Casting On

So, as a requirement to graduate, we must do a senior project. This project must give back to the community in some way and show leadership. We were encouraged to choose something that we loved to do and work with that. There are a few of us in the class that have brought knitting or crocheting to school to work on, so my friend Emily and I decided to join together and create a knitting and crocheting club. We are required to keep a journal of our experience, so that is what this is. I will post random blogs about what goes on each week and I'll also have some pictures to document the experiences.

To begin, we had to submit our proposal to be approved. Pretty much, we had to write a short statement saying what the purpose of the club was, what we would be doing, and why. Our end goals were to teach others to knit or crochet and to make different projects that would then be donated to charitable organizations. We got the okay, set a date for our first meeting, and advertised by putting up fliers and putting it in the announcements.

To prepare, we had to get more yarn and hooks and needles so that we'd have enough for others to borrow and use. I had my dad put up an ad in freecycle asking for any donations. We were lucky and got one man who donated two whole trash bags full of yarn and a whole set of knitting needles and some crochet hooks, which had belonged to his mother. Emily also received some donations from an aunt, so we were all set with supplies. Our next step was to figure out what our first project and organization would be. We chose to make hats, booties, and blankets for newborns and would send them to the Angels of Love Charity.

With our supplies, patterns, and our first meeting set, we were ready to go and start creating.

(P.S.: For those of you unfamiliar with knitting terms, 'Casting On' is the act of putting the first stitches on the needle. You 'cast on' however many stitches you need to start your project. Only after you've done this can you really begin knitting. For those who prefer crochet, this is comparable to the first row of chain stitches that you will use as the base of your project.)