‘Knitting winter clothes for the needy is so much more powerful than donations’

AMMAN — As temperatures start dropping ahead of winter, a group of women has come together to knit and crochet warm clothes to be distributed to the underprivileged, under the initiative “Khait w Khair” (“Yarn and Charity” in Arabic).

“As an Iraqi refugee myself, I often visit the UNHCR offices in Khalda, and I see how much refugees in Jordan can suffer and the needs they have, especially in winter,” said Yusur Alabdaly, who came up with the idea of the knitting event.

“I have been knitting and crocheting for a very long time and I started posting some of my work online, which gathered a lot of great reviews,” Alabdaly told The Jordan Times on Wednesday, remembering how “people started suggesting I start my own business; so I partnered with my mum, my sister and mother-in-law four years ago and we began posting our creations online”.

Not only did the page, named “Shathra‎”, gather a lot of success, but it also allowed Alabdaly to connect with a huge community of fellow knitters and crochet lovers whom “she didn’t know existed in such great numbers before”.

“I realised that I did not want to keep that as a business to make profit for myself. I also wanted to give back to vulnerable communities and dedicate part of my work to people who really need these pieces,” Alabdaly recalled.

She talked to her fellow knitters about the idea and the word spread like wildfire. “On the first event we held in December 2017, we collected over 249 pieces, while I expected much, much less,” the recounted, noting that women were both welcome to come and donate pre-prepared pieces or work on their creations during the event.

“The difference with donations or the work done by some NGOs is that our pieces are made with love, in solidarity for people we don’t even know and might never meet,” Alabdaly explained, citing the example of a young woman who donated a half-finished vest her grandmother had started before she passed away, a few days prior to the event.

“I told her to keep it for its sentimental value but she wanted one of us to finish it and donate it to children who really needed it. She said the donation was made in memory of her grandmother’s soul and it was really beautiful,” she said with emotion, noting that some women have been donating work for over five years.

For Wafa Istanbuli, whose husband owns various wool shops across the country, the event was a chance to “start her passion all over again”. She also learned knitting and other handcrafts as early as six years old watching her mother, but said she stopped for over 15 years when she moved to the US.

“Coming to this event was just incredible. The atmosphere was amazing, with so much love and passion between all these women,” she told The Jordan Times over the phone, stressing that “knitting or crocheting a hat or a scarf is so different from buying one; there is so much more love put inside it”.

Like the Istanbuli Wool, Khait w Khair received the support of several local shops, which donated yarn and tools to the participants, as well as the Islamic Educational College Alumni Club, which hosted the event for free. 

The second edition of Khait w Khair, which took place last week, witnessed the collection of over 315 hats, scarves, dresses and gloves, among others, which will soon be handed out to children from one to 20 years old living in Zaatari refugee camp.

“Our next events, which will take place in December and January, will serve to make 100 shawls for vulnerable women in Jubeiha, as well as hats and scarves for street workers ahead of winter,” Alabdaly concluded, excited to share her “many more ideas for future events”.