Laura Griffin Designs » Hat Charity http://laura-griffin.com/blog Dreaming out Loud Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:00:59 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 Funky green hat and flower pin… http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/21/funky-green-brim-hat-with-hand-made-flower-pin/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/21/funky-green-brim-hat-with-hand-made-flower-pin/#comments Wed, 21 Jul 2010 23:00:23 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/?p=2794 As I mentioned recently, I run a charity called Brimming with Love. We recently received a great fabric donation of some cotton blanket-style fabric in green and white. I thought it would look great in a brim hat, so I grabbed a favorite sewing pattern & created a couple of variations.

The first style has a longer brim that is pinned up on one side. The flower pin was custom made using a Sizzix flower die and my Cuttlebug machine. I backed the fabric with some interfacing first (so it wouldn’t fray), then layered several flowers together, adding a button to the top. I hot-glued a pin-back to the flower, and voila… instant flower brooch!

Here’s a close-up…

This second version of the hat has a shorter brim. I added a similar flower, only this time I used some white fabric to add contrast.

If you’re having a no-hair day… wouldn’t it be fun to put one of these on? :)

No gift would be complete without a matching card! I created the embossed border using a classic square Nestabilities die. The flower was prepared similar to the brooch and was adhered with a simple white brad.

Anybody else playing with fabric these days? Used it with die-cut machines to create dimensional embellies? Would love to see links to your fabric creations!

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]]> http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/21/funky-green-brim-hat-with-hand-made-flower-pin/feed/ 0 Crafting for a cause… http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/19/crafting-for-a-cause/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/19/crafting-for-a-cause/#comments Mon, 19 Jul 2010 21:00:54 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/?p=2783 Back in 2002, I started a charity project that provides free hats to cancer patients across the Metroplex called Brimming with Love

I am always inspired by the courage of the patients I have met over the years. I recently received some hand-written requests for hats and here are a couple that I made to send out…

The first is a quick & easy turban pattern that is made from just 3 rectangles of fabric! It is simple to make (even for the beginner) and is a patient favorite .

Here’s one I call Millie’s Tie Hat. The pattern was designed by a volunteer in her 80′s who was an incredible seamstress. The hat is reversible and machine washable.

Interested in volunteering or donating to our cause? Check out the Brimming with Love website for more info.

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]]> http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2010/07/19/crafting-for-a-cause/feed/ 1 Brimming with Love’s website has had a facelift! http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/07/01/brimming-with-loves-website-has-had-a-facelift/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/07/01/brimming-with-loves-website-has-had-a-facelift/#comments Sun, 01 Jul 2007 23:44:18 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/07/01/brimming-with-loves-website-has-had-a-facelift/ I spent a large part of the weekend learning Dreamweaver 8 and re-designing the Brimming with Love website to make it a bit more aesthetic & user-friendly. I opted for a subtle color scheme with more white space. The contact form is not yet operational, but the rest of the site appears to be functioning. (Added 7/18/07 – the contact form works now!) Take a look and let me know what you think!

New Site Design:

Old Site Design:

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]]> http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/07/01/brimming-with-loves-website-has-had-a-facelift/feed/ 1 Handmade hats for local cancer patients… http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/28/handmade-hats-for-local-cancer-patients/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/28/handmade-hats-for-local-cancer-patients/#comments Fri, 29 Jun 2007 01:22:39 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/28/handmade-hats-for-local-cancer-patients/ I’m posting a sampling of some of the hats I made last weekend to donate to a local hospital on behalf of Brimming with Love. I think I made 23 in all! The quickest & easiest ones to make are the turbans & sleep caps (which also tend to be the most popular). Believe it or not, the turbans are made from three rectangles of fabric…so they are super easy to sew – even for beginners! You can find a link to the pattern here. I made them in an assortment of colors – but here are just a few…

I also made a reversible tie hat for a local teen who has recently lost all of her hair during chemotherapy treatment.

And a green bucket style hat for her as well…

If you have sewing, knitting, or crocheting skills and might enjoy making some hats to donate, please drop by the BWL webpage and take a look at some of the patterns we highlight there. We’d love to add you to our list of volunteers!

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]]> http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/28/handmade-hats-for-local-cancer-patients/feed/ 0 A weekend of hat-making http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/27/a-weekend-of-hat-making/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/27/a-weekend-of-hat-making/#comments Wed, 27 Jun 2007 17:18:50 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/27/a-weekend-of-hat-making/ Haven’t posted in a lil’ while.  Was busy this past weekend sewing 23 hats to donate to a local hospital’s radiation oncology unit for Brimming with Love.  Most of them are turban-style.  I’ll have to post a pic before they get shipped out! :)

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]]> http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/27/a-weekend-of-hat-making/feed/ 0 My first knit hats… http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/02/my-first-knit-hats/ http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/06/02/my-first-knit-hats/#comments Sat, 02 Jun 2007 05:10:23 +0000 Laura http://laura-griffin.com/blog/2007/05/21/my-first-knit-hats/ So I learned how to crochet hats a few years ago when I started Brimming with Love, but I have never been able to knit. I just always figured that one hand was easier to work with than two. Then I discovered the lovely invention of the round knitting loom (the Knifty Knitter). Too cool! I made these two hats in one sitting.

I bought the set of 4 round looms with a coupon at Michaels (great deal for around $8). Don’t let the sizes fool you. Since the red one was roughly the circumference of my head, I tested it out on the first hat.

The result was the hat on the right (it’s questionable, but it just might fit a 2 year old.) The green loom is only slightly larger than the red, but produces a nice average size adult hat. I think this hat pattern would look great with some pretty variegated yarn. I’ll have to try that next. :)

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