I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again – one of the things I have enjoyed most about “knit-blog-landia” is the connections that occur between people. Whether it be meeting up with blog buddies in real life or rallying around a need, this is quite a community!

Early in my blog reading days (even before I started blogging) I came across Cathy’s blog – Tightly Wound ~ Loosely Knit. In fact, it was her post about her Panda collection that was my first visit. As a fellow panda fan, we became blog buddies.

A couple of years ago Cathy sent out the call requesting afghan squares for a friend that was going through some extremely difficult times. I quickly knit a square & sent it on it’s way. Over a year ago, Cathy’s blog became pretty quiet. When she did pop in to blog it was evident that she was facing many things and needed the prayers and good wishes of her blog friends.

Early last year, Amanda Cathleen sent out a call to “friends of Cathy” to do a knit project. Instead of an afghan, we decided to make a shawl. Each person would knit 16 rows & pass the shawl along. There were so many friends that wanted to participate that the shawl was passed along as 2 halves with Amanda grafting them together at the end.

In mid-June I received one half of the shawl. I was #11 for the half. When the box arrived I marveled at the yarns that had been selected. Some yarns were handspun by the friends. The parameters for the yarn were blues & merino. I looked at several different possibilities for my rows and in the end went with a solid blue. The depth of the color reminded me of cool and calming waters – very appropriate for this project.

In one evening, I knit through my rows – saying a prayer for Cathy & her family that they would continue to find comfort as they go through this stage of their lives.

Once I finished my rows, I wrote a message on a ribbon & added it as a “fringe” on my section of the shawl. After a quick photo shoot on the deck, I repacked the box with the shawl, the supplies, the growing collection of yarn extras for a fringe once it’s finished, and the collection of notes that everyone included.

Kudos to Amanda Cathleen for organizing this great blog friend project – it was such a sweet idea & she had it very well organized (Yahoo group for communicating, instructions in the box, supplies in the box, etc.). Progress was shared in the Yahoo group & we decided that we would all blog about the project on the same day, once the shawl had reached Cathy.

If you have a moment, stop by Cathy’s & leave her a note of encouragement.

Cathy, your blog is filled with so many entries of comfort, encouragement & love that you have provided to your family & friends – as you wrap yourself in your new shawl may you continue to feel the comforting thoughts & prayers of your friends!