Spam hat and embroidered fisherman’s smock take centre stage at awards ceremony
A
lady who wore 100 crafted hats for 100 open water swims and one other who embroidered reminiscences into her mom’s fisherman’s smock have been chosen as finalists for a fundraising awards ceremony.
The 2023 GoCardless JustGiving Awards happen on September 25 at London’s Roundhouse and for Jule Harries, who was chosen as a finalist within the inventive fundraiser of the yr class, the news crammed her with pleasure.
Ms Harries, 58, from Surrey, donned 100 completely different elaborate hats, nearly all of which she has made, as she took on 100 open water swims over an 18-month interval, ending on June 25.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my challenge. The swimming was difficult at times, especially in the winter because the water was very, very cold, but I had an absolute ball doing it,” Ms Harries, 58, who works within the science division of Reigate School, advised the PA news company.
“I loved researching the themes for each hat – I tried to match the hats to things that were happening in the world.”
She has made Spam and Rubik’s Cube hats, in addition to a Meatloaf hat to pay homage to the late singer.
“When Meatloaf died, I wanted to do something because I was a fan of his when I was younger and I remember the album cover of Bat Out of Hell and just had this image in my head of this heart flying out, which is the end of the song,” she stated.
“I had a fairly lifelike anatomical heart, so that was the first one I actually made.
“From there, it sort of took off and the hats progressively got more ridiculous and extravagant and bigger and heavier.”
She added that her spam hat began off as a “soggy mess” and a few took a number of makes an attempt to get proper, nevertheless it was value if for the “really nice” reactions from individuals who witnessed her swims.
This spurred her on to boost greater than £3,000 for 2 charities – Surrey Young Carers and Alzheimer’s Research UK.
When requested if she plans to put on certainly one of her distinctive creations to the awards ceremony, she coyly stated: “I do have one in mind, but I’m not going to tell you what it is.”
Lois Wolffe, from Gatehouse of Fleet in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, stated she seems like an “absolute winner already” for simply being chosen as a finalist in the identical class.
Ms Wolffe, 57, made the shortlist following her inventive concept to embroider her mom Alexandra’s favorite reminiscences into her fisherman’s smock after the latter’s dementia analysis in April 2021.
Ms Wolffe’s mom studied artwork at college and used to make ceramics carrying a fisherman’s smock, which she grew to become virtually synonymous with.
“I discovered my mum’s fisherman’s smock in the future and I stated to her, ‘can I have this?’ And she stated, ‘of course, what are you going to do with it?’” Ms Wolffe told PA.
“Without thinking, I said I was going to embellish it with embroidery and mum was excited about it.”
Ms Wolffe said her mum “deteriorated very quickly” following her diagnosis.
“This was a woman that used to be very sociable and communicative, very confident, very capable and very organised,” she said.
“She used to run the meals on wheels locally, she was provost of the local town and seeing that all change was on one level heartbreaking, and on another level, I just wanted to make sure she was safe.
“I think there’s additionally nonetheless an enormous stigma round dementia and I wished to interrupt that.”
One of probably the most poignant reminiscences which is a part of the smock is of swallows.
“My mum’s got a younger sister who’s still in South Africa and in previous years, mum would let her know when the swallows were leaving Scotland and she would let us know when they had arrived in South Africa,” she stated.
“In her childhood and growing up into her 20s, she used to travel back and forth from Scotland to South Africa quite a lot, so I just feel like there’s a sort of affinity there.”
She has additionally sewn in ‘mumisms’ – phrases that her mom used to say to her, together with “you can fly” and “use your head to save your legs” and nonetheless provides to the smock “here and there”.
Ms Wolffe’s nephew Max additionally did a number of designs, together with of the swallows, to which Ms Wolffe added: “It’s almost like sewing part of him into it.
“It just feels like you’re sewing love into the cloth every time you put another stitch in,” she added.
Ms Wolffe has raised greater than £1,000 for Alzheimer’s Scotland along with her efforts and to boost hopefully extra consciousness for the trigger, she plans on carrying the smock to the awards ceremony in September.
“I will feel very proud to be carrying this bit of mum with me.”
Pascale Harvie, president and common supervisor at JustGiving stated: “Our fundraisers and crowdfunders are amazing and while they don’t do what they do for praise and recognition, every single person like Jule and Lois deserve it.”
Ms Harries fundraising web page may be discovered right here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/JuleHarries, whereas Ms Wolffe’s may be discovered right here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lois-wolffe
Details in regards to the different classes and tips on how to vote for a winner may be discovered by way of this hyperlink: https://page.justgiving.com/awardsvoting2023