We’re still several weeks away from Halloween, which means I’m officially devoting all my knitting time to pumpkin baby hats for the next month or so. In 2009, my final tally was 8 hats, which I donated to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Parkland, the Dallas County public hospital. While I like knitting baby stuff in general (it’s cute and it works up so quickly!), there’s a special need for handmade items for preemies. Baby clothes aren’t typically made in such small sizes, which I was made more aware of by having two aunts who have worked as NICU nurses.
The hats were really well received last time, and I had a lot of fun working on them. My knitting bag went everywhere with me, and I worked on them any time I had a free moment, whether it was waiting at my doctor’s office or getting my oil changed. (I’m still amazed by how much knitting in public serves as a conversation starter.) Going into the 2012 pumpkin had season, my goal is to beat my number from 2009. Also, I’ll share information about how I make them for anyone who wants to play along at home!
First a couple of things to keep in mind when knitting for your local NICU:
1.) Stay away from natural fibers: Yes, I prefer cotton and wool, too. However, they just won’t survive the high-temperature washes all NICU donations are subject to for the safety of the babies.
2.) NICU babies come in all sizes: As I said above, there is a special need for items in smaller sizes. If you’re looking to donate several hats though, consider making some bigger sizes as well, since even full-term babies can end up in the NICU.
1.) Stay away from natural fibers: Yes, I prefer cotton and wool, too. However, they just won’t survive the high-temperature washes all NICU donations are subject to for the safety of the babies.
2.) NICU babies come in all sizes: As I said above, there is a special need for items in smaller sizes. If you’re looking to donate several hats though, consider making some bigger sizes as well, since even full-term babies can end up in the NICU.
I was inspired by, and used, the hat pattern found here. Ultimately, I used modified pumpkin vines after deciding I needed to learn some remedial crochet before trying more advanced stitches. Thanks to Google, I was able to find knitting patterns with similar vines (like the one here).
When it came to finding yarn, I wanted it to be soft (it was going to be for babies, after all) and I wanted a shade of orange that didn’t inspire thoughts of construction crews. I eventually settled on Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice (more details on my Ravelry project page here). Pulling it out this year though, I decided to see if there were softer options out there.
My first stop was Knit Picks. I haven’t tried many of their yarns, but what I have used, I’ve loved. Their Brava Worsted is ridiculously cheap compared to even Vanna’s Choice, and I think their Persimmon color would be just about perfect. It’s also well-reviewed on Ravelry. Those same reviewers also recommended Berroco Comfort. It’s likely going to be more expensive than Brava, but I feel like I should try it for comparison’s sake! (Besides, I’ve enjoyed the other Berroco yarns I’ve used.) More on these yarns once I’ve had a chance to try them out!
Do you have any recurring charity crafting projects? Any favorite patterns or recipients? Do you have any favorite brands of yarn (or other materials) that you go back to for your charity projects?
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