the big knit
For the past few years innocent Big Knit supporters have knitted thousands
of little woolly hats for our smoothies, with money from every bottle sold
going towards supporting older people during the chilly winter months.
Since we started we've raised over €60,000, so if you've ever picked up
your needles and knitted a hat for us or bought one of the smoothies that
was wearing one, thank you very much.
We're doing it all again this year, and 25c from every hatted bottle sold will
go straight to Age Action to help older people stay well and stay warm this winter.
So stretch out those fingers, get your needles out and untangle that wool. It's time to get your knit (or crochet) on.
Deadline for hats is Friday 30th November 2012.
Knitters from across the land send us their little knitted hats between now and the 30th November. We put them onto our bottles by hand and send them off to store. They're available to buy in shops across Ireland for a few weeks from January 2013, and for every hatted bottle sold, 25c is donated to Age Action.
Over the years knitting groups, schools &loads of lovely people all over Ireland have generously knitted for the innocent Big Knit. We'd love people of all ages to get involved from novice knitters to champion clickers, so please spread the word within your local community. If you don't fancy knitting yourself, wool and needles can be donated to Age Action to help others reach their target.
Your hats will help fund Age Action's work with older people in Ireland. While many older people live healthy, happy, fulfilling lives, some older people need a little support to continue to live with dignity.
The innocent Big Knit funding will help Age Action's winter warmth public information campaign to enable older people remain well and warm in their own homes. It will also go towards their home visitation and DIY teams which assist thousands of older people each year.
Here are some helpful patterns for you to download and share:
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Download 2012 Patterns |
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How to Cast On |
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More Patterns |
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Crochet Pattern |
Once you've made your hats, pop them in an envelope (along with your name, address and number of hats knitted), and send them to us by Friday 30th November 2012.
We always love to hear your stories, so if you have any interesting tales behind the making of your hats or some nice photos of you knitting then please pop in a note. Share photos of your hats with us as you knit them; email them to howaya@innocentdrinks.ie, post them to our facebook wall or our twitter page.
Once we've collected all the hats, we'll put them on our bottles in shops across
Ireland from January 2013.
Watch our guide to knitting a little hat, here:
Thank you very much for helping out.
The innocent Big Knit was first held in the UK 9 years ago and we held our first innocent Big Knit in Ireland for Age Action back in 2008. Since then, the innocent Big Knit has grown every year.
Since we started, we've worked with Age Action to help keep thousands of older people across Ireland warm and healthy during the chilly winter months.
We need your help to continue supporting this great cause.
- Almost 12% of the Irish population is aged over-65 (480,000 people)
- 33% of older people (160,000 people) live alone
- 56% of older people (270,000 people) live with a chronic illness
- 6% (29,000 people) of older people are socially isolated
- Many older people struggle to heat their homes each winter. Research undertaken among older people in 2011 showed that a quarter of respondents said their homes were "too cold" and more than half went without other necessities to pay their fuel bills. The problem is greatest for older people who live alone, in older, poorly insulated homes, and for those with disabilities or poor health.
Where should I send my hats?
Please send your woollen creations to: the innocent big knit 2012, fruit towers,
120/121 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin 2 or drop them into your local Age Action shop
Can I have some bobbles please?
The little woolly hats look just as good with or without bobbles, so we don't send out
bobbles. If you want to make or buy your own to attach to your hat then that's great,
but bobbles aren't a necessity.
How many hats are you aiming for this year?
This year we've set ourselves a target of over 80,000 hats. It's a big challenge, but
we know you're up to it.
How much money goes to Age Action?
For every behatted smoothie sold, 25c will be given to Age Action to help them make winter
warmer for people across Ireland.
Why don't you knit blankets to keep older people warm?
Sadly it's not that easy. Funds raised by the innocent Big Knit will be used to fund Age
Action's "Stay Well, Warm and Healthy" public information campaign. Each year in Ireland
we have up to 2,000 excess winter deaths. The campaign focuses on practical steps which
older people can take to remain healthy and safe in their homes during the winter. Age
Action have extended the campaign to have volunteers visit the homes of older people who
were house-bound as a result of the cold weather. Age Action's helpline took over 600
calls from older people in trouble last winter and worked with them to ensure they got
assistance.
Where will the hats be sold?
The hats will be on our smoothies in shops across Ireland from January 2012. Shops include
selected Dunnes, Superquinn, SuperValu, SPAR, EUROSPAR, Centra, Barrys, Londis, MACE, Topaz,
Applegreen &other independent shops.
I have friends who like to knit, how do I get them involved?
It's really easy to get your friends involved, just set up a knitting party. All you need to
do is set the date, buy some biscuits and get an extra large teapot in.
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Download a Knitting Party Invite |
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Download a Knitting Party Poster |
We'd love to hear all your stories and see any photos you happen to take of your knitting party. You can send them all to howaya@innocentdrinks.ie, post them to our facebook wall or our twitter account.
What can I do with the hats I've already bought?
If you have hats from last year and you're not using them as egg cosies/canary
hats, then why not send them back to us so we can reuse them for this year's
inocent Big Knit. After all, every hat means another 25c to Age Action.
I have a question and need a human being to answer it please.
Well, luckily we happen to have quite a few of those knocking about. So please
feel free to drop us a line to howaya@innocentdrinks.ie or
give us a bell on 01 6644100. We'd love to hear from you.
What's the deadline for hats this year?
The deadline for all hats is Friday 30th November. So get
those needles working.
Charity Number: CHY 10583 | Reg. in Ireland No: 198571 For more information visit
www.ageaction.ie
