Hats off to Louth knitters who have been busy with their needles

The M&G Knitting Group, based at business M&G Designs in Eastgate, Louth, have spent the last six months making hats of all designs and colours.

They will make up part of the national Innocent and Age UK Big Knit campaign.

The campaign, which has been running since 2003, will see a total of two million little hats placed on Innocent smootie bottles, that will hit the shops at the end of the year.

With each hatted bottle sold, Age UK receives 25p.

This helps the charity to support older people and finds the funds to help keep them warm during the winter months.

Age UK Lindsey area have a target of 6,000 hats to be knitted.

The campaign finishes at the end of July and the Lindsey area is only a few hundred away from target.

The knitting group will have been running for seven years at the end of this month and currently has around 10 regular members.

Group member Anne Whitehead said: “We’ve all really enjoyed knitting these little hats to raise funds for Age UK.

“We knit for various causes and projects and, for us, knitting is very therapeutic and relaxing.”

The knitters in the past have made baby clothes, knitted St James’s Church and even knitted a life-size bicycle.

Working on the Big Knit campaign was Helen Brudenell, Anne Whitehead, Mary Brigham and Barbara Tazzyman (not pictured).

For these ladies, knitting is a way of life. Mary (pictured right) is 87 in August and has knitting since she was nine-years-old.

The knitting group is always on the look out for new members, with a cuppa and biscuit thrown in too.

The group meets once a week, on alternate Mondays and Wednesdays, and it is free to join.

If you would like to get involved just pop into M&G Designs at 14 Eastgate to find out more.