Making Shawls for 'SIBOL'.

Good Afternoon everyone!

The Homes are always very grateful for the beautiful 'Sunshine Blankets' we donate to them. Recently we have started making Shawls. These are great for just throwing around shoulders when it gets a little chilly. I have lots upstairs but my aim is to give another 20 to a local Home. I have already given 10. I probably need another half a dozen. Would anyone be interested in making one or maybe two if you are at a loose end this Summer?

There are lots of patterns available on the internet especially RAVELRY. Our favourite in the 'SIBOL' Group seems to be

The Original Half Granny Square/Shawl

by Ambar Enid Alcalá

baw1812  has just made a pretty one on RAVELRY and she has called it the 'Banana Split Shawl'. It's delightful and a very good name! I love it.

Here's the LINK if you would like to pop over and see it.

Thank you very much baw1812!

Enjoy the summer everyone and thank you!

x Sue x


~Thanks to jessiebonbon we now have some more lovely Butterflies.
Love the antennae ! x

Pretty Grannies!

Good Afternoon,

I would like to thank 'Berryqueen' over on RAVELRY for a gorgeous 'Sunshine Blanket'
received at HQ today.  It's made in pretty colours in the good old Granny Square and 'Berryqueen'
has even made a Butterfly which she has attached. I can't thank you enough the Blanket is wonderful.

Thank you so much once again the Blanket will be loved by an Elderly person.

x Sue x

A Letter of thanks today!

Hi everyone!

It's always so nice to know that our work is appreciated by the Care Homes I visit and this afternoon I have received a lovely letter from Michele Clarkson at Cole Valley Nursing  Home. If you remember I recently delivered 48 Sunshine Blankets. I thought you might like to read it.

Dear Sue, 
 
I would just like to express to sincere thanks of all the residents and staff at Cole Valley Nursing Home for the wonderful gift of 48 beautiful blankets. All of our residents have been able to choose a blanket and many of them were able to express how generous they thought it was for someone to take such trouble to make such thoughtful presents.
They really do brighten up all of the bedrooms and lounges and are being used on a daily basis. 
Many of the residents relatives have commented on how beautiful each blanket is and how much work has gone into each one. 
 
Many Thanks
Michele Clarkson
Home Manager 

This email means such a lot to me and I know it will to the other Ladies in the Group. So thank you Michele.


One other bit of news.......Knit Today recently got in touch with me about our Group and I'm waiting to hear when our article will be in the magazine. I'll let you know about that.

Also I am very pleased to be telling you that we have also been featured on the Knitting for Charity.org website. Here's the LINK Thank you Nicole!

Our recent post on UK Hand Knitting Association has given us lots of hits and I'm really pleased that Ladies have been contacting me through it. Here's the LINK for that one too!

I have said many times how much the Homes love our Blankets so please.....keep them comin!
All details are on HERE

If there is anything at all you would like to ask me please feel free to email me on

sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

I'm Sue 

and we are 'Sending a Ray of Sunshine into the Lives of the Elderly' 

with your help thank you! x

Saturday's Blankets.

Good Afternoon to you all!

I am very pleased to be showing you another two super 'Sunshine Blankets' for the Elderly. I would like to thank Axa Purls Knitting Group for the 'centres' and Sally for making the Blankets a reasonable size. Sally very kindly stepped in after my shout out the other day asking for help.

These two Blankets remind me of Vintage Blankets. They are a good size and such pretty colours. With many thanks to everyone involved.

Here they are!

I hope they have inspired you to pick up your hooks! I have Care Homes in need of Blankets and if you can help I'd be so happy to accept your donations. Can you imagine how useful Blankets like these would be? It's so nice that as a Group we can be creative but at the same time we are doing something  so worthwhile for the older people in our Community.

We have now reached 'Sunshine Blanket' no 797.

If you think you can help in any way please feel free to email me. 

I'm Sue on sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

Thanks for your help as usual. 

x Sue x 

Delivery Day!

Good Afternoon to you all!

Thank you for popping into 'SIBOL' this afternoon.

I am very pleased to be telling you that I have just delivered another 6 'Sunshine Blankets' to Ashley Lodge Care Home in Moseley, Birmingham.

The Staff rang me at lunchtime to thank us once again for our beautiful Shawls and Blankets and I'm really pleased that we could help them out with several more.

It's always lovely to be able to obtain a photo of my visit.

The Staff loved our Blankets.

So once again a Big Thank you from Ashley Lodge Care Home and me too!

I am always in need of Blankets and Shawls for the Care Homes. They are always accepted so well and they certainly make a difference to someone. If you think you can help details are on here

SIBOL CHALLENGES

My email address is here

sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

I'm Sue

Thank you x

Delivery of Knitted Blankets today!

Good Afternoon to you all!

I would like to thank Sue today for 5 beautiful Knitted 'Sunshine Blankets' she has very kindly made for Elderly Residents in Care Homes. These Blankets have been made in great colours some ideal for men Residents too!  Thank you so much for this bumper parcel received today. I love the deep borders on the Blankets they really make the Squares stand out. I know they will be loved.

Superb! Thank you so much Sue.

I would also like to thank Liztelf for assembling a 'take a bag' for me.
This really has helped.

Joined this way with a flat braiding method it makes the Knitted Squares look so different!
The Border is ideal for the Blanket thank you Liztelf!





I delivered 48 Sunshine Blankets yesterday we have had another 6 come in today.
Thank you all so much for your support.
I hope you have enjoyed looking at the wonderful Blankets today and don't forget to
read about my visit yesterday.

