Etsy

On October 30, 2009, my niece Caroline was born. Shortly thereafter, a blood test revealed that she has cystic fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is a life-threatening genetic disease that primarily impacts the lungs and pancreas - leading to severe lung infections and reduced ability to absorb fats (and more importantly fat soluble vitamins) that, taken together, substantially reduce life expectancy.

On April 24, 2010, my brother and his friend Matt will be participating in the Extreme Hike for the Cure to support the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The hike is a 30.1 mile trek through the mountains of North Carolina. Their goal is to raise $10,000.

In talking about his fundraising efforts, my brother mentioned the significance of the phrase "65 roses." "Sixty-five roses" is what some children with CF call their disease, because those words are easier for them to pronounce. You can read the story about how this phrase was adopted by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation here.

When my brother said "65 roses," an idea immediately popped into my head. I thought, "What if I could make 65 roses and sell them, with the proceeds going towards my brother's fundraising goal?"

So, I got to work. I experimented with a few different ways of making fabric flowers, and this is what I came up with.

The flowers will be made into hair clips, headbands, and pins. I am in the process of opening an etsy shop (I'll make this a live link once I finish getting everything there set up), where I will be listing the flowers for sale. 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I hope to sell 65 of these fabric roses before my brother's hike on April 24.

Additional photos and details can be found on my weblog (http://ahappynest.typepad.com) and on my flickr page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/clearframe/sets/72157623562274548/)