With the generous support of people in her community and beyond, an Alaska mom is bringing a touch of magic to the lives of young cancer patients through beautiful and whimsical “princess” wigs, all made painstakingly by hand.
The story of these wigs began last year when Holly Christensen got news that her friend’s 3-year-old daughter, Lily, had been diagnosed with cancer. A former oncology nurse, Christensen says she was deeply grieved for the child.
“I knew having been a cancer nurse what she was about to go through,” the 31-year-old mom of three told KTVA.com.
There was, she knew, much suffering ahead for Lily, who was going to undergo chemotherapy. “She’s such a girly girl and loves princesses and [was] about to lose her long beautiful hair,” Christensen, who lives in Palmer, Alaska, told ABC News.
That’s when Christensen says she got the idea to create a special handmade wig for Lily: A Rapunzel-inspired braided style made out of very soft yellow yarn.
Chemotherapy can leave a child’s skin “very tender and sensitive,” making wearing traditional wigs uncomfortable, Christensen explained. The wig she created for Lily was made on an extra-soft crocheted beanie.
“I knew she would be going through a difficult time, and that no one would be able to take her suffering away,” Christensen told Babble. “I also knew that losing her long, curly blonde hair at not even 3 years old would be difficult for her, so I figured that the yarn wig could help bring a little magic and fun to a difficult time in her life.”
Lily is said to have immediately fallen in love with the wig. She would stroke the yarn, Christensen said, and would talk about a time when she would get her “real ‘Rapunzel’ hair” back. It made her “feel like the beautiful princess she is,” said the mom.