Like so many of you we are utterly horrified by the unfolding news from Afghanistan. The terrifying triumph of the Taliban and its impact are devastating. Scenes at Kabul airport are truly desperate as folk attempt to escape. We’ve been asked what we can do to help refugees fleeing the country, thank you so much everyone, and we have a plan in two parts. We can’t solve this but if we can help some folks then we will do our best.

Part One. Refugee families in the UK

Through Alexsis at Seeded we learn that nine Afghan families are being urgently resettled in the Portsmouth area, these families have fled the country to escape hideous repercussions from the Taliban. Two families are already here. With the wonderful Seeded crafters, we’d like to make each family a beautiful blanket, full of love and compassion, to let them know they are welcome, folk are thinking of them and wish them well. Initially these nine, but if we learn of and confident we can reach other resettled refugee families around the UK we’d like to extend this.

So we are looking for 12 or 6 inch squares, knit or crochet, multicoloured is great single colour too. Mixed colour traditional grannies would work very well. Our main photo shows Islamic art with the mosaic style. Anyone who can recreate this kind of thing in wool, please do so.

Just in Stylecraft Special DK so we know the blankets will be consistent in terms of wash and wear, and in these colours please which are very popular in Islamic geometric art, seen in stunning tiles and prints. they are also colours appropriate to Portsmouth!

• silver as an accent only please
• cream
• gold,
• sherbet
• turquoise
• empire
• pistachio
• copper
• gingerbread
• spice
• French navy

Alexsis is hunting out gorgeous patterns..

from Polly Plum

Another beautify from Polly Plum

The possibilities are endless, these are just suggestions.

To Teddington please with a deadline of September 20th.

We would very warmly welcome any financial donations to help with this. If this could be you, thank you.

We are a Cooperative business account in the name of Woolly Hugs, Account 65579631, Sort – 089299. Please do say Afghanistan as the reference.  Or our Paypal address is admin@woollyhugs.com.

Part Two. Our Ongoing Refugee project

This is our ongoing project to help displaced families and will include those who have left Afghanistan. Click here….. We know we can’t help everyone, but we will help as many as possible.

6 or 12 inch squares ONLY in shades similar to the picture. Or whole blankets but only in these types of colours. If making the whole blanket the most useful for agencies are those single bed sized.

You do not have to use Stylecraft Special DK, any good quality soft acrylic DK is perfect acceptable. but in shades similar to these. No lighter please.

All ends must be sewn in securely, please do ensure that you make your square usable.

Please note we cannot accept second hand or used blankets for this project.

Posting for this will be after November 1st

Heartfelt thanks everyone xxxxx

CROCHET GOES VIRTUAL ON THE 15^TH AUGUST!  

 Hook, snap and share your square to be part of an infinite Insta-blanket: it’s #GrannySquareDay2021 

We are so delighted that we have been chosen as the charity partner for this years collaboration! So please read on, enjoy the celebrations over on Instagram, and PLEASE take part, just upload a square or twenty using the hashtag #grannysquareday2021. 

Granny Square Day is a celebration hosted on Instagram supported by Simply Crochet Magazine, where the crochet community from around the world come together to make crochet granny squares and share them on Instagram, using the hashtag #grannysquareday2021 resulting in the biggest virtual crochet blanket in the world!

“We’ve always been huge fans of Granny Square Day – there’s something so appealing about the idea of creating a virtual patchwork blanket with the help of the worldwide crochet community. It’s an event that brings people together and one we look forward to every year. The best part is that anyone can take part in Granny Square Day, from absolute beginners to hook-happy experts – I’ve already made my square ready for 15^th August!”  Sara Huntington, Simply Crochet Editor

Charity Connection 

This year we are delighted to announce that we have teamed up with organisation Woolly Hugs and are donating our designer’s fees and granny squares to them in order for them to be made into blankets and other projects for people in need. In turn, we will encourage donations from everyone taking part in #grannysquareday2021 for future projects of theirs. We will work together through social media to raise awareness for the cause.

Originally started to support bereaved families, founders Ginny and Gertie have grown Woolly Hugs to be a voluntary online community aiming to show love and support through craft. With help from crochet donations, they create blankets and projects to donate to children, babies and families in need, with family bereavement still at the core of everything they do. Having previously created blankets for children’s hospices, refugee centres and cancer patients, Woolly Hugs are teaming up with us for Granny Square Day 2021 in the hopes that our shared crochet passion can help those who need it. 

This wonderful grassroots event was created in 2014 by US crochet whizz Susan Regalia, who realised that Instagram’s iconic grid format could be used to replicate the patchwork arrangement of the classic granny square blanket online. Others soon caught on to the concept and so Granny Square Day was born – bringing the worldwide crochet community together in a celebration of design and colour. “A blanket is a gift of comfort and love,” says Susan. “When any of us view or contribute some of these granny squares, it’s as though we join in a giant world hug with each other!”

