Our Little Hug project supports children of all ages from birth to teens and their families at The Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow, the Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle and for teenagers in ICU at Great Ormond Street and the Teen Cancer ward at the Royal Marsden and those transferred on to St George’s, Tooting.
2023. Still an ongoing project, collection dates to aim for are at the bottom of the Home page.
Always remembering Merryn and Aillidh, our inspiration.
Crafting guide for Little Hugs
- Minimum Size : 18 inches by 18 inches, for example that is a 3×3 6 inch squares with a small edge. NB If making for a teen in GOSH/MARSDEN, minimum size to be 48 inches by 60 inches, ie single bed sized.
- Colours : Your choice! Just go cheery! Avoids browns etc. We’d like to be able to provide a range of Little Hugs suitable for boys and girls. If you’d like to make something specifically for a boy or girl that would also be lovely.
- Things to avoid: Buttons, sequins and beads, and embellishments that could scratch the skin or be swallowed. If using appliqué it needs to be firmly stitched on with no hard edges.
- Suggested yarn: Stylecraft Special DK, a non scratchy acrylic that is very reasonable approx £2 a ball. The essential thing is that it needs to be soft against sensitive and delicate skin and that it HAS TO BE machine washable.
- Blankets could be made from squares stitched or hooked together. Granny stripes or ripples. They could be made in one piece or in blocks as well as squares.
- For fabric quilts and stitched Blankets : Pure cotton and good quality fleece. The cotton can be used from recycled sources. We suggest you wash
both separately before sewing to allow for any difference in shrinkage. - Ideas: Traditional style quilts, from simple designs to more complex patterns. Cotton edge fleeces with or without appliqué.Quilt and fleece combination:quilt front, fleece back
- If you would like to take part in this project but feel you can’t due to the costs involved, please message us and we will try to help you with materials.
Our Little Hugs go to some of the sickest babies and children in the UK. At Great Ormond Street, they may also form part of palliative care for teenagers in their ICU.
Thank you so much everyone, we know how much these mean to parents going through incredibly challenging and worrying times.
How it all began
When we offered a blanket to Greengoose after her beautiful daughter Merryn passed away, she told us how Merryn had been given a small handmade blanket whist she was in hospital. As Greengoose said,
“Merryn’s little square meant and still means so much to us, and so many families end up in hospital early or unexpectedly and have nothing of their own ready or with them, and even if they do, just to know you are thought about means so much.”
We loved this idea and with Merryn’s blanket in mind, and knowing how Expat’s darling daughter Aillidh had so much comfort from a blanket handmade by a group of wonderful friends, we wondered if we could do something more to help.We contacted a few hospitals and very early on developed a lovely relationship with Yorkhill Children’s Hospital in Glasgow where Aillidh was treated. We began making little blankets and quilts for very poorly children in their care, and this soon expanded to helping children at the Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle too.
