It’s official! Mandela blanket a world record

The Nelson Mandela Day blanket by local knitwits has broken the world record for the largest crocheted blanket. Picture: Oupa Mokoena

The Nelson Mandela Day blanket by local knitwits has broken the world record for the largest crocheted blanket. Picture: Oupa Mokoena

Published May 29, 2015

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Pretoria - Yes! It is official, the 67 Blankets for Nelson Mandela organisation have made it into the Guinness World Records for the largest crochet blanket, organisation founder Carolyn Steyn confirmed.

Steyn received an e-mail confirming the record had been approved. “When I received the e-mail I felt like I was experiencing the day again when we broke the record. I was too proud to be South African at that moment and I was overwhelmed by joy and excitement,” Steyn said.

The Union Buildings lawns were covered in blankets in a beautiful array of rainbow colours crocheted by knitwits from all over the country.

“We couldn’t have done it without the knitwits. Their efforts and time did not go to waste and I am truly grateful.

“This world record showed me that we can all unite through thread, and that has been a humbling experience,” Steyn said.

For the past two weeks the organisation has been counting, tagging, labelling and packing the blankets that broke the record.

Just more than 6 700 blankets, some of them knitted but not part of the record, will

be keeping out this winter’s chill.

“The blankets are now being delivered all over the country so they can be given away. We can’t wait for July 18 (Mandela Day) to hand the blankets over because it is cold now.

“We will be helping out 67 organisations across the country,” Steyn said.

The masses have shown interest in the knitwit movement with the active Zonderwater Maximum Correctional Centre showing its support. The centre contributed more than 400 blankets and is still knitting more.

“We are now introducing ourselves to prisons and calling upon corporates to help us to get good wool to people in these prisons,” she said. Steyn says the organisation wants to help more people so they will continue knitting.

Through knitting and crocheting they aim to bind the nation together and make more history.

“We don’t want to lose focus of what we initially planned and that is knitting more blankets.

“We will be handing over the blankets because we have made the statement that we wanted to make.

“We made news internationally and that is a big achievement. We made history,” said Steyn.

On Friday, the organisation will be in Soshanguve to donate blankets at Ikaneng Drop-in Centre.

Pretoria News

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