Knitting: Hats and Socks for Lesotho Babies

The group I knit for, Hearts for Warmth, just received news that at least one of the hospitals in Lesotho is sending newborns home wrapped in newspaper for warmth. It's probably going on in most of the hospitals, but we've rallied around this one in particular and are making hats, socks and blankets for them to send home with as many newborns as possible. Most of these people heat their homes by fire instead of our modern heating methods, so they have a real need for warm things for home, too.

I've knit a few sets already and took pictures of some of them. I'm bad about taking pictures of the projects, and even worse about blogging about them, but I'm trying to do better.

These were the first booties I made for this project. The pattern is a free one called Bundles of Love Booties, designed to be used for charity knitting.

They were fast, easy and beautiful, but I suspect they're going to be a bit big for these newborns. There is a row on them designed to weave in a ribbon to help tie and make them fit better, so all is not lost. They will be sent, and they should be useable.

Unfortunately, I didn't have enough of this yarn left to make a matching hat, so I'm going to make one that coordinates instead of matches. I don't have it made just yet, though, because I've been working on the rest of these ...

This Preemie Beanie is another free pattern designed for charity knitting, and it's perfect (if a little time-consuming because of the ribbing).

The ribbing can shrink or stretch to fit a variety of head sizes, so this one is very near perfection.

Here are the booties I made to go along with them. This pattern is called Seamless Baby Booties, and it's also free.

I worked the top-down version, since that's what I'm used to, but she also has a toe-up version for people who prefer that method.

These are cute and very well-designed, but I felt they were still a bit big for newborns. Like the other booties, there's a row designed to weave a ribbon through, so all is not lost. They should still be useable.

And here is the last set, which will probably end up being my go-to patterns for this project. They're fast and easy, and they're the right size.

The hat is called Basic Baby Hat and is one of the easiest projects I've ever done. It's almost mindless, so it's perfect to take along on trips or when you'll be knitting in a loud, distracting doctor's office.

The socks are Baby Fixation Socks, and they are absolutely tiny and adorable. Finally - something that will definitely fit those tiny newborn feet!

If you're familiar with sock-making, these go fast. I timed myself out of curiosity, and I can make one of these socks in an hour without consciously rushing.

If you've never made a sock before, this is a perfect introduction to it, if you don't mind the tiny project paired with smaller needles (US size 3). You get all the sock-making techniques, but it doesn't take as long to get to each different part, so it's quicker to learn.

Do you have any favorite baby knitting patterns?