Octopuses for Preemies

Octopuses for Preemies is a project by many different groups and individuals (Denmark - Spruttegruppen, Poland - Ośmiorniczki dla Wcześniaków, Finland) to crochet and knit yarn octopuses and send them to neonatal wards. The trend started in Denmark and the doctors here argue that the little toys help stabilize the prematurely born babies while keeping them company in the incubators.

I first heard about this fantastic idea from Gosia at mynomadhome while I was still pregnant. I couldn't crochet than due to swollen, gigantic, clown hands but the plan was always to make a couple and send them to the nearby hospital.

As it turned out, when Maks was born he was admitted to the stabilizing unit and got an octopus himself. Even though it didn't change how scared we were for his well-being and safety, it still felt nice that he had this little friend to hug and maybe feel a little better thanks to it.

Et billede slået op af Maria Lind (@mariafurya) den 30. Mar 2016 kl. 12:31 PDT

So once things here at home calmed down and I found my "sea-legs" as a new mother, I made these two fellows that are now on their way to become someone's little buddies and hold their hands in tough times.

Et billede slået op af Maria Lind (@mariafurya) den 19. Jun 2016 kl. 11:21 PDT

I used the pattern available at Spruttegruppen's website and if you need an English version, have a look at Gosia's blog.

I encourage all of you to grab your needles and hooks and get to work for the littlest ones. And if you need any help with the patterns or any questions let me know.