Where can I donate handmade quilts in Maryland/USA/internationally?
March 19, 2013 4:51 PM   Subscribe

My mother retired and has been making quilts at an amazing pace. She can make all sizes. She also knits and crochets blankets. She has plenty of fabric/yarn, but nobody to give her quilts to. Does anybody know a specific group, WITH CONTACT INFORMATION, that she can donate them to in Maryland, the USA, or internationally?
posted by Coffee Bean to Human Relations (17 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
She might like Project Linus, they have several contact phone numbers for Maryland.
posted by balacat at 5:00 PM on March 19, 2013 [3 favorites]


Your local hospital might like them.
posted by jaguar at 5:10 PM on March 19, 2013


You also might want to contact your local domestic abuse shelter, homeless shelter, and/or hospice facility.
posted by HuronBob at 5:13 PM on March 19, 2013 [1 favorite]


You could also try and sell em. On etsy.
posted by phaedon at 5:28 PM on March 19, 2013 [1 favorite]


Came to suggest Project Linus and local domestic abuse shelters. If the shelters can't give the blankets away fast enough (I doubt that), they may be able to auction them for fundraising.
posted by bilabial at 5:29 PM on March 19, 2013


Forever Warm
posted by peagood at 5:32 PM on March 19, 2013


The Children's Inn in Bethesda (link and link) or Ronal Mc Donald's -type houses, if closer to you
posted by ArgyleMarionette at 5:34 PM on March 19, 2013


Afghans for Pine Ridge is a Ravelry group that knits and crochets afghan squares, sends them to a nice lady in Louisiana who assembles them, then ships them to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.
posted by Dr. Zira at 5:36 PM on March 19, 2013


Quilts for Kids is a great organization that donates homemade quilts for kids who are in the hospital, gives them a little touch of comfort.
posted by kinetic at 5:37 PM on March 19, 2013


She could also contact her local animal shelter/rescue group. They often need blankets and the like.

There's also The Snuggles Project, which donates small quilts and the like to animal shelters for the animals.
posted by spinifex23 at 6:07 PM on March 19, 2013


Her current blankets might not meet their guidelines, but WoolAid could be an option for future projects. They donate handknits to really cold places in asia.
posted by kjs4 at 7:34 PM on March 19, 2013


She could donate to the American Red Cross (that was the Baltimore link). They are the first response team to support victims in emergencies like house fires, or earthquakes, etc. I can imagine being wrapped in a warm quilt could perhaps give some help to someone watching their house burn down.
posted by lil' ears at 7:44 PM on March 19, 2013


Ronald McDonald House of Baltimore. Or any Ronald McDonald House, for that matter. I work for one and we give out quilts made by people in the community to all our incoming families. Many times it's the first blanket a child sleeps under outside of the hospital.
posted by OHSnap at 9:15 PM on March 19, 2013


When the police need to remove children from their home for whatever reason, they frequently need to wrap the children in quilts or whatever they have. Also give them stuffed animals to hang onto.
posted by Cranberry at 10:56 PM on March 19, 2013 [2 favorites]


My aunt quilts and donates the goods to her church for auctions they have for various fundraising activities. I dont know how loarge or complex her quilts are, but some of my aunts have netted over 200$ at auction.
posted by WeekendJen at 10:20 AM on March 20, 2013


eQuilter also does regular quilt relief operations, you can find specific contact information at that page (names, organizations, addresses, etc.). Also, I've known them ever since they started their website way long time ago. They're stand-up people, and Luana Rubin, who runs it with her husband, often shares photos of quilts collected on her Facebook and Flickr. Following her on Facebook is a good way to be updated on any new quilt relief things she comes across, as well as inspiration. (It's all findable from their website too.)

Loads of really neat suggestions in this thread!
posted by fraula at 2:13 PM on March 20, 2013


The PBS show Sewing with Nancy has a segment where she talks to someone from the sewing/quilting world on each episode and a number of them have been organizations like this. You can see a list of those featured, including links to the organizations and how to donate, here.

Also, she should definitely enter them into her local county or state fair.
posted by theuninvitedguest at 2:15 PM on March 20, 2013


« Older How Do I Upload a File from (iPad) Onlive Plus...   |   How can I convince someone to see a doctor for a... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.