Baby Boy Boxing Nursery Update

Lee has finally finished with the nursery! I can't believe how adorable it is and super fun that it's so unique.

Here are the final pics...

DIY Lace Crowns

Elsie's birthday is coming up and she wants a Pinkalicious birthday party. I have spent a few weeks agonizing over what she will wear. We've done the tutu dress thing a few times now and I'm ready for something different. The other night, we were reading Pinkalicious and she pointed out that Pinkalicious wears a crown (which I have never noticed before). She looked up at me with the most excited look I've ever seen on her face and asked, "Mommy, are you going to make me a pretty crown for my Pinkalicious birthday party?" Her excitement was so incredibly adorable, I began scouring the Internet to find the best crown for her birthday. This Blog had my favorite.

I purchased a 9ft roll of lace trim at Hobby Lobby for $2.99 (and it was half off).  The trim was gathered on the roll, but I trimmed off the bottom seam to ungather it, which ended up giving me an extra 5 inches on the 14 inch section I cut off, so you could get about 12 crowns off one roll of trim. Pretty great deal.

Here is how I did it...

Toddler Jumper Tutorial

This morning was a really gloomy morning, so it was a perfect day to do a sewing project. I bought some fabric with the intent to make the girls this jumper that I found on pinterest. I made a couple changes to better suit my needs. Evelyn's turned out a little better once I knew how I wanted to do it.

So, here are the instructions to this adorable little jumper

Butterfly Cookies

For my sister-in-law's shower, her sister and I made butterfly cookie favors. We made them using my blog tutorial. As usual, these cookies taste awesome and look great even when you mess them up!

Baby Onesie Cookies

My girlfriend, Lee's baby shower was this weekend. She's due September 29th with her first baby. I was so excited to have her back in Chicago for her shower this weekend. For the favor, I made butter cookies decorated with royal frosting. To learn how to make these cookies, here is a link to my blog post.

Baby Boy Nursery: Boxing Glove Applique Strip Quilt

My best friend since middle school, Lee, is having a baby boy in September. In true Lee form, rather than going with the usual teddy bear or  jungle themes, she chose a unique theme: boxing. In choosing this, she has destined herself to completely decorate the nursery with no inspiration other than her very creative mind.

I offered to make her baby quilt for her since she couldn't find any matching bedding. This was a little nerve wracking since I couldn't find any boxing appliques to model my quilt after. So I had to wing it and hope it somewhat resembled a pair of boxing gloves. My favorite part about this quilt is the light blue strips, which I made using the fabric from the bridesmaid dress I wore in her wedding. I wish I had thought of that for all my family and friends!

Strip Quilt Tutorial with Owl Applique

This was my first attempt at an applique. Another reason why I'm so glad I purchased a new sewing machine back in February! This new machine has opened up so many new craft possibilities, its a little overwhelming. For the first time in my life, I'm using my sewing machine on a weekly basis. I don't think I've ever used an entire spool of thread in my life until two months ago!

Anyway, back to the quilt. My sister-in-law is having a baby girl in a few weeks and since I just made this Monkey Quilt for her sister's baby that was born in April, I wanted to do something a little different. While researching baby quilts online, I continually came across strip quilts. I had been given a quilt like this when Evelyn was born last year and loved it. So, I decided this was the avenue I would take for this quilt. For the applique, I googled owl appliques and drew a pattern for one with my favorite elements from all the pictures I found.

Don't get overwheled by all the steps...from start to finish, this quilt took me five days to complete. At most, I was able to devote 2 hours a day to it. So, its completely doable to finish this in a week if you're motivated.

Baby Bib DIY

I made a few bibs for my little nephew that is arriving in April for my sister-in-law's baby shower. I was shocked at how easy it was to make these cute little bibs. I wish I had attempted this sooner because I have bought my fair share of bibs over the last two and a half years. 

Over Night Bag Tutorial Update

Here is the bag I made for my sister Sabrina using the Diaper/ Overnight Bag Tutorial I did last month. I love how this bag turned out. It was much faster the second time around and I tried a new interior pocket. I have the fabric to do my other sister's bag. I'm so excited to try it again. I think this bag is adorable and very easy to do.

Please leave me a comment...I'd love to know what you think!

Thrift Store Refinished Step Stool

My life has been crazy, so its been a whilie since I've had a chance to finish a project.  Clinton and I just had a serious conversation about him letting me steal away on weekends to do my projects and blog. Part of the issue is that the weather has been so great this year in Illinois. We had virtually no snow and we've seen a steady stream of warm temperatures since March. The little town I live in is on two big rivers and becomes like a resort town on the weekends once the weather gets nice. I have to admit that when my neighbors invite us on their boat, I'd rather be on the water with them than in my garage painting. I'm sure that excitement will get old soon and I'll be back to work.

Diaper/Over Night Bag Tutorial

Its been a busy month, so I've been MIA for a while. I have about 10 half-done projects in my garage right now that I'll, hopefully, get posted soon. For now, here is my latest creation and my first attempt at making a bag or purse. I think it turned out pretty well...a few flaws that I now know to fix on my next one. I already have two orders for bags from my sisters.

