An uncanny coincidence, a survey and the dreams we’re dreaming

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

“You folks are a beacon of loving light in a tough week.”

“Loose Ends’ ethos could fix all the world's problems, and it would be a much kinder, tolerant place.
Pure love.”

“Yup. I done cried.”

1. Coincidence?

[goosebumps alert]: Margaret found deep joy in crafting. Despite living with severe arthritis and osteoporosis, she spent countless hours in her sewing room creating gifts for her loved ones. Crafting was more than a hobby—it was her therapy.

“It made me cry to see her work completed,” said Michelle. “Cross-stitching brought her so much happiness. Zachary did a beautiful job.”

Margaret’s unfinished cross-stitch sampler (depicting fuchsia, hummingbirds, and a quote) was paired with Zachary, a Loose Ends finisher, who happened to be spending time in a nearby fuchsia test garden while working on it. “That day, there were hummingbirds all around the garden. Just like the cross-stitch.”

As I wrapped up this story and saved it to the queue to post, I took a short break.

Ten minutes later, my niece walked into the house, said hello, and, completely out of the blue, said, “Aunt Mae, have you ever heard of fuchsia? It’s a beautiful flower that attracts hummingbirds.”

I just stared at her, stunned (and inwardly freaking out a little bit). Maybe it was a coincidence, maybe it was a little hello from somewhere else, we’ll let the mystery be as they say, but I’m going to choose to believe that someone somewhere is happy with Zachary’s cross-stitching skills.

Photo taken by Zachary in the Fuchsia garden (left); Margaret as a child (right)

2. JOANN was an amazing partner, but they’re gone now. Our needs are modest, but they exist. Please support our work with a donation.

DONATE TO LOOSE ENDS

33,200 Volunteer Finishers & Counting!

You may be wondering, with so many volunteers, why do we need money? Great question!

It’s true that all of finishing work is done by volunteers AND it’s true that a team of superstar programmers is developing our amazing app at no cost to us, AND legal support from Schwabe has been invaluable help (pro-bono).

BUT we have to pay staff, and we have operating costs (our website, hosting the hundreds of thousands of photos in the cloud, the programs that make this happen, bookkeeping, insurance, accounting, travel, etc, etc).

3. Our second year at h+h americas in Chicago was pretty spectacular.

We made hundreds of connections in the crafting community, reconnected with our friends at the Craft Industry Alliance, witnessed the new Golden Scissors winners (yay) and engaged with dozens of our Loose Ends volunteers in real life! Some finishers came to tend the booth, others stitched letters on our banners, or silkscreened shirts, still others sent Works in Progress (WIPs) for our wall… We felt held and loved every minute. Thank you to everyone who showed up for us; we are so grateful for you all.

Our amazing volunteers, craftivism panel with Knit the Rainbow, Liberty Crochet Mural, Melissa Blount, Julie (our sponsor from Cocoknits), and Craft Industry Alliance, connector extraordinaire and winner of coolest hats.

Some of the superstars we met…

From Left, Radha Weaver (Sewing Through Fog), Safiyyah Talley (Drunk Knitter), Kaffe Fasset, Shannon Downey (Let’s Move the Needle), and Jonah Larson (Jonah’s Hands).

4. Welcome a’Board, Betsy Peters!

We lucked out! Betsy Peters is joining our board and brings strategy guidance, creativity, and hustle. Along with the rest of our rockstar board, Betsy will help usher us through these next years as Loose Ends grows and finds our place. Learn more about Betsy here.

5. We think stitching in a movie theater with the lights up has all the ingredients for a great time.

We have a couple exciting ideas brewing…. here’s one of them: part fundraiser, part awareness builder, mostly a super-fun community activity. We’ve been hearing about different movie theaters keeping the lights on and inviting crafters to come stitch and watch a film. This sounds like a crafter’s dream…. and we would love to learn more about hosting similar community crafting events as fundraisers for Loose Ends. Does this sound fun to you? Click below and answer a few questions.

Please take a moment to fill out our quick questionnaire here.

6. Amy.

Our beloved Amy Schroth, admin to the Loose Ends private Facebook finisher group from the start, died in April. Amy's life was spent in service to others; she was a giver in the truest sense of the word, and her work with Loose Ends was no exception. She was quick-witted, hilarious, organized, meticulous, generous, and loving. We affectionately called her our “hall monitor.” We are so grateful for her time with Loose Ends. We miss her dearly, and remain inspired by her warm spirit and bright light.

7. In Memoriam

The following people had donations made in their honor, or “in lieu of flowers.”

Ruth Provance, My Mum, Wendy Kathleen Rattray, Sara Mehaffey, Jonathan Roussos, Yannis Alimonos, Sherrill Werling, Diane Calcagno, Gerda Morda, Carla Reagin Ousby, My mother, Albina Montione, Deborah Hardy, Ingrid Haese, Lorraine Larose, Vicki Schwam, Amelia Schroth, Grandma Root, Jennifer Hitchcox and Masey, J. Phyllis Allen, Dorothy Pyle Cochran Stauffer, who inspired me to love others through food and yarn, Grandma, whose knitting supplies went to the local library, Edy Lorelei Davis, Amy Schroth, Jean Grey & Betty Sanders, my models and encouragers, Susan Borden, Christie Hochschild - a lifelong needlepointer. Thanks for helping us finish her last works., Carmela, Amy Schroth, Betty Gibbs, Amy Schroth, Annette Hurst, Jeanette Robinson, Amelia (Amy) Schroth, Mary Thomas, My dad, Muriel I. Coleman, Ruth Provance, Beatriss Turner, Jean Kinney, Dorothy G. Jones, Jonathan Roussos, Yannis Alimonos, Sherrill Werling, Dorothy Rockar, Gerda MordaCarla Reagin Ousby, My mother, Albina Montione, Deborah Hardy, Helen Folkner, Therese "Terry" Gousie, Elizabeth, Wyke Hart, Luky Boisky, Mom, Ethel Ross, Vicki Schwam, Grandma Root, Dorothy Spilman, Grandma, whose knitting supplies went to the local library, Grandma Pam, Patricia Hengeveld Kasperski, Catherine Baier and Helen Hitchcock. They taught me everything., Kathie, Pam Bisbing, To honor my friend Debbie, who patiently taught me to knit, and still helps with my dilemmas. Nathan Coury, Lorelei Davis, Diana Gaizband, Alyce Bender, Patricia Stevens, Ruth Kaiser Nelson, Jean Grey & Betty Sanders, my models and encouragers, My brother Russell, Sally Jean Hall, Jody Zache, Dorothy Hornbach, Susan Borden, Sylvia Horowitz, Loretta Wagner, Nancy H and Nancy Julia Devers, Carmela

Click Here to Donate

Did you receive this newsletter from a friend? Join our mailing list here and get this directly next time. We promise not to wear out our welcome!