Afghan Project: How to Participate

How to Make an Afghan on a Round Needle:

Another option and the easiest one. The advantage of this method is that there is no assembly required. A 48 inch afghan will require about 2 pounds of yarn.

Use a size 8 or larger round needle that is about 22 inches in length. This enables the knitter to make an entire afghan in one piece, eliminating the challenge of sewing the strips together.

This afghan is made in horizontal strips.

Start by casting on about 144 stitches. Knit all the stitches and reverse the needle and knit back in the opposite direction. (Be careful not to twist the stitches in the first row.)

The only thing that is an absolute rule is that you always attach a contrasting color on the same end of the knitting. This gives the afghan a right and a wrong side. The knitter continues changing colors (2 or 3 colors) in a variety of widths of stripes until the afghan is the desired length.

Bind off the stitches.

Now you have a complete afghan!

If you have a problem or would like to make suggestions, contact the Afghan Project™ at www.afghanproject77@aol.com.

How are other people participating?

One legally blind woman makes less-than-perfect squares. The miracle here is that we have a participant who decorates any holes with crocheted flowers.

A woman with early Alzheimer's disease creates beautiful squares while she sits at the local community center. Before she began working on the afghans, she would sit voiceless all day. Now that she has a purpose, she is communicating with staff and other seniors.

Two area temples created afghans as part of their community service days. They participated in many aspects of the project. They created squares, repaired afghans, created the crocheted patches and embroidered names on them. One woman arrived with 50 squares. Teenagers took squares home and sewed them together during parties at home. At the end of the service days, the women contributed 36 completed afghans.

An avid quilter wrote,"This summer I've made 18 squares - in cars, planes & waiting rooms. Otherwise wasted time was well spent. Hope to have a 30 square afghan soon and will keep doing it. It is a great project."

An 85 year old woman who came from South Africa three years ago to live with her daughter and family frequently lost her knitting needles. One evening while the family was out for Chinese food, she noticed that the chop sticks were about the diameter of her knitting needles. Now she knits her afghans with chop sticks.