Local business shout out!

I have been limping by on barely and eventually non-functional sewing machines for the last few months, borrowing ones from my friends for sewing days.  One of my sewing day regulars offered to call around to see if she could get any of the local repairmen to donate their services to get a machine running for me.

The Sewing and Vacuum Center in West Jordan, Utah graciously offered to repair it, and I dropped it off today.  Very friendly folks over there, and I am thrilled to have their support.  Every little bit counts, and money that I would have spent on repairs can now go toward fabric to make more gowns.  If you have a sewing machine repair need, head on in and tell them that I sent you!

"Diaper Shirt" outfits

 A lovely woman in Idaho contacted me a couple of months ago about donating some outfits, and she came up with some really darling and innovative things.  I had the best of intentions of taking photos of all of them to post, but needed to use some right away for angels.  I at least managed to save these three.  The original pattern for these "Diaper Shirts" can be found here.  This one is well proportioned for about a 20 week baby.

 Wanita says that this particular one used the full number of stitches as the original pattern, just with small yarn and an E sized hook.  She changed colors on rows 4, 5 and 7.

 This tiny little one is appropriate for about a 17-18 weeker.  It has been proportionally shrunk down from the original pattern.  She used yarn ties on this rather than ribbon.

 This one is the basic diaper shirt pattern modified to open more in the middle (and on the backside rather than the front), as well as to add a skirt.  The skirt pattern was modified from this dress pattern.

 Back side, with ties to keep it closed.

All opened up.  This size is pretty small, most likely to fit an 18-20 week baby.

If you'd like more details about any of these, send me an email and I can forward Wanita's notes to you.

Recent donations

My friend and neighbor has made me lots of cute headbands with little felt flowers.  She makes all sorts of fun clippies and accessories as a business and I sincerely appreciate the items she donates to Angel Babies.  I find that families really like headbands for their little girls over hats most of the time.

 I also have had a number of cute gowns and sleeper sacks crocheted and knitted lately.  I love how unique each one of these is!  I have a special soft spot in my heart for the ones made by other angel mamas and grandmas - I love to be able to tell the families I serve a little about the people who created the outfits.

 Matching twin set!  My friend Jerri did these, and she simple didn't add as many stitches on the gown part of the boy one so that it would be a little straighter down and look more masculine.  You can't see it very well, but she added a simple ribbon belt just under the arms that ties in the back and a cute button on each.  The boy one has a little star that is just perfect.

 These were made by an angel grandma (with the exception of the smallest hat, which was made by my sister).  She does beautiful work!  Scroll down for a closer shot of the detail work on the small pink and white one.  I would like to point out that the larger hats are perhaps just a little bit bigger than the proportions of the gowns, so if you're trying to gauge sizes, I'd go just a little smaller.

Love the delicate pink edging and the little rosebud!

Current needs

I just sent my very last sleeper sack off today in the mail to a family waiting for a teeny little triploidy angel to be born.  I have loved the ones I've used so far.  They fill an important gap size-wise that I previously didn't have.  The sewn gowns work great for babies that are about 1-1 1/2 pounds up to 3 pounds for the small size and 3 pounds up to about 6 -7 pounds for the bigger size.  But most of the little 20 weeker peanuts that I go take photos of are less than a pound.  Far less, even.  I recently did a session for a baby weighing less than 3 ounces.  It is a beautiful thing to pull out a little sleeper sack that is just the right size in such situations.

So, if you're looking for something to keep you busy in the days between Christmas and New Year's when things slow down, pull out a crochet hook or set of knitting needles and set to work!  I have a few small girl dresses, but not a ton, so I'd appreciate those as well.  Same with small stretchy hats that would fit over a plum, orange, or grapefruit.

Fighting the blahs

I can feel them creeping in.  I'm doing better this year than last, but 'tis the season for me until I get past Elizabeth's birthday.

Tell me your best two ways to kick the angel baby blues to the curb.  (I suspect we can all use it at this time of the year).

Sizing Guidelines

I often get asked about sizing for especially the little bitty micropreemies.  It is hard to imagine how small these wee little angels are until you've held one.  I found this sizing chart, which should help those of you that are crocheting sleeper sacks and dresses, to make sure that you're getting proportions right.

Click here to link to the chart.

Service project results - gift boxes

 I rounded up a group of my angel mamas and set them to work with a stack of boxes, paint, scrapbook paper, ribbon, and mod podge, and this is what they came up with.  I love how unique each one is!  Beautiful work, ladies!  I know they will be appreciated by the families that receive them.  This is an ongoing need, and would be a great one for a youth project, women's group or even a sit-around-after-Thanksgiving-dinner family project.

