HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2019-10-10, Page 3THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2019. PAGE 3.
Kellins takes pride in being ‘Knitted Knockers’ spot
Dump and chase
After the bed races and soap box derby were cleared off of Gypsy Lane at Saturday’s
Rutabaga Festival in Blyth, participants young and old took part in the rutabaga roll race,
which saw them roll a rutabaga up Gypsy Lane, run up and catch it and then do the same back
down the hill, much like the old hockey strategy of dump and chase. (Denny Scott photo)
Stitches with a Twist, through its
weekly Knit and Knatter group, is
helping survivors of breast cancer by
creating knit prosthetic breasts.
Through the Knitted Knockers of
Canada organization, the creative
group has been making the
prosthetics and plan to deliver an
entire box of them to Knitted
Knockers of Canada this year.
“The Knit and Knatter knitters are
knitting knitted knockers,” Stitches
with a Twist owner Irene Kellins
said with a laugh. “We’ve been
doing it all year.”
Through using a universal pattern
which is just made bigger or smaller
depending on the cup size, the group
makes knitted pouches that are then
sent to Knitted Knockers of Canada,
which fills the knockers with a
donated material that is specially
suited to the cause.
“The patterns are provided and the
group specifies the most-needed
sizes,” Kellins said. “All sizes are
needed, though, so there’s no
pressure to make specific sizes.”
According to documentation from
Knitted Knockers of Canada, B- and
C-cup sizes are the most requested,
making up 75 per cent of what’s
needed with the rest being A- or D-
cup sizes.
Pastel and nude colours are the
most requested, according to the
documentation, though Kellins was
quick to say that some people don’t
mind colourful prosthetics, with
some even enjoying drawing
attention to them as a way of
showing they are survivors.
Two different kinds of prosthetics
are created, Kellins said, with
normal-wear ones and swimming
forms being made of different fibres.
“Most are made of cotton fibre for
regular wear, but some are made of
acrylic because they dry quicker and
are lighter when wet,” Kellins said.
“No one wants to wear a wet
dishrag.”
Knitted Knockers of Canada
suggests using Cascade Yarns’ Ultra
Prima Yarn for the project because
it’s 100 per cent cotton, making the
final product washable, soft and
affordable. A skein of Ultra Prima
sells for $11 and will make up to five
knocker cases. Ultra Prima Fine sells
for $6 a skein and makes up to three
knocker cases, though designs need
to be modified to make the product
usable. To make B-cups, for
example, the D-cup design must be
used.
Kellins explained that the
knockers are always provided in
pairs. Some survivors may need
both, while those who only need a
single prosthetic will then have one
spare while the other is being
cleaned.
While more traditional prosthetics
are available for breast cancer
survivors, Kellins said that her
understanding is the knitted
knockers are more comfortable,
especially for survivors who recently
had a mastectomy.
“It’s a delicate surgery and I’m
told the traditional prosthetics can be
uncomfortable immediately after,”
she said, adding the traditional
prosthetics are more firm and
heavier than the knitted substitutes.
“The main reason people use the
knitted replacements are for
comfort.”
Kellins said each pair takes an
evening or two to make with larger
cup sizes taking more time.
The most frustrating thing about
the program, Kellins said, is that
many people, especially those who
could use the knitted knockers, are
completely unaware of the program.
“It’s amazing that those who need
it most have never heard of it,” she
said. “A lot of people don’t know
they exist and they are an important
option.”
Kellins said she thankfully didn’t
have any personal connection to
breast cancer, but that it was brought
to the Knit and Knatter group, and
she was happy to get involved.
The Knit and Knatter group meets
Wednesdays from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at
Stitches with a Twist and is always
open to new members.
While Knitted Knockers has been
around for several years, the
Canadian branch has been around
for just under five years and was
originally started by Nancy
Thomson.
Thomson was asked, in 2014, to
make a pair of knitted knockers for a
friend’s mother. Having never
created them, she visited
knittedknockers.org to download a
pattern to make them.
Once she made them and told
others of her project, she began
receiving requests and realized many
people needed the products, leading
to the birth of Knitted Knockers of
Canada.
With volunteers creating the
knockers and Eversoft Fiber
donating the stuffing, the products
are brought in by the organization
and distributed across Canada.
For more information, visit
Knitted Knockers of Canada at
www.knittedknockerscanada.com.
***
October is Breast Cancer
Awareness Month.
In 2019, it’s estimated that 26,900
women will be diagnosed with
breast cancer in Canada by the
Canadian Cancer Society. That
represents 25 per cent of all new
cancer cases in women.
The society estimates that 5,000
women will die from breast cancer
this year.
On average, 74 Canadian women
will be diagnosed with breast cancer
every day, and 14 will die from it.
This year in Canada, 250 men will
be diagnosed with breast cancer and
55 will die from it.
The five-year net survival for
breast cancer, according to estimates
from 2012 to 2014, is 80 percent for
men and 88 per cent for women.
Since 1991, a slight decrease in
breast cancer has been observed,
likely due to the use of hormone
therapy among postmenopausal
women.
Breast cancer fatalities peaked in
1986 and have declined since then,
likely due to improvements in
screening and treatment of breast
cancer.
Risk factors for cancer, according
to the American Cancer Society,
include everything from weight to
whether a woman has breastfed or
not. Higher risk factors include age,
high hormone levels and radiation
treatment.
Lower risk factors include alcohol
consumption, excess body weight,
late menopause, late age for first
full-term pregnancy and both
personal and familial history.
The American Cancer Society
suggests women should begin
testing for breast cancer with
screenings no later than ages 40-44,
after which annual mammograms
should be conducted.
Women ages 30 to 69 with high
risk factors should begin testing at
age 30.
For more information, visit
www.cancerontario.ca
Oh, comforting truth!
(Octavius Winslow)
“The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer.” Psalm 6:9
“You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted.” Psalm 10:17
“This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles
troubles.” Psalm 34:6
“The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their
troubles.” Psalm 34:17
“Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice.” Psalm 55:17
“God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer.” Psalm 66:19
“I love the LORD, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy.” Psalm 116:1
“I call on the LORD in my distress, and He answers me.” Psalm 120:1
“He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them.”
Psalm 145:19
“The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their prayer.” 1
Peter 3:12
Christian! God is near at hand whenever you approach Him in prayer.
Oh, comforting truth! You have a God at hand...
to listen to the softest breath of prayer,
to listen to every confession of sin,
to listen to every cry of need,
to listen to every utterance of sorrow,
to listen to every wail of woe,
to listen to every appeal of counsel, strength and support!
Arise, O my soul! and give yourself to prayer, for God is near at hand to hear and
answer you!
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Noble knitting
Irene Kellins of Stitches with a Twist and her Knit and
Knatter group have been working towards a noble cause of
late, creating “Knitted Knockers” for breast cancer
survivors. (Denny Scott photo)
By Denny Scott
The Citizen