Sunday, March 31, 2013

Eclectic Ellapu Cahllenge #23 - Austism Awareness

Hello Crafters!
It's time again for a new challenge at Eclectic Ellapu. And guess what? It's my turn to be the hostess! Whoo Hoo! I chose the theme of Autism Awareness this time because April is Autism Awareness month. This is a disability that is close to my heart because of my oldest son. 

For the challenge just make projects that have puzzle pieces incorporated on them in some way using primary colours. We've all seen the ribbons to support this disability (if you haven't, take a look at my project). I made this heart hanger from some old jeans, some scraps of material, and a couple of buttons. I hand stitched the whole project and stuffed with fiber fill. I am by no means a seamstress as you can tell (sorry Mom & Meg). However, I love how rustic it looks. I would have like to add some more buttons and "stuff" but since I will most likely give it to my son, I decided not to. If I find an old puzzle piece I would paint that and glue it on.
Here are some close ups of the patches I made by hand.
 
 
And the ribbon.

 Because autism has touched my life in such a personal way, I would like to share the following brief explanation of what autism is from the The National Autistic Society website:

"Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person communicates with, and relates to, other people. It also affects how they make sense of the world around them. It is a spectrum condition which means that, while all people with autism share certain difficulties, their condition will affect them in different ways. Some people with autism are able to live relatively independent lives but others may have accompanying learning disabilities and need a lifetime of specialist support. People with autism may also experience over- or under-sensitivity to sounds, touch, tastes, smells, light or colours.
Asperger syndrome is a form of autism. People with Asperger's Syndrome are often of average or above average intelligence. They have fewer problems with speech but may still have difficulties with understanding and processing language."
 
Thank you for playing along in our challenge at Eclectic Ellapu and helping me to support Autism Awareness. I can't wait to see the projects you all come up with.
Happy crafting!

2 comments:

  1. I love this heart shaped hanger with the lovely patches and colourful ribbon. What I love even more is the powerful message that you have featured. As a former special education teacher, this challenge meant a lot to me and I really feel that your message is so important. Wonderful project and challenge theme, Trisha.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you Bonnie. Those of us who know autistic children first hand know how wonderfully special they are. Letting them know that they are accepted just as they are is important.

    ReplyDelete