Thank you for paying close attention!
Parents select their favorite hat from the dozens that are on display in their birth centers. The most popular hats and booties have common characteristics. These guidelines will increase the likelihood of your donated craft going home with a family.
YARN: Hats and booties that are either KNITTED or CROCHETED will need to be made with new, clean, SOFT-TO-THE-TOUCH and WASHABLE yarn. Keep in mind, booties need to be made with smaller yarn, preferably a Worsted Weight Category 4 yarn.
“VALUE” yarns are sometimes scratchy and tend not to be selected by new parents. Test softness on your cheek if you’re unsure!
WARMTH: These hats and booties keep babies’ heads and toes warm outdoors during the colder winter months. Smaller stitches result in a warmer item. Loomed hats tend not to provide enough warmth due to the large, loose stitches.
SIZE: Of the thousands of beautifully hand crafted PURPLE caps and booties that are donated each year, many hundreds cannot be used because the size is either too big or too small. These materials will be worn by 1- or 2-day old infants. The average newborn head circumference is 14" (13"– 15") and hats should be approximately 6" high. The average newborn foot length is 3". For further sizing instructions, please check our CAP SIZING GUIDELINES and BOOTIES SIZING GUIDELINES.
COLOR: Hats and booties need to be 50% or more of any shade of purple (for the Period of PURPLE Crying).
Please help us meet families' requests for more "BOY-FRIENDLY" hats and booties by considering patterns with darker purples, and stripes of blue, orange, or gray.
SAFETY: Please help us keep babies safe from choking and strangulation risks: NO hanging embellishments such as straps and tassels are allowed. Small securely attached embellishments such as pom-poms, bows, ribbons, buttons, etc. are okay in moderation.
STYLE: Please use EITHER: all Gender-Neutral (Unisex) styles and colors OR: an equal number of Girl-Friendly and Boy-Friendly styles and colors.
FOR BOOTIES: Please make sure all booties are tied together with either a string or rubber band to keep the pairs together.
LOOMS: This type of knitting is allowed but should be used with caution. Please ensure that the caps are not too loose or too tight for a comfortable fit around the baby’s head.
Download the Cap and Booties Crafting Guidelines Download the Cap Sizing Guidelines Download the Booties Sizing Guidelines