Dear Kay,
The flooding in Louisiana is officially the worst U. S. disaster since Hurricane Sandy. I think about the spectacular flood here in Nashville in 2010, when we had 20 inches in 24 hours. When I read that parts of Louisiana received 31 inches in 15 hours, I think: That is so so so so much water.
A Tweet earlier this week let us know that Emily Ringelman, a knitting designer, is up to her eyeballs down in Baton Rouge.
On Ravelry, Emily writes: “My house flooded in the epic Louisiana floods this weekend. We lost so, so much, including 90% of our furniture, quite a lot of yarn/needles/notions, all of my books, and so many other things I don’t even know about yet. I’m having a pattern sale to help replace some of the things we need to live our day-to-day life, so that we can at least try to get back to a normal life while our house is being gutted and repaired. Use coupon code ‘flooding’ to get 40% off my patterns until the end of the month. Anything will help, and I appreciate whatever anyone can do. Knitters are simply the best people.”
Here’s the scene at Emily’s house this week. I don’t think it typically looks like this.
Anybody who’s survived a flood knows that there are expenses that insurance will never cover. And it’s a long time until a flooded-out house is habitable again.
There are many ways to contribute to flood relief. But I like the idea of buying Emily’s patterns because it’s direct, and it’s cash dollars that will help immediately. And, yes, maybe it’s kind of great to see a designer’s work that I hadn’t discovered until now.
Here are my picks for Emily Ringelman’s Post-Flood Pattern Hi-Lites.
Maine Harbor Bag: nautical flags spell K N I T on one side, P U R L on the other.
Diamond Lattice Mittens: just plain cool.
Over the Fence takes chain link to a whole new level. That’s Emily modeling her design. Hi, Emily! Hope you dry out soon!
All her patterns are here.
Love,
Ann
PS That’s Emily up top, modeling Gillywater, a knockout lace pullover.
Yes! And she has so many to choose from including some pretty cute slipper socks. I decided I could do without the coupon so she’d get that bit more $$ too.
No coupon for me also. Wishing Emily and her family all the best.
I like this one: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/ghost-stories
What a great PSA. I’ve had a few of her patterns in my favorites, so bought a few.
I’m also thinking ‘no coupon’. We were discussing other giving avenues last night. This is going to be a big project for a long time, sadly.
It’s always exciting to discover a new-to-me designer, though under better circumstances would certainly be nice!
(Did you notice the “Fair Isle PANTS!”?)
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/fair-isle-pants-2
Oh my. How did I miss those?! Going back for more.
My lucky Christmas recipients will all be getting Emily mittens and the Maine Harbor bag is just the kick in the pants I need to learn intarsia.
NO coupon…she needs every penny we can all give! And hopefully some will just make a donation if they don’t find a pattern! Thank you, Ann, for writing a post about this!
Thanks for sharing one way to help. It’s very sweet of Emily to offer 40 percent off, but I let that go. She needs the buck-sixty more than I do!
Just bought Over the Fence. I also did not use the discount. Good Luck, Emily, and all who are affected by this disaster.
Thanks for sharing and thanks to Emily. Purchased two lovely patterns. Guessing Emily has spent some time in the Delmarva Penninsula where I live. Love the nautical theme! Best of luck to Emily and her family.
Had to go back for a second time as I forgot those lovely mittens. All shopping done without the coupon. Again, thanks for sharing!
just bought tullamore – but really, who needs a discount when patterns are, really, not that expensive. glad to help a knitter.
Going to check out patterns now. Thanks for sharing this. Sending warm wishes to all those affected by the floods. Be Strong.
Thanks for giving me this opportunity to discover a new designer. While it was sweet of Emily to offer the discount, I also passed. I can’t begin to imagine the strain of this type of loss.
I’m so sorry to see that Emily & her family have lost so much. Thank you for introducing me to one of my new favorite designers. I’ll be passing on the coupon code, too.
my family home is still under water. it happens to sit in the Ascension Parish area where there is water covering many areas BECAUSE there is NO PLACE for the water to drain.
there is such bad backflooding that our street and quite a few others in Ascension Parish will be sitting in water until the water drains OR the parish officials do something drastic like breech the levee.
we are looking at a total loss. the water got to our house on wednesday and is still rising (backflooding) as all the water continues to flow. if you want to see whats going on .. go to the Baton Rouge Advocate and read the article today about why the flooding is so bad.
the officials are HOPING the water in our area will drain in TWO weeks … but no one really knows because this has NEVER happened. by the time we get to the house it will most likely be a total loss. the high heat of August with the high humidity with the contaminated water will combine to turn the house into a petrie dish of disaster.
luckily a sister lives in another state and we got our mother out of the area. i will be going down as soon as the water drains and deal with what will likely be either a gut job or a bulldoze job (yes at a certain point it will not be feasible for health and structural reasons to restore the house).
This disaster is on the scale of Katrina. The lack of national news coverage is appalling. However we are strong and will get thru this.
i am in shock and dealing with an older parent who is in denial about the reality and enormity of this situation. its a rough time.
my particular case involves
I can only imagine what you and your family are experiencing at this time. I am so grateful that you were able to get your mother to a safe and familiar place. The family just being there for her will help her along and through this rough, rough time. Perhaps, in time, she will be able to deal better with the circumstances, perhaps not, but she’s got her family around her now and that is good. I hope you are able to take some solace from that, too. My prayer is that whatever you have to handle will come to you in managible increments, and the shock will gradually move into a sense of renewed purpose and strength. My hope for you is that you will be strong enough to break down and cry/ give release, as needed. You are a woman, you are a southerner, you are a knitter, you are Strong.
