The weekly group was brought together by Lynne Coleman, an author, textile historian and founder of British knitwear brand LYNNE. She also supplies the yarn, donating the surplus left over from her company’s knitwear production.
‘I’ve always thought this would be an amazing idea,’ she said. ‘Once I’ve made the pieces that I’ve made, we’ll have small amounts left, not enough to make a jumper.
‘So I’ve got all of this yarn that I can’t use for our knitwear, but the yarn’s amazing. I thought if I donated it to these women, we could create little cashmere hats for the Priaulx Premature Baby Foundation so that we’re not putting acrylic on the babies’ heads when they’re first born.’
The benefit of the switch lies in the breathable quality of cashmere.
‘It regulates your temperature,’ said Mrs Coleman. ‘Babies can’t tell you “I’m too hot”, they can’t tell you “I’m too cold”. But if a cashmere hat’s on their head when they first arrive into the world, you can relax.’
Mrs Coleman hopes the group will spread knowledge of the knitting traditions of the British Isles while also finding a worthwhile home for her yarn and keeping newborns comfortable in their first weeks.
‘I would love for people to learn what our history and heritage is,’ she said. ‘Women and men have been doing this for centuries. And when you physically know the time and the effort that goes into creating a piece, your perception of everything completely changes.
‘So half of this is about teaching people about the origins of wool, the different species of animal it can come from, where the animal lives, and then how the fleece physically comes to be made. It’s women getting together, teaching traditions that are embedded in our society and our culture and are internationally famous.’
With that in mind, she was delighted to see people from their 20s to their 70s getting involved, from experienced knitters to beginners.
One knitter still getting to grips with the craft is Barbara Crowson, who joined the group with her friend Sarah Girard.
‘We support the Priaulx Premature Baby Foundation, and we heard about the group through them,’ said Mrs Crowson. ‘It’s a lovely setting, lovely people, and a very worthwhile cause.'
‘It’s a godsend for local families,’ added Mrs Girard, who was supported by the foundation throughout her son’s cancer treatment in Southampton.
The pair first came along in early October, for the group’s fifth meeting. By then the knitters had already made 20 hats, and they have now passed 70, though a few finishing touches are needed before the hats can be used.
‘They’re physically there, but what we have to do now is talk to the hospital about how they want them to be finished,’ said Mrs Coleman.
‘They have to be washed. Cashmere has to be wet-finished to release it to bloom, so I need to speak to them about how they want it presented.’
She hopes the initiative will one day spread to similar knitting groups across the British Isles.
‘What I’d like to do is pop up into those places, tell them the brief of what we’re doing, and then just be able to post bits of yarn to them,’ she said.
‘I would love every baby in the British Isles to be born with a cashmere hat on their head. Which is very bougie, but it’s about that regulation of temperature.
‘When they’ve just come fresh out of the packet, they shouldn’t have plastic on their heads.’
Anyone wishing to join the knitting group can contact Mrs Coleman here.
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