Elodie sew busy making caps for Boxing Day charity swim
CHRISTMAS holidays are filled with sewing and studying for 12-year-old Blanchelande College student Elodie Riley.
After term ended on Friday, she spent the weekend sewing together rainbow swimming caps to be worn at the Boxing Day Swim to raise money for Guernsey Cheshire Homes.
Sold for £10 per hat via their Facebook page V B Pitstop, which stands for Vazon Bay, £3 from each sale goes to charity.
‘We ordered materials for 100 hats, which arrived on Friday,’ Elodie said.
‘If we have any left over come Boxing Day we will try selling them at the beach. They have rainbow bases with sewed on flowers and stuck on gems. It’s just me making them at the moment, but I’ve had some help now that I’m getting so many orders.’
Elodie started an InvestIN Education course on Sunday so is squeezing sewing in with studying and general Christmas demands.
‘I’m doing a five-day course with 100 children from all over the world, where we learn public speaking, innovation, negotiation, and I’ll be going on a Zoom call with Tim Peake, the British astronaut.
‘It is going to be busy on Christmas Eve when my course ends and we’ll be delivering all the hats.’
Previously, Christmas and vintage-themed hats were being made to sell on the family’s hedge veg stall near Vazon, before a customer recommended doing something for the swim, which is rainbow-themed this year.
‘I’ve made a selection using different bases before adding different flowers and looking at what works best. A customer at Cheshire Homes was doing this and I learned more about it and wanted to help.’
Elodie’s mother, Justine, said: ‘It all started around three weeks ago when we were throwing out an old shoe cabinet and Elodie said she wanted to keep it to turn into a hedge veg stall. We’ve been selling cakes and swimming-related things, like Christmas-themed swim stockings, but we’re only selling our Boxing Day swim hats through the Facebook page.’
Elodie has been stitching every day for three weeks and now is doing a course every day from 11am until 5pm.
‘We did get prepared early after we were okayed by Cheshire Homes last weekend, so it’s all turned around in the space of a week. We were holding our breath in case the materials didn’t arrive, but thankfully it’s all turned up on time.’
n Please visit: facebook.com/VB-pitstop-107969824504824/ to request a hat via messenger or contact Justine on 07781 132 868.
