New Zealanders have started clicking their knitting needles together for prime minister Jacinda Ardern’s baby - but the woollen booties, bonnets and blankets are not destined for parliament house.

Last week Ardern announced she and partner Clarke Gayford are expecting their first child together, a baby of unknown gender who is due in June, and has induced morning sickness and cravings for christmas pies in the prime minister.

Like many New Zealanders who expressed delight at Ardern’s news, New Zealand expat Heather McCracken felt the urge to knit a present for the prime minister’s baby.

But on further consideration, McCracken realised Ardern’s baby would have a healthy supply of warm clothing and gifts and that her knitting efforts were better directed toward other New Zealand babies more in need.



So I woke up this morning feeling like 'I want to knit for Jacinda's pēpi WHO'S WITH ME'



But then I thought her baby will prob get loads of lovely things, and many other bubs are in need of warm clothes and hats and booties to go home from hospital. — Heather McCracken (@HeatherKMcC) January 19, 2018

I can't concentrate due to the sound of half of Dunedin knitting booties. — hamish mcneilly (@southernscoop) January 18, 2018

McCracken’s generous impulse has been heartily taken up by hundreds of other New Zealanders, who have united under the hashtag #knitforjacinda, and are busy knitting clothes for needy children “in honour of Jacinda’s wee one”.

The movement has been taken up by grandmothers in Invercargill to politicians in Wellington.

A baby hat, with a tiny turban tie. Made with love for our babies, and Waikiwi wool: merino, possum and alpaca. More to be made, and donated to Waitakere Hospital. #KnitForJacinda @jacindaardern pic.twitter.com/gM2y7q1gii — Deborah Russell MP (@BeeFaerie) January 22, 2018

Donations for #knitforjacinda have been directed to the children’s ward at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland, with social media users engaged in the project sharing advice on the most useful types of wool to use (machine-washable), garments (beanies, booties and woollen jumpers), and appropriate baby sizes.

The coordinator of the Middlemore Foundation’s wool programme Diane McEntee told Radio NZ she was “overwhelmed” by the surge of donations in honour of Ardern’s child, and said any woollen garment for a baby was cherished.

“A baby’s a blessing after all, isn’t it? … Anything anybody can do for our programme in the name of Jacinda’s baby is marvellous.”

Ardern told Stuff that one advantage of not revealing her child’s gender to the New Zealand public was that she wouldn’t be overwhelmed with “gender-specific clothes”.

“One of the things that’s a helpful by-product of not telling everyone is that we’re hoping not to land a whole lot of gender-specific clothes,” said Ardern.

“I remember when my sister first told me what she was having, I really deliberately didn’t want to send her a whole lot of pink stuff, and went out and bought really non-gender-specific stuff for her … but it was quite hard to find those things.”