Maybe a little ghost story, a cute cat, Masey’s mom, Knit Movie Club & more

Started with love by them. Finished with care by us.

1. “A bolt of purple fabric fell off the shelf in front of us.”

A note to Kim from Elizabeth, her finisher, upon completion and return of her quilt.

"Dear Kim, Thank you for the opportunity to finish this beautiful quilt started by your grandma and your mom. Remember when we met, and I was on the knee scooter? I’d just had ankle surgery, and this project came at a perfect time, so I could rest and recover while working on the quilt.

A fun fact about my time with the quilt:

When I got to the end, and it was time to add the binding, I took it to my quilt shop to pick out the color. As we were looking at options (we thought it needed a strong color on the outside), a bolt of purple fabric fell off the shelf in front of us. Everyone in the shop agreed that it was a sign from the maker, so purple it was! It was an honor to be a part of your quilt’s history, and I hope that it brings you and your family joy and warmth for many years to come.”

— Elizabeth (who spent 120 hours completing this by hand)

PS: “When I delivered the finished quilt to Kim and shared the story about picking out the binding color, she was kind of quiet, and I thought, ‘Oh, no, she thinks we're all nuts!’ But then she shared that her mom's favorite color was purple. She said that she feels like the story about the purple bolt of fabric was her mom giving her blessing.”

2. Why we do what we do.

(Spoiler alert: love)

If you are a maker of any sort, there’s a good chance you put your hands to work so that someone important to you will know you love them.

Some of us knit, sew, stitch, or weave. Others cook, build, sculpt, and plant (or many at once). Whatever your hands are making for someone else, the common thread is love for that person.

When a maker dies before finishing a project, their intentions are cut short.

Loose Ends finishers transform treasured handwork from “an important bag in a closet” to a meaningful heirloom that can be used, held, worn, or displayed, as its original maker intended. All finishing happens by the generous hands of volunteers, but the work to make it happen requires staff, tech, printing, and postage; in other words, funding.

If this work moves you,
help us keep it going.

DONATE TODAY

Every gift helps. Recurring donations allow us to plan.

3. Props to Masey’s mom.

Arla (Loose Ends co-founder’s mom) is a total boss. A career grief therapist, Arla brings both motor and spirit to Loose Ends, behind the scenes.

Call her Loose Ends’ volunteer with the most hours (easily 1000 per year since our launch).

She manages the Loose Ends Finishers Facebook group.
She builds elaborate spreadsheets for our Loops teams.
She shows up to table at events.
She addressed, stamped, and stuffed more than a thousand envelopes this past December.
In 3 days, she hand-stitched the tagline quilt we use at events.
She used to have a sign on her office wall that said, “What are we here for if not to make life less difficult for each other.”
She consistently shows up with cake.

Thank you, Arla, for your generous presence and for all the time, care, and effort you pour into Loose Ends. xo

Mother’s Day is coming up, and we’re holding space for all the ways we experience “mothering,” as children, as mothers, as chosen family, and as people carrying love for someone who is no longer here.

Whether this day feels joyful, tender, complicated, or all of the above, we’re thinking of you. Extra thanks to all of our finishers who are working hard to complete projects in time for Mother’s Day this year.

4. Katie Errington Davies, embroidery artist, just wrapped up a Loose Ends-themed exhibit in the UK.

Katie Errington Davies is a Shropshire textile artist. Her exhibit just finished, but you can still see her stunning body of embroidery based on Loose Ends projects here.

5. Share our new flyer!

Only the English version has had an update at this time. but 20+ other languages are available on our website.
(Click to download)

As of today, nearly 38,000 finishers (!!) have signed up to volunteer with Loose Ends from all over the world. More than 5,000 projects have been completed since our launch, 3 1/2 years ago.

Math: 33,000 finishers are waiting for project assignments. We are working hard to do outreach to the people who could use our services. If you’d like to help, download our BRAND NEW flyer and share it on paper or by email in your community.

6. The Legacy Quilt is pieced!

The Legacy Quilt came together just in time for Jean to show her off at H+H America’s in May (her debut)! More than 80 volunteer stitchers came together to make this, some cutting squares, some stitching stars, initials, names, some embroidering full portraits, some making the titles, and two heroic Loops volunteers showed up to stitch this together on a tight deadline (thanks, Rosemarie and Travis). This whole project is gorgeous.

If you worked on this, thank you. If you donated, thank you! It’s our honor to include you in this beautiful project.

Also, special thanks to WeeWee Kaplan for “helping so much,” especially when it came to “rearranging the squares” so that we could “see what some other compositions might look like.”

7. Western MA stitchers: Come craft at the movies with us!

Join Loose Ends, Knit Movie Club, and Swanson’s Fabrics for a cozy afternoon of stitching + movies as we watch A League of Their Own. *$5 from each ticket will benefit Loose Ends. Complimentary yarn for every guest (thanks to Swanson’s)

Stitch your own work, or if you’re between projects, grab a ball of yarn to untangle at check-in. We'll keep the lights up just enough so you can see your work AND the screen. Get Tickets Here.

Where: Cinemark at Hampshire Mall,
Hadley, MA (US)
Date: Sunday, June 7
Time: 3 PM
Tickets: $25*

8. Bits & Bobs:

Loose Ends will be in Chicago on May 6 at H+H Americas - come say hi at Booth 1616! Special thanks to our beloved Chicago volunteers who are joining us for the 3rd year in a row, giving all the “return to summer camp” vibes we adore! For free tickets to the floor, use our code: promo_loose-end-project
Finishers: please send regular updates to both your project owner and to your Loose Ends project manager (Jean or Angelica) every 3-4 weeks! When we have to chase folks for updates, it takes a huge toll on our tiny staff.
Team Loose Ends participated in the 6th annual “Knit for Food” 12-hour stitching marathon on 4/11 and were honored to be invited as a game night contestant! Thank you to everyone who helped raise money to feed people through this powerful day-long event, and giant thanks to the amazing Laura Nelkin for making this all happen.
Swanson’s was the recipient of a huge donation of high-quality Finnish yarn. Thousands of skeins are still available. Need/want yarn? Shop here, 50% benefits Loose Ends.

9. Donate today in honor of a crafter you love, or one who loves you back.

DONATE TODAY

10. The following people had donations made in their honor or memory.

Amy Donley, Anne White, Aunt Grace, Avis, Beth Davis, Betty Gibbs, Betty Warrington, Carla Reagin Ousby, Carmela, Charli Winking, Deborah Hardy, Frank De Luca, Gerda Morda, Gramma Derry, Grandma Root, Grandma whose knitting supplies went to the local library, In celebration of the life of Lana, In memory of Dorothy Pyle Cochran Stauffer - who inspired me to love others through food and yarn, Jean Grey & Betty Sanders my models and encouragers, Jeanette Robinson, Joan Walter - finisher, Joanne K Garner, Jonathan Roussos, Joni Juergens (finisher), Kathleen Hultquist, Kathy Stibel, Lorelei Davis, Many fellow knitters who inspired me, Mary Thomas, My mother Helen whose projects I finished, My mother Albina Montione, My mum Nancy, My Swedish grandmother Bertha Larson, Nana, Nannie Seamans, Pamela Black of Bellevue KY - amazing finisher of my friend's project, Ruth Provance, Sandy, Sherrill Werling, Sue Brandenburg, Sylvia O'Donovan, Tammy Roach, Vicki Schwam, and Yannis Alimonos

Finished!
Thanks for reading.
Love, Masey