It is the season of giving and I’m hoping some of you may have something left over after your holiday shopping to help support Halos of Hope, a truly deserving organization that was founded by cancer survivor Pam Haschke, who is doing amazing work with an all volunteer staff. These are people we can all admire.
You can read more about Halos HERE, but the short story is that they collect hand knitted and crocheted chemo hats and caps to send to cancer patients around the country. Folks continue to be truly generous in making and donating hats but the organization still must bear the not insignificant expense of shipping out the hats to over 180 centers around the country. So fundraising is CRUCIAL! They’re always happy to receive cash donations but also sell lots of wonderful hat patterns on their website for folks to use to make these much needed, much loved creations.
Here’s where I come in. :-) Several years ago Vogue Knitting sponsored a contest to help promote breast cancer awareness, asking knitters to design scarves towards that end. I submitted my first original bead knitted design, a cashmere scarf covered in pink beaded logo ribbons and was thrilled to win the grand prize in the Mixed Media category. For years I made the pattern available as a free download on my website. I have now decided to put the pattern to more productive use and have donated it to Halos of Hope, where 100% of the proceeds will go to support their work.
If you want to read a bit more about the story behind the scarf, my good friend Benjamin Levisay, who sits on Halos Board, kindly wrote a blog entry about it. You can read it HERE. If you would like to purchase a pattern to make the scarf or any of Halos’ wonderful hat designs, you can look at and buy them HERE.
I hope that some of you will consider supporting Halos of Hope in whatever way you can. Knitting a single hat makes a difference. Buying a pattern makes a difference. A donation of any amount makes a difference. Bottom line? We can all make a difference.
Thank you and happy holidays to all! <3
Not a fan of brightly colored beads? You’re in luck! I’m also bringing more neutral colored bead ball necklaces as part of the Limited Edition Collection I’ve created especially for Vogue Knitting Live NYC. Next weekend! Jan 25-27. Big thanks to my friends at Kreinik Threads. It’s their gorgeous Silk Serica you see in 6 of the 7 pieces shown here. Please stop by Booth 601, right outside the 5th floor Marketplace entrance, and say hello. (It’s also close to the restrooms, so you can kill two birds with one stone! Just sayin’…) 
