Comfort Dolls
New Duduza doll pattern Duduza doll pattern Variation on doll pattern for young children to knit
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Thank you! Comfort dolls have been received from York Maine in the USA and New Smyrna Beach, Florida USA. CINDI members use comfort dolls in their therapeutic work with bereaved children, and some give them to HIV positive children to assist in ARV compliance. We are grateful to the global village of knitters that care, and have received many dolls from all over the USA and UK. We would really like to receive some more. Completed dolls can be sent by parcel post to P O Box 157, Pietermaritzburg 3200, South Africa, marked "Knitted dolls - no commercial value".
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'Every stitch a stitch of love'
by Nalini Naidoo, the Natal Witness
It was a perfect April morning, one of those rare days this summer that the heatwave had let up. I drove up the quaintly named Tibouchina Crescent in Woodgrove, off Howick Road, on my way to Amy Hay's cottage to help launch a knitting revolution: to get the world knitting comfort dolls.
In Hay's cottage was a mountain of cute, knitted dolls and, gathered around, an inspiring group of Maritzburgers. There was Yvonne Spain, co-ordinator of the Children in Distress Network (Cindi), whose enthusiasm is infectious, Mbulelo Duma, a psychology graduate and empathetic grief counsellor with the Rob Smetherham Bereavement Service, Hay, who, at the age of 60 had parachuted out of an aeroplane, social worker Fortunate Khanyile and a group of nimble-fingered knitters who have been very busy.
The comfort doll project was sparked off by an idea from the Internet, refined over a dinner conversation and caught the imagination of knitters in the city. The dolls have already started weaving their magic on grieving children in KwaZulu-Natal, many of whom have lost parents and caregivers to HIV/Aids. This is why those involved are determined to get the world knitting.
It all started when Spain came across a Canadian site on the Internet. The Canadians were sending medical equipment to Africa and were using knitted dolls instead of polystyrene in the packaging. The dolls were distributed to children in the hospitals. This idea struck a chord, said Spain, as the Cindi partners are constantly on the lookout for anything that would help children affected by the HIV/Aids pandemic.
"Many of the children are losing out on love. Their parents have died and they live with caregivers who have too many children to look after and don't have the time to hug and cuddle them. Like the old concept of the comfort blanket, here was a comfort doll that the children can squeeze when they feel sad. We discussed the concept among the Cindi partners and all of us agreed that, in a world where love is in short supply, these dolls can help the children learn about love."
Spain contacted the Canadian group and asked for the pattern. She knew Hay was a knitter and, during a dinner, asked her to look at the pattern. Hay made the doll less bulky so that it would fit comfortably into a little child's hand. She also spread the word and got the Woodgrove Knitting Circle involved in the project.
Hay says what inspired the knitters was a talk by Liesl Jewitt of the Rob Smetherham Bereavement Service, a partner in the Cindi network. "Liesl told us about their grief counselling work with little children and how they plan to give the dolls to the children as a gift at the end of their session to remember the group and also remember that they have the strength and the skill to cope. The counsellors will tell them that the doll was made by someone they have never met but who thought they were important enough to take the time to make the dolls for them."
After Jewitt's talk, says Hay, every stitch became a stitch of love.
According to Spain, there are many people who want to do their bit for the suffering unleashed by HIV/Aids but the pandemic seems so overwhelming that they often feel helpless. "The smallest gestures count and, by simply making a comfort doll, you can make a difference to a young child's life."
She said the dolls were distributed to orphans during an interdenominational Good Friday service in the city and stories are filtering through of their impact on the children.
"Elke Kaiser from the Kenosis Community, which runs cluster homes for Aids orphans, mentioned a little boy who had fallen and had to go to hospital for stitches. He asked for his doll, took it along to the hospital and throughout the ordeal hugged it close to his chest."
Duma and Khanyile also report that the dolls they distributed after a group had completed their bereavement counselling proved a big comfort. "The children loved the dolls and exclaimed at how beautiful they were," Duma says.
He adds that it's wonderful being able to maintain a link between the children and the counselling group.
"We're not just letting them go, they have a reminder of our work together. I gave my group the dolls as a farewell gift and said, 'whenever you feel sad or alone, just pick up the doll and think of all of us in this group; think about the little lessons you learnt on how to handle your grief and think about the person who loved you enough to make you a comfort doll. Somebody out there believes you are special, so remember you are special and that you are loved.' "
The comfort doll knitting circle is steadily spreading and there are now children involved in the project. Spain says her dream is that, through The Natal Witness and its online edition, they spread the pattern to the whole world and get men, women and children knitting.
