Fruits of Labor Infant/Preemie Beanies

When I sew for a cause, I tend to go way overboard and SEW for a cause :)  My local mommies group ran a drive for the Special Care Nursery at our local hospital recently, and these hats were my contribution.  I upcycled t-shirts from my stash of leftovers from t-shirt quilts, and these babies are so fast to whip together it didn't take much time at all.  I used the sleeves of the shirts so that I could use the existing hem and save a step.  I also made them itty bitty and super itty bitty.  I don't know about others' experiences with hats, maybe my kids just had small heads, but all of our newborn and 0-3 month hats were huge on my babies and we ended up using the hospital hat most often for Natalie since it fit her the best. Therefore, the special care nursery hats are super small so they can fit right away, and their parents can enjoy the "fruits of their labor," ha ha.

The concept of the DIY baby fruit hat is not mine, I was inspired by Delia's version of Freshly Picked baby hats and by the Fruit Salad hats made by Maggie of Smashed Peas and Carrots.  They have excellent tutorials to show off the basics of their baby hats.