Project #3: The Mother Lode of Swatches

A few years ago, I came across a whopping 86 swatch squares, all knitted from Malabrigo, a soft, colorful--and pricey-- brand of merino wool yarn.  Each square was about 8-10 inches and well-constructed; they were all clean and had been blocked, all the ends were neatly woven in, and the knitting showed no errors at all. I imagine that they came from a yarn-related business that had gone under. All these squares had ended up at a thrift store.

And I scooped them all up for 25 cents each:



It was fun to lay out the squares into various arrangements.  It was less fun to sew them up (into child-sized blankets), but I managed to pull together a few:




I sent these blankets to Wool-Aid, a 501(c)3 charity in Illinois which collects warm woolen items for children in need who live in some of the harshest and coldest places on Earth.  Wool-Aid hosts an active group on Ravelry.  "Wool-Aiders" are some of the nicest (and most skillful) knitters you'll ever meet -- virtually or otherwise. If wool isn't your thing, or if you have another type of charitable project in mind, Ravelry offers many, many other groups that are easy and free to join.

So go clean out those shoeboxes or wherever you stash those scraps and put them to use!  If you are stumped, post a photo of your swatches in the Comments area and I'll help you brainstorm some ideas for projects and potential recipients.  I look forward to hearing from you!

Until next time,

s w a t c h m o n s t e r