With the number of children that are to be orphaned, there is never going to be enough dolls, she adds.
Publish Date: 1 May 2003
New Duduza (Comfort) doll pattern
4 ply wool, various colours in small amounts. For stuffing, polyester fibre toy stuffing is recommended.
Cast on 32 stitches on size 11 (3mm) needles. Knit 4 rows in stocking stitch, leaving a 15cm “tail” to gather for feet when completing the doll.
Change colour for trousers. Knit 16 rows. Change colour for belt. Knit 2 rows plain.
Change colour for sweater. Knit 14 rows, leaving a 15cm “tail” to gather for the neck, and decreasing four stitches evenly across last row. Change to cream / white (or any light colour) for face, changing to size 12 (2.75mm) needles. Knit 10 rows.
Change colour for cap. Knit 2 rows in garter stitch (plain) for border. Decrease as follows:
Row 1: (Knit 4, k 2 together) x 4, knit 4 (24 stitches). Alternate rows: Purl.
Row 3: (Knit 3, k 2 together) x 4, knit 4 (20 stitches).
Row 5: (Knit 2, k 2 together) x 4, knit 4 (16 stitches).
Row 7: (Knit 1, k 2 together) x 4, knit 4 (12 stitches).
Row 8: (Purl 2 together) across row.
Thread remaining stitches onto needle and sew up cap. Sew up face. Run the gathering thread through the last row of sweater stitches and, after stuffing head, pull up tightly for neck, finishing off securely.
Sew up centre back. Run the gathering thread through last row of feet. Stuff body and pull up gathering thread tightly, finishing off well.
Complete feet by sewing up centre seam through both thickness of knitting, ie: dividing feet, which are stuffed individually. Fold foot across cast on edge at right angles to body and sew up.
Finish off other foot in same way.
Define legs by sewing through all thicknesses from feet towards belt, finishing off 2 rows from belt. Define arms in the same way starting 2 rows from the neck.
Embroider face as desired to give your doll character.
Click here to download PDF
Duduza (Comfort) doll pattern
4 ply wool, various colours in small amounts. For stuffing, the Woodgrove knitters recommend polyester fibre toy stuffing, which costs R15 for a very large bag and can be bought from material shops.
CAST on 32 sts on size 11 (3 mm) needles. Knit 4 rows in stocking stitch, leaving ? 15 cm "tail" to gather for feet when completing doll.
Change colours for trousers. Knit 16 rows. Change colours for belt. Knit two rows plain.
Change colour for sweater. Knit 14 rows, leaving ? 15 cm "tail" to gather for neck, and decreasing four sts evenly across last row. Change colour for face, changing to size 12 (2,75 mm) needles. Knit 10 rows.
Change colour for cap. Knit two rows in garter stitch (plain) for border. Decrease as follows:
Row 1: (Knit 4, k 2 tog) x 4, knit 4 (24 sts). Alternate rows: Purl.
Row 3: (Knit 3, K 2 tog) x 4, knit 4 (20 sts).
Row 5: (Knit 2, k 2 tog) x 4, knit 4 (16 sts).
Row 7: (Knit 1, k 2 tog) x 4, knit 4 (12 sts).
Row 8: (Purl 2 tog) across row.
Thread remaining sts onto needle and sew up cap. Sew up face. Run the gathering thread through the last row of sweater stitches and, after stuffing head, pull up tightly for neck, finishing off securely.
Sew up centre back. Run the gathering thread through last row of feet. Stuff body and pull up gathering thread tightly, finishing off well.
Complete feet by sewing up centre seam through both thickness of knitting, i.e., dividing feet, which are stuffed individually. Fold foot across cast on edge at right angles to body and sew up.
Finish off other foot in same way.
Define legs by sewing through all thicknesses from feet towards belt, finishing off ? 2 rows from belt. Define arms in same way starting ? 2 rows from neck.
Embroider face as desired to give your doll character.
Duduza Doll Pattern for YOUNG CHILDREN to knit
Knit a rectangle approx 30 cm long in garter stitch with chunky/doubleknit wool and about size 8 needles.
Fold the rectangle in half and sew ears across like a teddy bear pattern.
Then stuff the animal, and sew on features in felt to make various animal faces e.g. pigs, owls, teddy bears and cats, and even a stripey tiger!
The only stipulation is that they should look happy and friendly!
please mail them to the following address:
55 Jabu Ndlovu (Loop) Street
Pietermartizburg
3201
P O Box 157
Pietermaritzburg
3200
South Africa
and marked knitted dolls, no commercial value...which might help us avoid duty