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Hip Hats
A Creative Discovery of Hope
By Gwen Morrison
Heinen created three cute hats with hair for girls and shipped them off to CLF. The children loved them, and soon, CLF was ordering more. Heinen began perfecting her designs, creating a ponytail with bangs that can be worn under a ball-cap and a swim topper with hair that sprouted from the top. Her designs were unique – and amazing.
Heinen recalls a recent phone conversation that she had with a mother who just discovered that her child had cancer. "She wanted me to describe every one of my products over the phone," says Heinen. "I suggested that I send her a catalog that would explain everything."
The woman asked if Heinen could just talk with her about it for a while. Realizing that this mother wanted to talk about her daughter's hair loss, Heinen stayed on the line with her. "The conversation was more than a discussion about hair color or length," she says. "It was about the one small thing this mother could do to help control the disease that was afflicting her child."
Heinen takes pride in all of her creations, always trying to get the highlights just right or ensuring that the item is tight enough so it doesn't slip off in the pool. She worries about getting the hats done in time for that one child to go to Disney.
"People tell me what a great job I do and what a difference it makes to their child or to them," says Heinen. "They send me pictures of themselves in their hats and hair, and I know it's all worth while."
Recently, Heinen introduced Hip Hats to women with alopecia, an autoimmune skin disease that results in the loss of hair on the scalp and elsewhere on the body. The hats were exhibited at the annual conference for The National Alopecia Areata Foundation this past summer. For women with this disease, Hip Hats are a welcome addition to their wardrobe of headwear.