Please do not hesitate to contact me about our Blankets.

I'm Sue
on
sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

Delivery of 48 Sunshine Blankets today!

Hi everyone!

Welcome to 'SIBOL!',

Over the past few weeks I have been getting our beautiful 'Sunshine Blankets' ready for the next Home delivery. It's amazing how soon we gather together another 48! Our 'Sunshine Blankets' have been sent in from all over the world this time from Japan, Singapore and Spain not to mention the UK.   I am always very surprised when Ladies want to send to me from far off countries and it just shows how terribly kind Ladies in the Crafting  Community are. I am always very grateful and I know the Staff and Residents in the Homes really appreciate them. So thank you.

The Home I visited today was Cole Valley Nursing Home, Kings Heath, Birmingham  near to where I live. Michele is the Manager there and she was very pleased to accept our  Blankets.

I now have a helper my dear 'Mr. T' without him today those boxes would have been pretty heavy I have to say. Packed with such beautiful Blankets I know that each one is going to brighten someone's day. 

I know a lot of work goes in to each Blanket and I'm still amazed that you

still want to support the project after all these years. If you didn't know 'SIBOL' was started in January 2010 and my original intention was to make 6. We have now made 789! 

Of course the project was started in Memory of my Grandmother who lived to the fine age of 103!

Cole Valley would like to thank everyone for these gorgeous Blankets their Residents are going to love them. 

A big thank you from me too!

If you would like to ask me anything please contact me on

sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

I'm Sue

Bye for now x

Lots of colour today!

Good Afternoon and Welcome!

I have some gorgeous 'Sunshine Blankets' arriving today from the Axa Purls Knitting Group.
There are eleven in total  all made in such beautiful Granny Squares. Most of them are in glittery yarn which really is lovely.

I am so pleased these Blankets have arrived this weekend because I am in the process of getting our Blankets ready for the next home. I do have one in mind and I will try my best next week to get out to them.

Let's take a look at them now.

Your donations of Ribbons and Butterflies make these 'Sunshine Blankets' beautiful Gifts for Residents in the Homes. It's so nice to be able to match them up well.
I'm sure the Residents are really going to appreciate them.

Thank you to everyone who has made these Blankets today and thanks to you all for popping in to the 'SIBOL' web site especially new Ladies from UK Hand Knitting Association link.

If there is anything you'd like to ask me please feel free to mail me on
sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

I'm Sue
Bye for now xx

A 'Sunshine Blanket' arrives from the 'Swaps Galore' Group on RAV.

Good Afternoon and welcome!

First of all may I say thank you to everyone who put their names forward to help out with the smaller Blankets. I have passed on details to 'modelwidow' and she will contact everyone.

I have had a beautiful Flower 'Sunshine Blanket' arrive this morning from Steph and Ladies of the 'Swaps Galore' Group on RAVELRY. It really is very kind of you all to donate this beauty to 'SIBOL'.

I don't think  it will be possible to take a photo of one of the Residents in a Home accepting it but I will do my best to ask one of the Staff for you. I know it is very important to see where the Blankets finally go to and I always do my very best to take photos.

My all time favourite is Flower Blankets and at the bottom of the page I will show you some of our previous ones. Oh and if you want to see all the Blankets we have made and all the Squares we have previously received everything is recorded on Flickr. Here's the LINK.

Let's take a look at the Blanket now.

We are always in need of your Crocheting and Knitting Skills and if you feel you have time on your hands this Summer would you consider making a 'Sunshine Blanket' for SIBOL?

A typical Granny Square Blanket is the ideal sort of thing to carry around  with you and while watching the kids in the park it's something that doesn't need a great deal of concentration.

A great way also to use those bits of yarn lying around in your Stash.

Either making a Blanket using Squares or the round method would be fantastic and you could make it in whatever coloured yarn you like too!

We always need 'Sunshine Blankets' for the Care Homes and my aim now is to reach 1,000. We have totalled 778 I think  it is. My original idea was to make 6.

I would like to thank everyone for their support as usual.

If there are any 'Sunshine Blankets' on their way to me would you please let me know on

sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

I am due to visit a home very soon and I'm trying to get the 45 before I go I am around 10 short I think. 

Thank you Sue x

A shout out 'offers of help' please? Thank you!

Hi there,

Just a shout out asking  whether anyone has free time on their hands and would be willing to help out with some Crocheting?

We have some Crocheted Granny Square type Blankets coming in but they are rather small 24" x 30" ish.  Of course they are too small really for the Residents in Homes.
Would anyone be willing to make them into larger blankets for us?

I could arrange to have them sent directly to your address in the UK and then when finished if you could send back to me?

New Ladies are most welcome to help us.

Thanks such a lot.

I'm Sue
on sueatpigsty@talktalk.net

What a bumper delivery today!

Good Afternoon,

I'm writing Tuesday's and Wednesday's post today so please scroll down and see what's new!

Today I would like to thank  'Myrna' for the very heavy box received this morning. I found it in my

porch without even a knock to the door! I couldn't wait to open it. Inside I found lots of useful Ribbon, Shawls and Sunshine Blankets so thank you very much indeed Myrna.

Each 'Sunshine Blanket' and 'Shawl' have Butterflies already sewn on to them. How thoughtful of you Myrna! This has saved me time. I must compliment you on your work. I can't believe how many Blankets and Shawls you have made. The box is just jam packed! I love the flourescent colours. Please scroll down now and view Myrna's gorgeous work.

Now the fantastic Shawls! What a day today!

I am really grateful to you. I know how long everything takes to make and I know the Residents are just going to love them.

x Sue x