Project background
Crochet that decorated Oudtshoorn's streets overnight, surprised 2019 festival goers at the start of the 25th Klein Karoo National Arts Festival (KKNK). From trees to pillars, cars and other objects were beautified by Oudtshoorn locals’ creative crochet and knitting as part of this new town initiative.
In 2020, Oudtshoorn was adorned again, even though the KKNK could not take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals, businesses, schools, retirement homes and churches were involved in this community project. ReWOLusie was awarded a special prize for innovation at the tenth kykNET Fiëstas in 2020.
In the winter of 2020, this project distributed almost 2,000 blankets to organisations and the needy in Oudtshoorn and surrounding areas, including Helen Bellinghanhof, Coronation Memorial, Eljada Aftercare, ACVV De Rust, the Oudtshoorn Hospital, the Toekomsrus Clinic and various churches.
Thanks to ABSA, the stories of the women of Oudtshoorn could be celebrated in 2020 in a coffee table book with the participants' inspiring stories, crafts and patterns. "ABSA's partnership with the KKNK and the community through the ReWOLusieproject empowers women and develops their skills through crochet and knitting," says David Wingfield, ABSA's head of marketing. Order your copy via e-mail at info@kknk.co.za, or call 044 203 8600.
ReWOLusie: National Crochet-Along Initiative
Oudtshoorn's community initiative ReWOLusie is growing from strength to strength, with two exciting new additions to the project this year. In addition to the well-known local crochet and knitting project, ReWOLusie is gaining a national footprint this year thanks to a crochet-along campaign. Once again one of the partners in philanthropist Carolyn Steyn's campaign 67 Blankets for Madiba, ReWOLusie now offers the whole of South Africa an opportunity to participate, with more blankets than ever that can provide warmth to those in need during the cold winter months.
How does it work?
Oudtshoorn local, Bets Wilkinson, has designed a pattern for crocheters across the country. From Monday 3 May, the KKNK will release a section of this blanket's pattern on their website every Monday for 13 weeks. At the end of the 13 weeks, each participant will have a completed blanket.
Be part of ReWOLusie's crochet-along:
- You can donate your blanket for a charity auction on National Women's Day (9 August 2021). Funds raised in this way are used for empowerment projects among women in Oudtshoorn.
- You can keep the completed blanket or gift it to someone.
- If you cannot, or do not wish to crochet or knit yourself, consider donating R1,800. This money is used to buy the necessary wool and other equipment for someone who cannot afford it themselves but would still like to get involved. The blanket will be yours once completed.
- Or, if you have unused wool, donate it. Each ball of wool helps.
On your marks ...
ReWOLusie is about people. To share with the people in our communities. We share conversations, stories, sadness, joy, and blankets. We are inseparably part of the people around us. We want to involve as many people as possible in this project – it is not only about the art of crocheting, but also about the art of humanity. We want to share the experience with you and invite you to be part of our ReWOLusie family.
Don’t be afraid!
Madeleine Miles, project leader, says: “I was also nervous when I first saw the blanket. It is a work of art and I have only been crocheting for four years now. Don’t be afraid, we want to help you participate. We will assist beginners with step-by-step resources. For the more experienced crocheters – your creativity can take flight.
Keep in mind that this is the first project of its kind and we, like you, will learn a lot from the process. None of us are professional pattern writers, so if we missed something, let us know immediately. There will also be weekly conversations on our social media platforms where we can give each other advice and post photos of our progress."
Colour options
ReWOLusie will promote creativity, so challenge yourself with different colors and combinations. However, we know there are people who want to be a little safer, so we chose seven colors for color combinations. However, you can use many more colors. Who's scared now?
Colour combination suggestions
Get set.
What you should know before you get started.
Blanket measurements
The blanket’s measurements are 120cm (w) x 180cm (h).
Due to individual difference in crochet tension, your blanket’s final measurements might differ from the above with a few centimetres.
Requirements
Crochet needle sizes:
3mm
3.5mm
4mm
4.5mm
NOTE: In some of the rows you will need different sized crochet needles.
Wool
42 to 46 balls of 50g cotton wool such as Raeesah of Vinnis. The amount of wool you are going to use is determined by the tension of your crocheting.
You can also use any other acrylic wool, you will just need to adjust your crochet needle size for a thicker wool. For Charity/Elle Gold/Kartopu, we recommend the following crochet needle sizes: 4mm, 4.5mm, 5mm.
Blankets crocheted with Charity or other DK acrylic wool will be larger than the cotton wool blankets.
Pattern
The blanket pattern is supplied in three different formats.
