Thirty students sit in a room at the Texas Union, balancing purple yarn and crochet hooks on their laps as they create pieces for Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Crochet 4 a Cause founder by business junior Kaylani Addison, hosts biweekly crochet circles where members create everything from keychains to pillows to benefit their current charity, the Domestic Survivor Emergency Fund for the University’s Title IX office. Crochet 4 a Cause donates their pieces directly to some charities, like last semester’s Warm Hearts Warm Babies who provide supplies to babies in need while selling items and donating profits to other charities.
“If I’m making (a crochet piece) that’s not for somebody, I just tend to leave it in my room, so I like to give things away (instead),” journalism junior Heidee Andres said. “I love the fact that I get to give somebody something.”
Addison, president of Crochet 4 a Cause, said her mom and grandma taught her to crochet as a child, but she didn’t find much use for the craft until she found free time during the pandemic.
“It’s therapeutic, and it’s a good way to slow down,” Addison said. “At the end, you get to see a finished result and actually have something you could wear and keep as a part of you, instead of just hanging something on the wall.”
Andres, a Crochet 4 a Cause member for four semesters, said she also began crocheting during the pandemic, teaching herself through YouTube and TikTok videos.
“(Crochet) is my escape,” Andres said. “I always tend to crochet more when I get really stressed. I like that it’s calming.”
Addison said she continued crocheting when she came to college, selling her creations at festivals and markets around Austin. However, Addison said adjusting to college life made it difficult to maintain her new business, leading her to found Crochet 4 a Cause in 2022, the spring semester of her freshman year.
“I decided I still want to crochet, and it would be a perfect thing to have a community on campus of crocheters,” Addison said. “Even if I can’t make all the stuff I want to make, it would be really cool to donate to a cause and get a bunch of people together to contribute.”
Anthropology sophomore Ali Blankenship said she attended her first Crochet 4 a Cause meeting this month after crocheting on and off for a few years.
“I’m very introverted, and a lot of volunteering has you doing outgoing stuff and being in front of a lot of people, which is a struggle for me,” Blankenship said. “I really like being able to donate to a cause and do volunteer work with just crocheting.”
During the organization’s first few semesters, Addison said she reached out to organizations to donate to, but as the group has grown, organizations began reaching out to her to collaborate.
“People really value what we’re doing,” Addison said. “A lot of people want to make an impact, but they’re not sure how, so I think it’s really cool to give them an avenue to do that through something like crocheting.”
