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, for teenagers in ICU at Great Ormond Street, the Teen Cancer and children’s wards at the Royal Marsden , NICU at John Radcliffe in Oxford and most recently to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children.
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..
Still an ongoing project, please make and send as ready.
Always remembering Merryn and Aillidh, our inspiration.
Crafting guide for Little Hugs. please check the changes!
Please read our Size Up September page to see about the changes. Minimum Size : 32 inches by 32 inches. NB If making for a teen in GOSH/MARSDEN, minimum size to be 48 inches by 60 inches, ie single bed sized.
Crochet, knit and fabric all equally welcomed, but please note GOSH only use woolly blankets because they find they drape over machinery better, and if making for the NICU babies in Oxford, these can only be knit, ie no holes.
The essential thing for whatever size is that blankets and quilts can be machine washed, tumble dried and/or steam cleaned. Infection control requires this understandably. So do check your resources before starting please!
Think about the size of the child the blanket is for, Aran weight and chunky yarns are not suitable for babies.
Please avoid yarns with a halo – loose, fuzzy fibres which are a safety hazard.
Colours : Your choice! Just go cheery! Avoids browns and muddy colours etc. We’d like to be able to provide a range of Little Hugs suitable for all. As much as we don’t like to associate colour with gender, not every family will think the same, so playing it safe. We tend to get 10 pink Little Hugs for every one of any other colour.
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.
Yarn used needs to be soft against sensitive and delicate skin.
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. We suggest you wash both separately before sewing to allow for any difference in shrinkage.
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.
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 our first hospital – Yorkhill Children’s Hospital in Glasgow where Aillidh was treated. Our project has grown ever since.
