Cat Mazza Interview

There is GREAT interview with Cat Mazza of microRevolt up on We Make Money Not Art. Go read it and catch up on sweat shops, micro revolt, and her various projects: the Nike Blanket Petition, Stitch for Senate, Hackers and Haute Couture Heretics, and general crafty activism.

Cat is big craftivism hero of mine mainly because she's better at keeping up with the things I wish I was better at keeping up with, ahem, politics. But projects like the Knitoscope Testimonies, are more within my realm of knowledge and completely floor me with neato-ness. Knitoscope make video look like sweaters by lowering the resolution, pixelating, and translating the pixels into stitches that look like knitting. It's kind of like microRevolt's knitPro, but cooler and all the testimonials up on the site right now are from activists against sweatshop labor.

Three Cheers for Charity

Hungry for good? Check out All Day Buffet. Part social network and part event planning, All Day Buffet bills itself as a social awareness brand for the cool kids. The idea behind All Day Buffet is simple, "Inspire Action. Change the world. Have Fun. Because doing good shouldn't feel like a chore." Being a bit of a hedon myself, but at the same time knowing not everyone is in the same position, I couldn't agree more with a cause like this.

Says the site, "Our purpose is to connect the things we like with the things that matter most. Our concept is open participation. Our network is a family of likeminded people around the world working towards the same ideals. Whether it’s drinking for a cause, curating an art project, or stripping for charity; we want to get you Full on Good."

If you're in the Austin area, why not toddle down to Ninety Proof and raise a glass or two to improve healthcare in Austin. $2 from every drink will support the People's Community Clinic. Who said that drinking only produces a hangover?

People's Community Clinic
Provides high quality medical, counseling and health education services at reasonable costs to individuals and families in the Austin area.

Ninety Proof
333 East 2nd Street
Austin, Texas Don't worry, alldaybuffet will be back in full force on February 20 in major cities across the country. Stay tuned for details on our website.

Save the Date: Knit for the Cure

In my eyes (and in my hair), pink will never be over done. And it never will be, thanks to Breast Cancer Awareness.

Over the last three years Knit for the Cure has earned a LOT of support within the knitting and crochet community. This year, save the date, March 15, 2008, and whip up something pink for the cause.

Founded in 2004, the Knit for the Cure™ Campaign recruits knitters & crocheters from all over the United States to make handmade scarves, hats, purses, pins, etc., all incorporating the color pink. To date, over 700 items have been collected. The hand-knit and crocheted items have been sold at Komen Foundation events raising over $17,000 to support breast cancer patients and to fund breast cancer research and treatment through the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Los Angeles County Affiliate. Twenty-five percent of the total funds raised is donated to Komen's National Office for research and the remaining 75% stays in the local community and is awarded as grants to treatment centers and hospitals.

More Craftivism

Causes with crafty efforts behind them are near and dear, my dears. This weekend, put your needles together for the Sock-Monk-a-Thon, and make a monkey for a South African child:

Saturday January 12th is the Second annual Sock-monk-a-thon, a craft- for- a- cause event where you can learn to make a sock monkey and donate your firstborn to a small South African. All materials are provided- though donations of materials are always appreciated! Funky socks, stuffing, buttons and embroidery thread are all ingredients for monkey making. Join us from 1-4 pm for good crafting and great karma. For more info, please contact lindsey@operationsockmonkey.com or check out www.operationsockmonkey.com.

Visit the Facebook event.

ABOUT OPERATION SOCK MONKEY

Operation Sock Monkey is an initiative created to raise money, support and awareness for Clowns Without Borders South Africa, (CWBSA). CWBSA is an organization providing laughter, hope and healing to children in South African communities affected by HIV.

Handmade sock monkeys are sewn with love and sent on a trip to South Africa where they will find new homes in the arms of orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV /AIDS.

