The Story So Far

When I was pregnant it had seemed to me that most of my family and friends were making something for the baby, and I wanted to do the same. After a disastrous attempt at crocheting my own giraffe some of my friends came to my rescue. They retaught me the basic crochet skills I needed to be able to complete not one, but two blankets for my baby.

After my daughter was born I put crochet to one side, caught up in the whirlwind that is becoming a mother for the first time, occupied with keeping a small, but incredibly noisy being not just alive, but happy.

At the start of 2021, when my mental health problems hit an all time low I turned to craft and crochet once again, at the suggestion of a health care professional. I decided to create a blanket again, as I knew that this was something previously within my capabilities and I knew it would be a pratical gift for my daughter. My friends taught me a new blanket pattern, and helped me pick modern cheerful colours for it that complimented each other.

I found comfort in crochet. I found it helped ground me, and calm me down when life felt overwhelming. It gave me something to keep me focused on, but was not too mentally challenging that I struggled with it. I particularly found it helpful in evenings, my most challenging part of the day, to aid my brain from drifting off into unhelpful thoughts.

I finished the blanket in April 2021, in time for my beautiful daughter’s first birthday. I gave it to her as a present for her to use, but also as a present for my soul too. Thus, the first Cariad Blanket was created.

My experience of creating this blanket runs at the core of this project, so much so that the main colours used throughout the project are the same as the yarn I used in the blanket I created for my daughter.

Whilst I had been making the blanket vague ideas had passed through my mind of how perhaps these skills could help others in similar situations, or how blankets I could create may bless others. But with a jumbled foggy head these remained ideas until my recovery had progressed a little further.

When I was able to start to write down my ideas, a project began to form. A project to support women in similar situations, and teach basic crafting skills that could be used by all women as a creative outlet. A project that helps send encouragement and LOVE.

Cariad means love in Welsh, the language spoken by the Welsh side of my family. It is also a term of affection used by my mum and Nain (North Welsh for Grandmother), two strong supportive women. So using the word love in its welsh form in the project name seemed the perfect fit.

There is sometimes a perception that crochet, and similar crafts, are for slightly older people, but actually there is an increasing rise in crochet and knitting within younger generations too. And personally, I don’t care if it makes me old before my time, I really enjoy it, and have found it so helpful in getting through the darkest time of my life. My recovery is far from over, and crochet remains a big part of my life and support process.

I want to make crochet and other creative skills more accessible - help beginners understand all the terms which can seem baffling, give understanding of where to begin with overhwelming yarn choices, give a check in point for help with someone’s latest creation.

And I want to bless women, who like me are struggling with their start to motherhood. I want to remind them that there are by no means alone, and there are other women who not only understand what they are going through, but are standing alongside them as they do so. I hope you will join me in this project.