Sew What?

Two and a half years ago, one of my best friends from high school delivered her first child, a baby girl, 7 weeks early; after a couple of tough months, Ava finally came home.  Today, she’s a healthy, thriving little girl shows no signs of prematurity.  During her stay in the NICU at Mercy hospital in St. Louis, Ava received a different crocheted hat every day to keep her little head warm.  The hats were donated by various individuals/groups in the STL metro area…not only did Ava receive a hat but every child in the NICU did…every day.  Inspired by the kindness shown to her family and a love of crafting from her childhood, Ava’s mom Sarah began crocheting.  Before leaving the STL area, Sarah and her husband Andrew returned to Mercy and provided replacement hats for every day of Ava’s stay…paying the love they received forward.

I’ve always wanted to pick up a hobby I could work on while watching TV in the evenings.  After joining Children’s Mercy Hospitals & Clinics in February, I thought crocheting NICU hats similar to the ones Sarah gave to Mercy would be a great start.  I consulted Sarah (who has continued crocheting since Ava’s arrival), watched a couple of YouTube videos, made my first supply trip to Joann’s and got started.  After I had a handful of hats to donate, I stopped by the hospital’s volunteer services office to make my donation. 

Hit the breaks…upon my arrival at volunteer services, I found out that Children’s Mercy doesn’t accept crocheted hats...only sewn hats made with a specific type of fabric (stretch cotton) from a single, approved pattern.  Well shucks, what’s a girl to do with a handful of tiny hats, no sewing machine and limited knowledge of sewing?  In swooped JPug with a sewing machine for our fourth anniversary (in June) and I got to practicing.  Along the way, I picked up the necessary fabric and thread for the NICU hats and convinced a couple of friends to sew with me.  Now we have a nice little sewing “club” that meets once a month…making NICU hats, baby items, holiday gifts and household items (to come).  The first projects weren’t great but we’re continuously improving and that’s what matters.

Below are a couple of pictures from our first go at sewing NICU hats.   To date I think we’ve donated about 100 hats and have enough material to donate a couple hundred more.  As I have time, I’ll continue to blog about our sewing adventures…patterns, how-tos & the finished products.  If you enjoy sewing and are interested in donating NICU hats to Children’s Mercy in KC, just let me know and I’ll forward the information on.  Last but not least, if you’re on Facebook and are looking for beautiful, handmade children’s items, check out Sarah’s B.I.B.S (Baby Items By Sarah) page and see all the terrific items she’s been crafting up.

In progress...sewing the top of the hat.

Finished product!