Darling Little Diapers

 I had several sets of the absolutely darling little diapers donated a couple of weeks ago.  I have already used them at two photosessions.  These fill a very important gap in bereavement supplies.  Our Elizabeth was just under 3 pounds, and the smallest preemie diaper the hospital had fit her perfectly.  It's about the size of a maxi pad (sorry - best visual I could come up with :)!)  But what about all these teeny little peanuts that are born between 18-28 weeks that are anywhere from half a pound up to 1 1/2 pounds?  Most of the time, there simply isn't anything to cover their bums.  I have seen nurses fashion a "diaper" out of a piece of gauze, or even cutting up a regular diaper into a small one and trimming down the tabs.  None of those options are ideal.  That's why I got super excited when I first laid eyes on these.

Here they are on a cutting mat so that you can see the sizes.  Each square is one inch.  These were made by a woman near me as part of a service project to honor her own angel.  She made sets of two of each pattern so that the family will have one as a keepsake if they wish to bury their baby with the other one.  It's a very thoughtful gift.  I love these colorful patterned ones, but could also use lots of plain white ones.  Most of the clothing I have is white, and wild patterns show through.

You can click here to download the pattern.

Service need - gift boxes

I am contacted periodically by people wanting to do a service project of some sort.  It came to my attention this week when I was doing an angel session that SHARE Parent, a bereavement support organization in my area, is nearly completely out of gift boxes.  Volunteers from this group come and do hand and foot molds at the hospitals that aren't equipped to do it themselves, and they present the finished molds to the families in beautifully decorated boxes like the ones shown.  These photos are courtesy of some of my angel family friends.

Circle, oval and rectangle boxes are all appropriate.  They need to have enough space for some padding as well as up to full term baby size molds (generally of each hand a foot for a total of four).  These are all made of cardboard, the sort of boxes you can readily get at any craft store and decorate to your own taste.

 This family received two boxes - the top one is for the hand and foot molds, and the lower one was from the hospital for their blankets, clothing, and other keepsakes.  It is covered in fabric.

 I think this decoration is beautiful and tasteful.

 If you choose to make some of these, you may donate them to your local hospital, contact a SHARE chapter in your area, or if you're in the Salt Lake area, I will be happy to connect you with a SHARE volunteer here.

Gowns, Hats, Headbands and the whole shebang

Here are some examples of crocheted and knitted items that have been donated recently.  I LOVE the sleeper sack on the top left and the dress on the bottom left.  They are both perfectly proportioned for babies around 20 weeks gestation, and smaller by far than the small size gowns that we sew.  The sleeper sack opens all the way down in the front and the gown opens all the way down in the back - very important when dressing wee little babes with fragile skin.  Across the top row are two more variations of the sleeper sack, both knit, and a dress that opens all the way down the back.  This size of dress is ideal for about a 22-24 week gestation baby.  On the bottom row, the pink dress is beautiful.  The skirt is a little long in proportion to the torso, which is a problem I see with many patterns, but otherwise it's great.  Notice that the skirts on all three gowns are tightly crocheted.  No big lacy holes for little feet to get caught in.

The last two items on the bottom row are buntings.  These are ideal for 18-20 week babies that are not in good enough shape to actually dress in clothing.  One of my angel grandpas has made several of these for me, and I love that I can tell the families that they were made by him.  Notice the open rows of stitching to thread a ribbon through to help tie it shut.  I have also at times added a simple square of flannel inside.  The bunting on the left is beautiful, but a little bulky with the border.  As I messed around with it a bit, I figured out that I can overlap the edges in the front and even thread the ribbon through the corners to pull them down and away from the baby's face.

 Little details like the ribbon belt and tiny bow on the front make a big difference.

 Close up of this gown.  If any of you find the pattern for it, please email me or post it in the comments so that I can post it.

 I have a wide array of hats and headbands that have been donated.  The size up at the top is perfect for 20 week gestation babies.The blue one on the bottom row is normal newborn size.  Most of these hats are knitted and are perfectly stretchy.  The crocheted ones have a little stretch, but not nearly as much.  I LOVE the little embellishments, like the purple flowers and the ribbon threaded through, and the cute things worked in to the pattern like the twisty knot on top.  The headbands have stretchy soft elastic bands and a variety of flowers and bows.  The largest size would fit a normal newborn head, and the small one on the bottom is perfect for a 20 week gestation baby.

 I adore these little matched sets.  I am waiting for just the right family to use them.  Huge thanks to the people who have put the time, effort and love into making all of these items!