Grammy D Knits - Volunteer Knitting

by the Mischief and Mayhem Crew - Sweetie, Etude, Gentle Mouse, Rondo

Today we are sharing a little of Grammy's story and her volunteer knitting.

Grammy D is our dear old Grammy at Mischief and Mayhem Central.  She took up knitting again after the turn of the millennium... but had been a knitter and crocheter in her early years.  Other occupations kept her busy during those early years too... calligraphy, stained glass and flower arranging being just a few of them but working with yarn was her passion.

This love of using the hands all started when she was a toddler watching her own Grammy (aka. Nana).  Nana was never idle.  She started her morning with a cup of tea, buttered toast, a set of knitting needles and yarn.  She knit socks for Grammy's dad, and mittens for all the grandkids in between helping care for those same children.  Grammy D's own mama knitted for her own babies as they came along but then life got too busy with such a hectic household... 3 then 4 generations all under one roof ... there wasn't enough time in the day for such 'idle' occupations.

Well, Grammy D from now on we'll just call her D, a young adult, took a course in knitting and crocheting, picked it up quickly and began teaching it a year later at a community high school.  At the time she preferred to crochet focusing on handmade blankets, baby outfits until finally a bill-paying career took off and all else was set aside.

It wasn't until illness side-lined D and her idle fingers were itching to be active that she began to crochet again.  Crocheting soon became difficult with an arthritic thumb so she switched to the gentler activity - knitting.  The rest is history.

To start us off we have a slideshow of projects Grammy D has knitted as a volunteer for a local hospital.  All made for the Adult Cancer ward and the hospital's NICU.    Only a small sampling of the items is shown here.  In addition, I, Sweetie, added in my doggy friends that Grammy knitted for.

Each hat for the cancer ward has been made unique by using different coloured yarn combinations and stitch patterns.  An attempt has been made to make the gowns unique.  Different stitch patterns were created for the neck, sleeve cap and/or skirt of the gowns and the  ribbon colours vary.    Click here to watch the video slide show.

We'll share Grammy's knitting for clients and friends another time. 

Enjoy!

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