Jordana Paige’s Sale for Preeclampsia Awareness

I wanted to let you know about a very special sale that’s happening tomorrow (that would be July 18). Knitting bag maker Jordana Paige is going to be selling imperfect handbags throughout the day with proceeds to benefit the Preeclampsia Foundation.

Preeclampsia is a condition in which pregnant women suffer very high blood pressure. It can lead to seizures, strokes and organ failure and can cause death of the child and/or the mother. About 300,000 are diagnosed with preeclampsia each year, and it causes serious problems for thousands of women. It is close to Jordana’s heart because her sister lost her son because of preeclampsia.

“It is in memory of Cooper that I am doing this fundraiser to raise both money for the Preeclampsia Foundation and awareness of this horrific disease,” she said.

A previous fundraiser like this raised $15,000 for Doctors without Borders Haiti after the earthquake there, and Jordana hopes this sale will have a similar impact.

The sale will begin at 8 a.m. Pacific (US) time tomorrow, and a new handbag will join the sale each hour through the day. All bags will be $50 each. The sale items can be viewed at the Jordana Paige website and can be purchased online.

I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this one. If you snag a deal, spill it!

[Photo by Jordana Paige.]

Next Pattern:

Sometimes I feel like knitters get intimidated to try new things because they think they need to start with a big project. Your first time working in the round doesn’t need to be a sock, and your first colorwork doesn’t need to be a sweater, for example. You can find little projects that use the skills you want to learn to build your confidence before you move on to something that requires more time commitment.

This adorable knit bunny, for example.

The colorwork bunny from Knit Picks was designed by Amy Munson and is a kind of bowling pin shaped bunny complete with a knit hat, contrasting inner ears and a little stranded colorwork on its body. Note that the ears are attached the the hat not the bunny, but you could stitch them to the bunny if you’d rather.

It’s worked from the bottom up and also has a tiny pompom tail you can’t see in the picture but it’s a really cute touch. There are a variety of little fair isle patterns to choose from to make the best bunny for you.

The bunny comes out about 8 inches tall (or just over 20 cm) and use several colors to complete the colorwork, depending on the design you choose.

You can purchase the pattern by itself from Knit Picks, or make a kit that includes sport weight yarn in all the colors you need for your creation. There are gray and brown options for the main body of the bunny, but of course if you’re using your own yarn you can make it whatever color you like.

Once you’ve tried colorwork (maybe also working in the round and shaping if those are skills you haven’t used before) in a little project like this you’ll be ready to take on something bigger in no time.

Check out the pattern on Knit Picks.

[Photo: Knit Picks]

Next Pattern:

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