Preemie Hat Donation 208 hats

April 16, 2015:

I made a donation of 208 little preemie hats to Women's Hospital in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.    The nurse was glad to receive these.

They are mostly loom and machine knitted and I have a few crochet ones I gave them as well.   I am sticking mostly with the knitted since they have the best stretch to the fabric.  

The smaller hats are double-layered and I knitted these on my Addi Express Professional 22-needle machine.   Using one strand of soft yarn, I cranked out about 55 to 57 rounds (or until the tube was resting on the table.   Then I did a needle cast-off.   At this point I had knitted a tube. I then pulled both ends separately into a gather and secured the threads.   I put one side into the other and tied the ends together.    Then simply fold up the brim and there is the hat/beanie!

For the slightly larger preemie hats, I used my blue Knifty Knitter loom which has 24 pegs and measures 5 inches across. Using two strands of soft yarn held together throughout pattern, I did E-wrap stitches and knitted them off with the pick tool.   I knitted the hats until they were the length of the Knifty Knitter pick tool (around 28 rounds depending on your yarn).    I did a needle cast-off and then pulled a gather for the top of the hat. I secured this with two true square knots.

I also did two true square knots for the cast on side (brim).   The curl of the brim hid where I cut off the loose ends which I square-knotted, so that worked out great hiding loose ends.

My mom went with me and it was a great experience!    There is another NICU at Baton Rouge General Mid-City.   I plan on doing a donation to them too.   

And to make it easier, this knitted rubber grip helped tremendously!   See my previous post!

These little crochet hats below with the two colors, are Margaret Olander's pattern from the Sheepishly Sharing website:

Below are just some other photos I took over the last few weeks as I was making these little preemie hats.

These little hats are made on the Addi Express Professional (22-needle) knitting machine.  I make a long tube (using one strand of yarn in the machine), and I knit for about 55-57 rounds, depending on the yarn.  Or, I just knit when the cast-on edge touches the counter top which I have my machine anchored to.

Then, I do a needle cast-off (with a large-eyed sewing needle), pull both ends of the tube into a gather.  Then, place one end of this gathered tube into the hat and sew it into place against the opposite gathered end.  Secure your loose ends well and cut off the excess yarn.
Next step is to just roll up a brim and it is done!

This is a little hat I made on the Knifty Knitter Flower Loom.  This loom has only 12 pegs.

Regarding the preemie hats I make on the blue Knifty Knitter handheld loom, this is what I mean when I say that I make the hat the length of the Knifty Knitter pick tool. I knit the hat about 7 inches or 28 rounds with 2 strands yarn held together:

Yours in Christ,
Lee Ann H
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