Thursday, October 05, 2006

Chemo Caps

(image borrowed from http://www.girlfromauntie.com/journal/index.php?p=24 because I haven't knit my Shedir cap yet.)

So I'm trying to rally up some people to knit and/or crochet chemo caps in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month. We will then be donating them to the Straub Oncology Clinic here in Honolulu, HI. There are no restrictions on yarn color or pattern for the caps because 1. everyone is at different levels in their knitting/crocheting skills and 2. Cancer does not discriminate, so caps for women, children, and men are welcome. Please keep the hats appropiate, by that I mean do not submit the "Fuck Cancer" hat that Sharon Osborne wore during her chemotherapy. While I'm sure someone would like it, I don't want to take the chance on offending anyone. There are "restrictions" on the yarn: please use soft materials such as cotton, chenille, microfibre, cashmere, etc. 100% wool is not recommended because it can irritate the skin, as well as allergies. I've heard mixed feelings on wool blends, so cashmerino like Debbie Bliss' would be appropiate. Name and address must be submitted with every hat because the clinic wants to send out thank you cards and has to keep track of donations. Also, include material content and washing instructions with your hat(s) when you turn them in; I don't think we should launder them beforehand because certain soaps can irritate the already sensitive patient's skin. For further information, you can respond to this post or email me with "Chemo Cap" in the message title.
Here are some links to hat patterns:

http://www.knitty.com/issuefall04/knittyF04surp.pdf#search=%22chemo%20cap%2Bknitty%22
http://www.headhuggers.org/patterns/patterns.htm
http://www.knitty.com/archive.html
http://www.knittingpatterncentral.com/directory/hats.php

2 comments:

Cris said...

i'm going to dig through my yarn stash and see if i have any yarn ccompatible with chemo cap patterns. i'll let you know and get details for where to send it later.

Jillio said...

*mental note.