You are in my thoughts and prayers. Check in as needed. We are here to listen and support.
thank you for your kind words.
;o
Thank you for sharing this–what a complete disaster. I hope you can get your mom’s situation stable quickly. It’s shocking for anybody, but for an older person, it has to be unimaginable to lose home.
Just checked the Baton Rouge website and can hardly imagine what a 20-county disaster area would be like. It’s a third of the state.
thanks ann
i have been on the phone and on the computer all weekend getting updates from Ascension Parish council
at least the parish has finally got a plan which involves THREE pumps and a cut in one of the levees. however the amount of water that will need to LEAVE the area (Swamp Bluff) is BILLIONS of gallons.
its complicated in that they have to wait til one side goes down enough before the water can be pumped out of our side …
today’s projection is IF they can make the cut on Wed or Thurs and start pumping the water out of Swamp Bluff (thats where are house is)
it will take a month to go down four feet
at two feet we MAY see some relief … but that could be two weeks away.
one day at a time.
So, so sorry to read about your flooding. I can’t even begin to imagine what you are experiencing. And I’m appalled that the news media is all but ignoring this story. Sending love and prayers and as Diane said, keep us posted. Also, what is the best way to help?
thanks… we are in a holding pattern as we wait for the parish’s efforts to drain the water that is flooding our section of roads and houses.
it may be another week before the water drains and we have access to our houses.
then we will see what is the state of the house and contents will be (mold, structural damage)
and to add insult to injury a tropical depression is in the Carribbean and of course the possibility of it coming to south Louisiana is very real.
Southern Gal,
How devastating. So much loss, pain and grief. Your strength is amazing.
Do you know of good organizations that are helping in the area?
All best wishes,
Kay
thanks kay
yes there are
i have a very stubborn mother. . cant even bring that up yet
it took four days to convince her to leave the state.
its taken three days to convince her that she cant go back and supervise whatever is left.
i am fighting battles here one day at a time.
i will call on whomever i can when i get there.
onward
You have my sympathy. I can not imagine why a disaster of this magnitude isn’t on every front page in the nation.
Yes, why is it not?
that last sentence should be ignored
I was looking for a cabled mitten pattern to go with a hat I knitted and there it was. I also think my 4 mo. old grandson needs a Viking hat. (Oh, wait, I live in Green Bay, WI and the Vikings are football archenemies… can you tell I’m not much of a fan? Oh well, maybe the MN babies need one…) Thanks, Emily, and thank you, Ann, for introducing me to a new, cable -loving designer.
Our daughter’s house partially burned a couple months ago and they’re struggling with replacing the irreplaceable too. It’s a long, sad process. Good luck to all in the flooded area. I can’t imagine how unsettling it is.
Ann, thanks for the great opportunity to help. I found four wonderful patterns and didn’t bother with the discount code. Being so far away, I want to do something — but it is hard to drop off a casserole or stop in to loan some muscle!
Just purchased two patterns. Thank you Ann for bringing this to our attention. Like many others I ignored the coupon offer.
So sorry for all who are suffering, but really glad to see this opportunity to send direct help especially to a great indy knitting designer. I just found Emily’s patterns a couple days ago and had added “Gather Ye Rosebuds” to my cart on Ravelry. I’ve gone back to add “A Flock of Seagulls” – a great trio of patterns. There may be more I finish! I’m not interested in a discount.
Thank you MDK, and warm thoughts to Emily.
Poor Emily, and everyone affected by the terrible floods. I love her designs – thank you for pointing me to them. I’ve bought a pattern and not used the discount. It’s lovely of her to offer that, but… no. I hope things look up for her very soon.
Your are good people and thanks for letting us know how we can help out in this horrible situation. I cannot imagine having to deal with something like they are going through. Buying a pattern minus discount is such a tiny gesture, but better than none.
Going to buy right now, no coupon necessary. Sending love and support your way.
Just bought three of Emily’s lovely patterns and skipped over to the American Red Cross website to give a donation there for Louisiana flood victims. I can’t imagine what it;s like to have that kind of flooding happen in one’s home.
Done, sans coupon.
Thank you for sharing an opportunity for us to help.
I bought Over the Fence and Big Fuzzy Cute. Thanks for pointing this out!
Hat and cowl for me.
How I wish there was an “add 40%” code! I bought 4 patterns. My heart goes out to Emily and the thousands affected by the floodwaters. Red Cross and Salvation Army are accepting donations.
We had flooding here in Springfield, Illinois recently–5+ inches of rain in 2 hours that put our state fairgrounds and many out of town exhibitors and vendors for the fair underwater–but nothing of this magnitude. My heart aches for all the people who have lost so much. I will check out Emily’s patterns, as the ones you have posted are lovely.
Kudos to Emily! I’m in Louisiana cleaning out my mom’s house. It took 2 ft of water from the Tangipahoa river. What a mess. My cousins, my neighbors, everyone all up and down the Tangipahoa flooded. We’ve been at it for a week now. I’m exhausted and there’s still more to do. I thought about asking people to buy my patterns, but didn’t know how to get the word out. Maybe we need a group on Ravelry for flooded designers?
I belong to a needlework group whose members have been donating some of their stash to flooded stitchers who lost all theirs. Wondering if anything like this has been started for all the knitters? Books, yarn, needles etc. Maybe there is such a thing on Ravelry.
I’ve had some of her patterns in my cart – took the time to buy them today – my heart goes out to all –