The idea for this project arose as I was scrubbing the floors at the local shelter. They were particularly dirty because, as the caring people in the advocacy world do, they stretch the dollars they have to provide essential services to the greatest number of people. Sparkling floors are not exactly essential. The floors had become a vicious cycle; people wouldn’t take off their shoes because the floors were dirty, but the floors stayed dirty because people kept their shoes on. My first thought was “Slippers would fix this.” My next thought was “I know some wonderful people who would love to make slippers for those in need!” Truly, no community exists like the fiber arts community.

This pattern is by no means unique, nor does it reinvent the wheel. It merely breaks down simple construction so a target size can be achieved. Feel free to use your own favorite slipper pattern!

My hope is that this project can spark inspiration to serve local victims’ advocacy programs. The population they serve is generally under-privileged, and the programs are generally under-funded. Please feel free to use this pattern for your own Slippers for Survivors event. All I ask is that you post pictures where possible. Let’s show survivors how many people care. You can bring it to your local stitching circle and hand out thrift-store-find yarn. Use it to burn up the scraps from completed projects. But most importantly, know that you can make a difference for someone in need, even through something as simple as slippers.

If you crochet, weave, felt, or use a knitting machine and would like to expand this pattern’s accessibility to other fiber artists, please feel free to contact me about converting the pattern.