On Monday, August 8 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Old Forge Library, located at 220 Crosby Blvd. in Old Forge, Charlotte Abrams, will be leading a sewing class to show area residents how to make a special pillow that she created.
Abrams is a high school senior at the Waldorf School in Chestnut Ridge, NY. She and her family have been spending their summers in Old Forge for many years.
Charlotte calls her creation the “POSH” Pillow. POSH is an acronym for Post-Op Supportive Hug. Charlotte designed the pillow to go up against the person’s chest and be held in place by the tension of the seat belt. Charlotte also designed arm holes so that the pillow can rest securely without shifting. Providing cushioning to disburse the pressure from the seat belt allows the person to feel more comfortable and less worried when riding in a car during the recovery process.
Abrams came up with the idea to create this pillow when someone close to her had breast cancer and, as a result, underwent bilateral mastectomy and reconstruction surgeries. Charlotte’s high school includes a great deal of handwork as part of the curriculum so she decided she could use her sewing skills to help.
“Anticipating her discomfort during the post-operative healing period particularly when traveling in a car, I created a specially shaped pillow to help her travel comfortably,” Abrams said. “Seeing how this pillow benefited her physically and emotionally, I wanted to share my design with others to make POSH Pillows accessible to everyone.”
To help spread awareness for the POSH Pillow, Charlotte has created a website (www.poshpillowproject.com) where she explains how the pillow helps during the recovery period, and she will be providing a downloadable pattern/template with instructions so that others can make the pillow for themselves, for someone they know, or for donation.
Abrams has also launched a GoFundMe campaign to help raise money for the materials needed to make an inventory of these pillows to distribute to women in need. She also is reaching out to local fabric stores asking if they will allow her to have a donation bin at their location for customers to donate materials for making the pillows.
For this event at the Old Forge Library, Charlotte will provide the materials at no cost to make the pillows, including pre-cut fabric, needles, thread, and stuffing, but participants should feel free to bring any materials (fabric, stuffing, needles, thread) that they might have or wish to use. It is requested that participants who are interested in attending this sewing event email Charlotte at contact@poshpillowproject.com or register on her website so that she knows how many patterns and how much material to bring. All levels of sewing experience are welcome to join, and there is no fee to participate in the class.
As Charlotte says, “I am passionate about making these POSH Pillows and getting them to as many people who need them as possible. My goal is to help people recovering from breast surgery feel more comfortable and supported, and to make the healing process just a bit softer.”
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