Donna Druchunas's Blog

In my normal periodic evaluation of my goals and purpose in live, I was recently re-reading this post that I wrote on Knitting for Change in January 2006, and I've decided that I still feel strongly about this, and have no need to change the statement at this time:

My purpose will be to help make the world safer and more comfortable for women and minorities.

How will I accomplish this?

By creating things that provide comfort, such as hand-knit items to donate to charity and knitting books that allow others to create comfort, and by continuing to provide free knitting patterns and charity knitting information on my website.

By using my writing to advance reason and enlightenment and to oppose fundamentalism and the beliefs that breed hatred, violence, intolerance, and ignorance.

By valuing--and encouraging others to value--the ideas, creativity, and contributions of women around the world.

By supporting secular organizations that help women and the glbt community.

By speaking out whenever I can in private and in public to point out injustice and to defy the censorship that silences those with no political power.

In each of these areas, I will volunteer, work for pay, and develop personal projects.

With that in mind, I want to draw your attention to this article from the Denver Post.

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From S. Africa with stitches
by Colleen O'Connor, Denver Post staff writer

Leora Raikin grew up in South Africa with no television and few toys. Needlework was the evening entertainment. She learned it from her mother, who learned it from her own mother.

Embroidery "was the favorite family pastime," says Raikin, who now lives in Southern California.

In her works, colorful images - lions, hippos, rhinos, crocodiles, birds, flowers - frolic against a black background. The art form is growing in popularity in the United States, thanks to Raikin, who in 2003 started a company called African Folklore Embroidery.

This April, the art will be televised on DIY Network; this spring, workshops will be offered in Colorado Springs at Ruth's Stitchery.

"African ethnic art is about bright colors on black background," she says. "The contrast makes it exciting. What people like is they can choose whatever color they want. You want to stitch your elephant in pink and the sun blue, you can do that."

Raikin's company is affiliated with a charity called KidzPositive, an AIDS organization in South Africa that helps HIV-infected women support their families through the sale of dolls, bookmarks and other products available through aflembroidery.com.

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The rest is here.

Here are a few sites with more about Leora's work and about African embroidery:

African Folklore Embroidery and Needlecraft

African art at home

Crafting a Legacy