While Susan knew her day had proven popular, she hadn’t anticipated the snowballing popularity of the event, which had over 6,000 posts in 2017. It was this avalanche that led to her handing over the reins to Simply Crochet the following year, to ensure Granny Square Day could continue to reach its potential and its mission to unite crocheters the world over.

“Simply Crochet has the biggest presence on Instagram when it comes to crochet magazines and online followers, and this is a day that crafters all over the world love to celebrate. I knew Granny Square Day deserved the legitimacy that they could give it,” says Susan.

Simply Crochet Editor Sara Huntington comments: “We’re honoured to continue Susan’s vision and support the day with loads of free patterns, video tutorials and the help of our Granny Square Day ambassadors, too!”

In 2020 Simply Crochet built on its previous success to make it bigger and better; with step-by-step-tutorials and videos, free patterns for squares and what to do with them, along with special stickers and gifs that resulted in over 8,500 posts on Instagram.

Granny Square Ambassadors 2021

We’re very excited to announce our Granny Square Day 2021 ambassadors who will helping us to promote the day by creating top tip videos/Granny Square related content that will be shared online and on social media. 

Lucy Regan – @attic24 – 22.2k Instagram followers

Lucy is a designer and writer, with a healthy obsession for crochet, colour and creative living. She works from her cosy studio above a local café, crocheting, designing, daydreaming and drinking rather a lot of frothy coffee! She is a Mum to three children, and author of the creative lifestyle blog Attic24.

“I am passionate about our worldwide crochet community and contributing to the groups and platforms which keep us connected and inspired. Granny Square Day perfectly illustrates the vibrant community spirit of our online crochet world and I love being a part of it.”

 Hannah Cross – @hanjancrochet – 22.2k Instagram followers

Hannah is the designer, creator and blogger behind HanJan Crochet since it launched in 2012. Her complete inability to follow instructions from anyone (just ask her husband) meant that from the very start Hannah was designing her own crochet patterns and soon began to be featured in publications such as Simply Crochet and many more. More recently she has been loving sharing her modern and fresh designs and knowledge on www.hanjancrochet.com and is thrilled to be an ambassador.

“I’m so excited to be a Granny Square Day Ambassador this year! I love how they can work to fit every skill level from beginner to advanced and that they can be joined to form just about anything you like!”

 Sarah C- @fanaticalfibers – 32.9k Instagram followers

Sarah has been crocheting since she was seventeen after taking on a crochet project inspired by one of her favourite movies. After battling an unknown illness in 2018 and 2019 (that has since been diagnosed as Atypical Crohn’s disease), she took Fanatical Fibers on full-time. In a moment of “carpe diem” mania, she joined Tik Tok during the pandemic to make entertaining videos promoting her crocheted pieces and now has over half a million followers there! 

“One of my earliest projects was a granny square blanket inspired by the Question Blocks from Mario Bros. It’s been a while since I’ve made any projects with them, so I am positively elated to participate in Granny Square Day this year!”

Stephanie Glaves- @steffi_glaves – 29.6k Instagram followers

Steffi is designer and author specialising in micro crochet. During last year’s Granny Square Day, she hosted Instagram Lives and other various social media bits for the day and is excited to get more involved this year through her role as ambassador. Steffi crochets along her day job as a secondary school teacher and is author of 100 Micro Motif Motifs where she displays her patterns of micro crochet lace jewellery, including a lovely pair of Granny Square earrings.

“I’m a micro crochet designer and secondary school teacher. I crochet a lot of jewellery and I can’t wait to make myself some granny square earrings for the day!”

 What Simply Crochet will be doing

• A book of 50 motifs designed by our favourite Simply Crochet contributors and a blocking board will be included with issue 113 (on sale 5^th August) so everyone can have a go at making a motif and taking part in Granny Square day 2021. 
• Creating new videos and tutorials on how to make easy square motifs and step-by-step instructions on how to create your own virtual blankets from your IG feed.
• Offering video hints and tips on making motifs via Instagram stories from many of our regular contributors.
• Creating a new hashtag #grannysquaremakes2021 to showcase your wonderful, complete granny square projects and keeping the #grannysquareday2021 focused on showcasing crochet squares which make up the virtual blanket!
• Releasing free downloads of some of our iconic granny square patterns every Wednesday from the 14^th of July to the 11^th of August on our website www.gathered.how/simplycrochet
• Sharing squares made by the Simply Crochet team and reposting our favourite squares made by the public on Instagram.
• Releasing special Granny Square Day stickers/gifs on Instagram.
• Offering special discounts on the Simply Crochet Ravelry store.

We are looking forward to this enormously, can’t wait to see what treasure arrives from the wider woolly community and look forward to turning them into a blanket or even blankets! We had a think and decided to create Snugs for Looked after children this year. And so any blankets produced by this event will be very precious indeed.