April is Autism Month

Although for most of us autism is an everyday occurrence. My son has autism and he is high functioning.  So this topic is always close to  my heart. I am always willing to help anyone who cares for these special children.

Well as most of you know I am a knitter. I mostly knit handbags. I've seen yellow handbags for cancer, pink handbags for breast cancer and so on. Well the idea of an autism awareness handbag has always been in the back of my mind. So when I saw the contest posted at the Knitting Guild Association I jumped at it. So I designed an autism handbag for the contest.              

 

I started the design with a sketch.  I wanted something that would bring attention to the cause. The puzzle pieces symbolize the autism and the missing puzzle piece, in black, is the cause of the disorder. One one really knows what triggers autism. There are all kinds of theories.

After the sketch, I made a knitted swatch. From there I decided the dimensions of the handbag. I plotted out the puzzle pieces on graph paper. Each square on the graph represents a stitch. Yes a lot work here.

Then once everything was in place. I  started knitting in January I finished it in the End of February. I wanted this handbag to be perfect. So lots of ripping out and starting over. Finally it was finished. I took the pictures and sent the email off with the entry form. I entered my bag in the accessories category.   

I found out today that I made it thru the pre-liminary judging. Here's what the email said: "Pre-judging of entries for the TKGA 2009 Pattern Design Contest has been completed. I am pleased to inform you that the following item(s) have been accepted for final judging.
Winning garments will be on display at the TKGA National Convention/Knit & Crochet Show in Portland (May 14-17) and awards will be presented at the TKGA Member Meeting Pizza Party, Friday evening, May 15. Of course, we would love to be able to present awards in person to those who win the final competition."
I still can't believe it.

Will keep you posted.

On another note, I designed some autism awareness t-shirts and other things at my Zazzel store, Designs by Lisa.

Here is a coupon codes to use at my store.

 15% extra off your purchase! 
Code: FRIENDS15OFF

Enter code at checkout.

 

 

30% off discount applies to each qualifying Zazzle greeting card or note card product. The coupon code SPRINGCARD30 must be entered during checkout to receive the offer. Offer is valid from March 26, 2009 through April 8, 2009 at 11:59pm PDT.

The coupon code SPRINGCARD30

 

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