I’ve received several requests for copies of the label that appeared in a recent blog. I shared it—and realized that more of you may have questions about how your contributions to the Thanksgiving Potholder Project (THXGPP) are labeled.
This post is packed with information, sharing a bit of the history behind THXGPP labels, including examples of other labels that contributors have enclosed with their gifts, and offers insights on messaging in your labels and on promoting your own local potholder project.
I haven’t intentionally collected label photos, so those shown here are simply the ones I happened to capture while sorting and packing.
THXGPP began by creating two-sided tags that were hand-tied to the end loop of the potholder. As the number of potholders grew, hand-tying tags became impractical. Labels were an obvious solution. Last year, a new need emerged for a special CAUTION label for potholders made with mixed materials. Today, if I can tell that potholders are not Friendly Loom loops or made from cotton or wool yarn or loops, I’ll add the caution label.
Take a look at THXGPP labels in use!
Though the labels have changed over time, the guiding spirit of THXGPP remains the same: authentic caring, sharing, community, and connection—through nonpartisan, nonreligious, and nonjudgmental messages of encouragement and support.
Be Inspired
Feel free to borrow or build upon ideas from these labels for your own local efforts — the more creativity, the better!
Next are pictures of some of the labels we’ve received over the years. After the pictures, there is more information on how THXGPP manages your contributions and messages today, followed by insights on what to include in messaging for your own potholder-raising project.
How Your Labels and Messages Are Handled at THXGPP
When you include a label or note with your potholders, we keep it with your contribution to carefully place them together in a clear plastic bag, and add an official THXGPP label to the outside of the gift.
Clarity in labeling and messaging is kindness
— especially when inviting others to contribute to your project.
Clear labeling is important, and so is how you describe your project when posting or requesting contributions. Without careful attention to clarity, especially online, contributors might assume they’re supporting THXGPP when they’re actually giving to a different, though equally important, local effort. That’s happened for the first time this year. No worries, I helped clear that up when asked, but it leaves me wondering whether other weavers, too, might have thought they were contributing to one project when, in fact, they sent their potholders to another.
All efforts matter, and THXGPP celebrates them all. Still, just as with any charitable donation, contributors appreciate—and are entitled to—clarity about where their gifts are going and how they’ll be used. Are they supporting a nonprofit, a small business, a community project, a scouting badge, or something else? If your effort has dual purposes—such as also promoting your shop, sharing your latest book or passion project, or raising funds—simply say so.
Here’s a special tag and message from one of my friends in the mediation world, who started out contributing to THXGPP, then expanded their weaving potholders into giveaway items at their Farmers Market display table …. Inspired and clear!
ChatGPT helped me create two great examples of being clear and generating a strong, trustworthy message at the same time:
Sample 1
“Please help me raise 200 potholders for my local food pantry’s Thanksgiving effort in Everytown, State. I’m an artisan weaver organizing this local project to benefit our community. While it may also help introduce my work to others, the focus of this effort is on supporting families in need. This is a local project, not connected to any other Thanksgiving potholder project.”
Sample 2
“Please help me collect potholders to sell in support of our local nonprofit. All proceeds from sales will be donated directly to the organization. This is a local fundraiser, not connected to any other Thanksgiving potholder project.”
Both examples reflect integrity and community care. When people understand your purpose, how their contributions will be used, and the scope of your project, they’re more likely to support it—and that clarity helps sustain trust throughout the weaving community.
Bottom line: Choose wording that fits your situation—what matters most is transparency. Misunderstanding caused by a lack of clarity can erode trust, which hurts everyone’s efforts.
Keep Weaving for Good!
Keep weaving and sharing. If your project aims to support families at Thanksgiving, be clear about your goals, location, how your effort works, and whether you’re connected to any other Thanksgiving efforts—if so, share who you’re teaming up with. If you’d like THXGPP to promote your project, let me know—I’ll do my best to support and promote you—no strings attached!
Send your potholders today!
If you’d like to help with this year’s Thanksgiving Potholder Project, we’re still in need of more potholders. Each potholder is a small act of generosity that brings warmth, art, and care to a family’s holiday table. Whether you weave one or many, your contribution truly makes a difference. Please send your potholders to
Beth Myers (THXGPP), 2007 Clipper Park Rd. #216, Baltimore, MD 21211
THANK YOU for all you do to make this world a kinder, more caring place.
Namaste.