Craft Hope is an organization that I found through a friend at work. M sent me their link, thinking about how crafty I was and just had the feeling that something like what Craft Hope does would click with me…and boy was she right! I really didn’t have time last year (what with being pregnant and then having a newborn around) to participate in any of their projects, so that’s why it ended up on my 101 in 1001 list. I wanted to be sure and do it!
What I like even better is that the founder of Craft Hope is right here in Austin! We could be neighbors! We’re not, and that sounded totally craft-nerdy to say it that way, but I just think that it’s really cool that a mom of three little ones started something this cool. I wish that I had ideas like this!
Anyway, Jade over at Craft Hope just posted their first project for the year, and it’s totally something that I can do! Double score! You can read more about the project here if you’re interested, but I’ll sum it up for you. This project is working with Konbit Sante, a group that is dedicated to helping provide safe (safer) deliveries to babies in Haiti. We all know that the situation in Haiti was bad before it got worse last year, and that goes double for babies. My heart just about broke all to pieces reading the statistics about the children trying to grow up there…and the conditions in which mothers find themselves giving birth. Having just safely delivered my own bundle of joy…well, it’s easy to see why this one hit home with me.
So what Konbit Sante does is to provide the “midwives” with a birthing bag for each new birth (if I’m understanding things correctly) and Craft Hope is teaming up to make a sizeable contribution through its readers of these bags. It’s a simple homemade bag filled with some small, inexpensive medical necessities and also a receiving blanket and stuffed “lovey” for the new baby. That’s where the crafty part comes in. It just amazes me that the list of medical necessities that Haiti doesn’t have access to is a clean razor blade, string, plastic sheeting, gloves and alcohol wipes/hand sanitizer. When I think about all that went into my birth at my clean, sterile hospital with 34 nurses/doctors attending to my every need and whim…it’s just humbling that births in third world, poverty stricken countries happen with a lot less. You can read the specifics here, if you’re interested.
So I’m committed to this project. I’m going to aim for making 5 bags, if the supplies that I need to procure will get me 5. I’m using this simple pattern for the bags, just serging the ends of some baby flannel into receiving blankets, and plan on trying my hand at this tutorial of a “lovey”. I have all the material needed (except for the flannel) already at my house, so the cost should be low on the homemade end of things. Now I just need to round up the medical supplies…and find out about shipping razor blades and Purell across international borders. I’m sure there’s something to declare at the Post Office…
So here goes the start of another goal! I may not actually be able to do much right now other than gather the needed supplies, since Jenna’s got a BIG school project that I’ll be working with her on that’s due the second week of February…but the deadline for sending in the Craft Hope project isn’t until March 1st, so hopefully I’m good to go on timing. Wish me luck!
If this is something that you’re interested in working on too, please click here to read more about it! Even just making up one bag makes a difference to someone…
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