Knitting for Charity Fundraising Made Easy: Made4Aid

Thanks to Made4Aid, charity fundraising through knitting couldn’t be easier!

(Good news: the Made4Aid Etsy shop is back up and running! Read on for information about this fantastic program.) 

Over the past couple of months, you’ve seen my article about an introduction to knitting for charity fundraising and some of the many knitting patterns you can use to make items to sell for charity. You may happen to already have many possibilities as to vehicles for this type of charity knitting.

But maybe you don’t. Maybe you’re thinking, “Knitting for charity fundraising sounds great, but I don’t know how I could do it. There are no craft fairs or bazaars or silent auctions nearby. I don’t have a blog or a huge following on social media. And I don’t want to deal with putting together an online shop just for charity fundraising.”

All of this is perfectly understandable. Wouldn’t it be great if there were a website already set up that’s devoted entirely to knitting for charity fundraising? Where all you had to do was knit and send off your items, and the website would take care of the rest?

Guess what… there is just such a website!

All about Made4Aid

I was delighted to stumble upon Made4Aid when I was researching my introduction article to knitting for charity fundraising. I was surprised to find out it has been around since 2009! It began when a group of crafty bloggers discovered another blog called “Joyce’s Electric Bag Blog,” which was devoted to selling handmade bags to raise money for refugees in Darfur.

These crafty blogging types wondered, “could we find other crafters out there who would like to donate their creations and have us donate the proceeds to charity?” Of course, thanks to the Internet, they were able to do just that, and Made4Aid was born.

For nearly a year after its creation, Made4Aid sold items for charity through its blog. Then they opened an Etsy shop, and these days their marketplace is found entirely on Etsy.

How Made4Aid Works

Made4Aid does a great job of making its process as easy as possible, both for crafters and for purchasers. The crafter who wishes to donate an item for sale simply e-mails Made4Aid with the details of their creation and a price point.

Made4Aid then lists the item on Etsy. When a purchaser orders an item, Made4Aid e-mails the creator, who will ship the item directly to the purchaser. (Made4Aid reimburses the shipping charges unless the creator chooses to donate the shipping charge as well.)

That, in a nutshell, is all there is to it!

How You Can Help

Does this sound to you like an ideal way to raise money for charity? Then you’ll definitely want to join in the Made4Aid mission.

First, to find out what Made4Aid accepts, check out the list here. Made4Aid will list just about anything you want to make, so long as it is handmade, in good quality, and can be shipped. Many of the types of items you’ve seen in my series on free knitting patterns for charity fundraising would be ideal for Made4Aid!

Second, make your item (or items, if you’re putting together a set).

Third, follow the steps listed on this page which explain everything you’ll need to submit to Made4Aid in order for them to list your item(s). You’ll also find out what happens when the item sells, and what your responsibilities will be.

Finally, if you’d like to see where the money goes after items are sold, check out the charity information on this page.

If you’d like some inspiration for your own creations, you may want to take a look at the Made4Aid Etsy shop just to see what sort of items they may sell.

Thanks to Made4Aid, the process of knitting for charity fundraising couldn’t be easier! What could you knit today?