Commu-knit-y

In browsing something or another on the internet recently, I came across project in Yorkshire – knitting mini jumpers as bunting for the Tour de France.  This month’s issue of Simply Knitting magazine has an interview with the person behind it all.  Whilst the deadline of sending mini jumpers has passed, the pattern is here if you’re interested, or want to replicate the project in your front room.

I love the way that this, like other community knitting projects, has caught the imagination of the knitting community.  I love that individually, your contribution can be as big or as small as you want it to be (subject to availability of both time and yarn), but overall the effect is somewhat impressive.  I love that knitting brings people together – in this case from all over the world.

I’ve taken part in the Macmillan Comfort Blankets project (sending squares to make up blankets to give to people who had cancer, but couldn’t easily afford fuel over the winter).  I still have some of the patterns for the squares and would do the project again.  Although I knitted about four or five squares, between us, friends and I put together two blankets; the total being greater than the sum of its parts, or something.  (Whilst patterns for the squares have now been taken down from the Macmillan website, there are a couple still available here) 

Another project I've also seen, is knitted blood drops, to highlight the need for more blood donors.  I love the fact that this has been organised by somebody still doing their A-levels.  There are concerns about how politically engaged young people are, and here we have somebody exhibiting activism through creativity. 

The project I’m looking forward to is the Innocent Smoothies' hats Inspired by what’s gone before, I’ve got lots of ideas I want to try out.  As the deadline is usually around October for completed hats, I may be working towards a batch for winter 2015.  If the patterns on the link above aren't enough - there are even more here. 

But back to the shirts which started the post, I think it’s a brilliant idea and I wish I could see them in the yarn.  Heck, I’m tempted to make a mini bunting to display at home.  I was disappointed to read the reports that the bunting has been taken down from lampposts.  I’m just trusting that the council will play by the same rules when it comes to the Christmas decorations….