for Amanita Muscaria, Laetiporus, Lichen Beret, Light and Shade, Verdure, and the Woodpigeon Mitts. I had a lot of fun knitting the samples for this collection and I hope you enjoy them as much as I did.

Here are some patterns available for sale on Ravelry that benefit charities working in Japan.

Sakaki, by Rosemary Hill

Mitered Crosses Blanket by Kay Gardiner

Comfort Slippers by Reiko Arato