I've never loved any of my diaper bags and I've had a hard time finding a reasonably-priced bag that I could purchase. So, I decided to make this bag after seeing a cute purse on pinterest that I thought I could alter to make my own. This is a really large bag. It would be great as an airplane bag or a weekend bag if you don't have 2 munchkins to pack for on a daily basis. It comfortably fit all the diapers, wipes, food and change of clothes for my two babies on Easter. And, best of all, its adorable.  This is a pretty long tutorial, but it's a fairly easy project. The longest part of the entire process was interfacing all the fabric.

Here is how i did it...

Monkey Quilt

One of the gifts I made for my sister-in-law is a quilt made with a nursery panel I found at Joann Fabrics. As with most of my projects, I was at Joann's looking for something entirely different when I stumbled upon this pane. It was love at first sight.  I loved the little monkey and it was a raised image to satisfy a baby with sensory tendencies.

So, I purchased it and pieced together a quilt using a few other fabric swatches I had on-hand. I haven't made a quilt in years and I was a little out of practice...add in the complexity of forming a quilt around a pre-made panel and it took a little longer than it probably should have, but I love how it turned out. As everyone quilts differently, and I am far from an expert, this isn't a full-fledged tutorial, but more of a documentation of my progress in pictures to inspire others to venture into their first quilt.

DIY Hospital Maternity Gown

Designer hospital gowns are all the rage and I know why. After having my first baby, I look back on the ugly gown I wore in many of the pictures and wish that I had something a little cuter in my baby's first pictures.  My nurse at the hospital I had Elsie in wouldn't unhook the IV to let me change into my nursing PJ's the morning after she was born.  Since I had a C-Section, I needed the IV to stay in for 24 hours, so I was stuck in the hideous gown all day.

Approaching Evelyn's arrival, I decided that wasn't going to happen again. Since they were selling online for around $50, spending this on a gown I planned on wearing for 24 hours wasn't going to happen. Therefore,  I figured I had two options: 1. cut the straps on my nursing gowns and sew in Velcro or 2. break out my sewing machine that hadn't been touched in 5 years to make myself one. 

Since I didn't want to ruin the pajamas I lived in for 3 months following Elsie's arrival, I started searching blogs for a pattern I could do. Now, prior to making this, the only sewing I had done aside from a 6th grade Home Economics class, was quilting, which involves very simple sewing. So, this pattern had to be easy and quick since I needed to make it in between my 13 month old's naps.

Baby Sensory Blanket

These blankets are great for babies who have sensory issues. My daughter Evelyn needs to squeeze her hands on something when she goes to sleep and this blanket is her favorite. It has a satin side and a soft fleece side. The ribbon tags add to the sensory experience of this blanket.

I made two blankets for my new little nephew. One was 2 feet by 2 feet and only had 3 little ribbons. The other was one foot square and had ribbons all around it. This simple gift is a must-have for all new moms.

Travel Placemat

 This is one of my new favorite baby gifts to make. The waterproof burp cloths are great, but if you don't have a spitter, you don't need it. A travel placemat with cutlery holder is a must-have for every parent. I used to buy the disposable placemats for Elsie to eat off of when we went out, but my aversion to anything disposable stopped me from buying them. I know you can purchase a rubber placemat at Target or Babies R Us, but I've never been a fan of those either. This placemat is washable, has a place for a baby spoon and fork and folds up neatly into the diaper bag.

This project is an adaptation from one I saw in the Babyville book. They just had it as a placemat, whereas I altered it a little to make it a travel placemat. Best thing about this project is that it was completed in under an hour! Enjoy!

Waterproof Burp Cloth

I haven't posted in a while, its been a crazy past few weeks. Kids have been sick, I went away on a scrapbook weekend with my girlfriends and it's just generally been insanely busy. But, I'm back. My sister-in-law's baby shower was yesterday and as a result, I have a few new baby projects to share that I'm super excited about.

First, is this burp cloth with a waterproof side and an absorbent side. I loved this project when I saw it in my new Babyville project book. I think this will be my new go-to baby gift. I didn't have babies that spit-up, but my friends have had some doosies, so I know they would have appreciated this gift and probably would have begged for more. Its made with Babyville PUL fabric. I asked an employee of Joann's today if there is any other brand that makes this kind of fabric since my Joann's doesn't carry Babyville, she said they used to carry something similar but they no longer carry it. So, as far as I know, Babyville is the only brand you can purchase. They have a few really cute patterns and some great solid colors. Unfortunately, its a little pricey, but completely worth it and some of the projects made with it are indispensable.

Waterproof Burp Cloth

Babyville PUL Fabric 20"x22"
Prefold cloth diaper
1 pkg double fold bias tape
Optional: applique and three 2" long satin ribbons to embellish
Coordinating thread

Round the corners of the prefold diaper. Trim the PUL fabric to the size of the prefold diaper.

Fold the ribbons in half and pin to the underside of the applique. Stitch the applique to the corner of the diaper. My machine had an applique stitch, if yours doesn't, use the zig zag stitch with the stitch width set close together.

Pin the prefold diaper to the PUL fabric so that the wrong sides are together. Stitch around the edges with at 1/4 seam

Pin the bias tape around the edges of the diaper so that it covers the stitches and stitch around the diaper using a straight or zig zag stitch.