OSM needs help in the form of crafters and sponsors- the more monkeys made and sponsored, the more smiles will be sent across the miles. If you’d like to make a sock monkey to send, please contact lindsey@operationsockmonkey.com for upcoming workshop details. If you’d like to sponsor and send a sock monkey, or for more information, go to www.operationsockmonkey.com.

Image above is of therealgiganator's Craftster challenge winning monkey.

Football: over and out

That's right. I'm talking about football. I'm really going to miss knitting through a football game once the season is over. Knitting is to football, like chili is to mac'n'cheese. Last year, we heard about the DIY Network's Knitty Gritty Knit In to benefit Warm Up America with Vicki Howell which aired during the Super Bowl. (Technically, last year this time, we didn't have cable, so actually watching was out of the question.) But this year we won't have the chance. Here's the scoop from Vicki's blog:

I just got word that DIY nixed the Knitty Gritty marathon (aka the Knit In), 2008 in favor of a bathroom renovation they're calling, the Toilet Bowl. Soooo, I know I told a lot of people that the KG special would air on Superbowl Sunday but that's apparently no longer the case. I'll keep you posted on any new developments but in the meantime, if you're looking for more Knitty Gritty love and want to tell the network(s) about it, here's where you can send your comments:
DIY Network Viewer Comments
HGTV Viewer Comments

Toilet Bowl? That's inspired.

Another problem is that the Warm Up America project has concluded. [correction: NOT concluded. the only thing that concluded was the baby hat project.] In any case, there are obviously a lot more projects to donate your Super Bowl sit in projects to. The San Diego Wild Fire Blanket Project is still going strong as I mentioned yesterday and I am encouraging you all to send a square there. Since there are still a lot of play off games, why not knit a few up before then. Not into football? Just flick on the TV. You've probably already noticed, there are plenty of inane shows to put on in the background.

Witch Fire Project updates for 2008

It's about time we started setting some goals around here. Personal, ahem and for the Witch Fire Project. What with the holidays and everything, I've been a little lagging both in the shop and on this here blog, so while I am not a resolutions person, I am still going to tie a little string around my finger and promise to step things up this year. New projects which have been on the back burner will be shoved front and center.

First off the shop needs a little refresh. I will be posting new items in the next week. As I post them up I will be entering the gracious donor into the raffle and kicking that back into gear.

Next it's off to the writing cave, where I will be working on a short book about crafters and how crafting currently and historically is used to benefit communities in need. A lot of those ideas will be bounced of the lovely readers here and on Marimello, so keep your eyes peeled and let me know what you think.

I was perusing other similar projects over the break and was happy to see that San Diego Wild Fire Blankets has been doing really well. To date they've done 73 blankets and this year they're launching a whole new Web site to reach their goal of 1588. They've so far reached everyone in my home town, Poway.

Seeing the efforts of other projects always makes me happy, so this year I'd like to team up with some other similar efforts and see if we can't start a disaster awareness/preparation awareness type effort for crafters and the people who support them by buying handmade. If you're interested comment or email me marimellodesign [at] gmail

2008 looks like it's going to be a good year. The Witch Fire Project made news of it's own this morning when Naik Fur's Pom Poms were featured as an Etsy pick in the newsletter. If you didn't get it, that's ok. Go check them out right here.


So happy January! Keep spreading the good word.

Merry Merry

It's certainly been a year now hasn't it? Given enough time, anything could happen.

That's a little joke between my dad and me. But it serves as appropriate adage for the year. While 2007 proved a good year in some respects (I got a new and improved job), 2007 has dealt it's blows and I am going to be really glad when 2008 come to bump it off it's throne. But we'll all talk about that next week.

This day is special because it reminds us that perhaps we have spent too much time bitching to see the best and realest things. Stopping to think about it, drinking a little nog and emptying a stocking puts the bitching on pause and give us a little time to think about that which no man or child can see. So take my jokes for what they're worth. It's been a best /worst of time type year, enjoy and cheers to the best-ofs!

Dear Editor—

I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.” Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

Virginia O’Hanlon

Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.