- South African crochet terms with photos
- US crochet terms
- UK crochet terms
Refer to the table below for the difference between terms:
| SA terms | US terms | UK terms | ks - chain stitch | ch - chain | ch - chain |
|---|---|---|
| gs - slip stitch | sl st - slip stitch | sl st - slip stitch |
| kb - short leg | sc - single crochet | dc - double crochet |
| hlb - half long leg | hdc - half double crochet | half treble crochet - htc |
| lb - long leg | dc - double crochet | treble crochet - tc |
Crochet Stitches
You must be able to do a chain stitch, double crochet, half treble crochet, treble crochet and slip stitch. All the stitches we use in the pattern are a combination of these stitches.
Do not fear if some of these stitches look strange or new. The bored housewife will show you the way!
View her videos and instructions here:
Chain stitch (ks)
Short leg (kb)
Goofy (lb)
V-stitch
Half long leg (hlb)
Crochet in back loop
Sliding circle / magic ring
How to attach new color
Glipsteek
Oumablokkie
Foundation half long leg
Standing long leg
TIPS
Throughout the project, we will provide tips on how to create stitches in different ways. It is very important to use the same method throughout. If you are comfortable with your current method, stick to it. There is no right or wrong way. Uniformity is what is most important (stick with what you pick). Once you have a chance, you can practice and master the alternative ways in your own time.
Degree of difficulty
The blanket is suitable for beginners and advanced crocheters. More difficult stitches are explained with the help of videos and instructions. If the more difficult stitches are still too challenging, an easier option will always be offered as an alternative, without losing the splendour of your final blanket.
Tension
Test your needle size first. Start with a 4mm crochet needle. If you know that you crochet very loosely, you can start crocheting with a 3.5mm needle. It is particularly important that you crochet the first four rows first, before measuring your width. Do not cut the wool after each colour change, in case you may have to start over. The first four rows do not take long to crochet, and it is worth the extra effort to make sure your crochet needle size is correct.
Fringes, frills, tails and loose ends
Whatever you call it, work them away every week! If you are sure that your stitch count is correct, work the wool as you progress. There will be a lot of them, and you do not want to do that last.
Stitch count
It is also important to count your stitches after each row. We repeat: Count your stitches after each row. Use stitch markers or another colour wool to make sure your stitches are right every time. No one wants to take everything apart and start over in week five. Did we mention that you need to count your stitches after each row?
Front and back
The blanket has a clear front and back. Always make sure that you are crocheting on the correct side. Make a bow in the front, then you always know which side is the front and which is the back. You can also use stitch markers for this.
How much wool do I need?
Because everyone uses different quantities of colours and tension differs per person we cannot determine exactly how much wool you would need of each colour. The pattern does not indicate how much colour and which combination of colours to use, this is a personal choice, and we would like to encourage creativity. For example, 12 colours were used in the pattern for the blanket.
Remember that the project is scheduled over 13 weeks and you are not going to need everything immediately. If you initially would like to play with your colour combination, buy half of your wool now and the rest at a later stage.
However, you are going to need about 42 to 46 balls of cotton yarn. It is 50g Raeesah cotton yarn, and the same yarn with which our original sample and pattern blanket was crocheted.
Guidelines for purchases:
- Usually there is three colours that are used more than others, e.g., when crocheting the edge, around the blocks and all around the blanket.
- So, choose more of 1 colour so that it is your main colour and colour 2 and 3 as complimentary colours that works nicely with colour 1.
- Most importantly keep enough of your main colour (colour 1) for your edge. Keep aside about 3 balls (50g) of yarn for the last 4 rows of your edge.
- You can distribute the other colours evenly or as shown in the table below. It’s really your personal choice.
- A rough indication with even colours can therefore look like this:
| Colour | Quantity balls of yarn | Colour 1 | 9 |
|---|---|
| Colour 2 | 8 |
| Colour 3 | 7 |
| Colour 4 | 6 |
| Colour 5 | 6 |
| Colour 6 | 5 |
| Colour 7 | 5 |
DK Akriel uses wool like Charity and Elle Gold roughly around 19 to 22 balls.
Can I make my blanket bigger?
Die steektelling van die kombers is uitgewerk op 148 steke om al die verskillende tipe steke te laat uitwerk in elke ry. Ongelukkig kan jy nie die steektelling vermeerder of verdubbel om jou kombers groter te maak nie. Jy kan wel later by die rand ’n ekstra paar rye omhekel om dit effe breër te maak.
Crochet!
Schedule
The pattern is released over the course of 13 weeks, and everyone crochets together.
The project comes to an end on National Women's Day (9 August) with a deserving celebration. If you are progressing at a slower pace, don’t worry. We will still answer all your questions on our platforms up to ten weeks after the project. Do not feel overwhelmed - we are here for you.
Social media
Follow the KKNK on Facebook (@KKNKfees), but also make sure Daleen Witbooi has your contact details so that you don’t miss any information, advice, or news.
Contact Daleen on 044 2023 8600 or send an e-mail to info@kknk.co.za. You can also register here to be part of crochet-along and receive all the information.