Chemo hat patterns

[ValorieD]

I'm looking for patterns to make crocheted hats for the local cancer center. I know they should be soft, slightly smaller in size.

Maybe for the shelters too.

[Granny Square]

Welcome to the 'ville!  I have had the need of chemo head coverings ( over 20 years ago, I'm fine now, hair has grown back but is has gone grey, darn  )

When I was looking to cover my head, I already had some crocheted hats but only wore them a couple of times, I didn't find them scratchy (they were acrylic) but I found them too hot.  So, cotton yarn is probably not a bad idea, I'd choose something a little nicer than 'kitchen cotton'.  I actually ended up wearing fabric turbans around the house (made of Tshirt-type fabric in solid colors). After the initial surgery recovery I went back to work and wore a wig; the wig place also sold turbans, I bought a couple then 'copied' them to make more, they were basically just rectangles, folded in half and the short sides sewn together & gathered, this would be easy to hand-sew if you didn't have a machine; the t-shirt fabric didn't need hemming, it curled under by itself.  

Meanwhile - Although I knew I wasn't kidding anybody, I didn't want my head coverings to scream "she's bald under there!"; the gathered turbans, I hoped, would scream more "she's having a bad hair day!"  The wig shop even sold fake 'bangs' that you could wear with the turbans, to help with that illusion (I think the shop catered to mostly cancer patients).

So, a lot of blathering to say - I recommend choosing a pattern that is stylish, maybe with a bald-disguising textured stitch pattern that you'd choose to wear yourself.  Perhaps deal with the fit by adding or choosing one with crochet ribbing at the edge, the whole hat doesn't need to be scalp tight.  A beret or slightly slouchy hat style with a ribbed edge would be something I'd have chosen to make, never a skin tight chemo-looking hat.

On the tighter than usual fit - I have fine straight hair, and it never occurred to me that the hats I already had would be too big when I was bald- I don't recall that they were.  One usually makes hats (regular, non-chemo) to stretch a little

[Granny Square]

On the acrylic='too hot' -- at the time, I lived in a mostly year-round temperate area (the San Francisco Bay area - a co-worker from the East Coast actually complained "it's always 70 ° here!!", which is mostly true-ish), so YMMV on that respect.

[NCcountrygal]

9 hours ago, ValorieD said:

I'm looking for patterns to make crocheted hats for the local cancer center. I know they should be soft, slightly smaller in size.

Maybe for the shelters too.

Be sure to check with the center. They may have rules as to what they accept. 
Patterns

[Ellie 13]

Ask what they want, most places want washable acrylic/cotton, no wool. If you want soft and not hot, try # 3 (baby weight) or Caron Simply soft , it will make nice indoor hats. Winter's coming, they might want warm outdoor hats too. Find out if they want kids hats. Years ago I saw a kids hat book, "crazy hats/caps" might have been in the title. They were "fun/costume" like hats, some even looked like "wigs". I make basic baby hats for hospitals. Good luck.

Ellie 13