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Another Loss to the Knitting Community

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evie rosenI think we just need to get through this week with no more bad news, but I’m also saddened to report that Evie Rosen, the woman who founded the knit and crochet charity Warm Up, America, died recently. She was 86 years old.

Rosen learned to knit at the age of 7 and opened the Knitting Nook shop in her native Wisconsin in 196; it was open for more than 30 years. She also helped found the Midwest Retailers Association and encourage the National NeedleArts Association to open its membership to retailers.

Warm Up, America was founded in 1991 as a local charity to provide the homeless with blankets, and it spread and spread such that in that time more than 15 million afghan blocks have been created and more than 300,000 afghans distributed across the United States and around the world.

Warm Up, America is proof that we can all do a little something even when faced with big problems. The charity collects afghan squares, so you can get a group together and just knit or crochet one block each and still have enough for a blanket to warm one person in your community. Multiply that by every yarn crafter making a square, or a blanket, to distribute locally and you can see what a difference all those little squares can make.

[Photo via Craft Yarn Council.]

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Comments

  1. Evie Rosen was a wonderful woman. I met her at The Knitting Nook where she not only gave me knitting tips but thoughtful advise on motherhood. She was so welcoming, always with a smile and a laugh. I’ll always remember her and those years in Wausau, WI!

  2. What a sad week this is turning out to be. I did not know her personally but knew of the foundation through my mother who made blankets and afghans to contribute to this cause. My condolences to all her friends and her family.

  3. Reading the linked Warm Up America article, I thought, “Look what one woman can do.” Think of all the lives she touched.
    Many years ago I taught a classroom of 5th graders to crochet and we made an afghan for Warm Up America. What a great experience that was, I still see those children and they will mention our crocheting time together.
    Thank you Evie for inspiring others and for sharing the fact we are blessed, when we bless others. You will be missed.
    Deb

Have you read?

Stitch Your Favorite Fruit on a Sweater

The other day I saw a post from Pinterest about trends for summer and it said one of them was “cultivating whimsy.” 

Well, I don’t know where Pinterest has been all this time, but we’ve been cultivating whimsy here at Craft Gossip for a long time. I love sharing projects that are a little different, things that make you smile when you see them, and will make you smile when you knit them and wear them or use them. 

Such it is with the Tutti Frutti tee knitting pattern from Bea Creative Knits. 

This cute little baby tee is worked top down in the round with contiguous shoulder construction to shape the sleeve caps. There are short rows for the neckline and folded hems with picot edging at the hemline, neckline and edges of the sleeves. 

All of this would be great on its own, but then there’s the addition of a super cute fruit icon, which is added with duplicate stitch. There are a lot of options, including strawberry, banana, orange, cherries, watermelon, lemon, blueberries, kiwi, peach, dragon fruit, apple and pear, so it’s likely you can add on your favorite fruit. 

It is offered in eight sizes, to fit a bust measurement ranging from 28-30 inches (71-76 cm) to 56-58 inches (142-147 cm). The design is meant to be worn with around 6.3 inches/16 cm of negative ease, but you can choose the fit you prefer. There’s also optional bust and waist shaping included in the pattern if you want to make it even curvier.

This is considered an advanced beginner or intermediate project because of all the skills involved, but it’s sure to be a lot of fun even if some of these techniques are new to you.

Grab a copy of the pattern for yourself form Bea Creative Knits on Etsy. 

[Photo: Bea Creative Knits]