fall baby quilt

woodsy quilted baby blanket

another backpack

One of my favorite projects for little ones is this floppy little backpack. The straps are adjustable and the color and style possibilities are endless (see previous versions here, here, and here). It's a KWIK SEW pattern and comes together easily.

This bag I made for a first birthday and included Mike Austin's Monsters Love Colors book. It's a fun little story about mixing to make different colors. Atlas loves it and we hope his young friend will too!

dino hoodie

My model is two years old and this gift is for a little boy who just turned four, but I think the cuteness is evident despite the poor fit. This is a Chico zip-up hoodie from Target. I followed the directions in this tutorial to add felt dino spikes.

map mats

When we first moved to Alexandria, we got this old chair for $25 off Craigslist. It was not in fantastic condition, but it was super comfortable. We finally got rid of it when the frame broke. There were wood pieces and springs sticking out, it really wasn't worth the salvage, but I kept the comfy cushions for just such a project as this.

I used two chair cushions and two thick foam pieces from JoAnn Fabrics and covered them to make mats for Atlas to lounge on and make forts out of. I imagined a reading nook. He of course had other plans, and they have mostly been jumped on, which is fine by me.

The panel of fabric is something I bought a long time ago thinking of Atlas, but I didn't know what to do with it. My mom had the same impulse and lack of inspiration, so I ended up with two maps, which allowed for some necessary overlap. The numbers on the back match well and I love the bold print.

baby girl quilt

Here's another baby blanket for friends expecting a little girl.

I thought it would be difficult to make a blue and purple blanket feminine enough, but then I found these adorable coordinating fabrics. Of course the shoes contribute to the cute factor. I'm sure the baby will too. We're looking forward to her arrival any day now!

pretty pink baby shoes

Close friends just finished all the paperwork to adopt a little girl... now it's just a matter of waiting. Waiting is hard, so to help make the anticipation a little sweeter I made a pair of tiny baby shoes featuring a fun black and white with pink fabric I found as a fat quarter. The pattern is one I've made before, and this time I added a bit of embroidery to personalize them.

"Mind Your P's And Q's" baby blanket

I just finished a small quilt for a baby girl expected at the end of August.

This was my first time using a "charm pack" for a baby blanket. It's a variety of fabrics from Keiki's Mind Your P's And Q's collection. I found the fabric searching for coral and turquoise prints to match the nursery. It was a little brighter than the colors I originally imagined in my head, but the fun letters and animals in the print totally sold me on the fabric. I couldn't find much yardage available online, so the pre-cut stack of 5x5" squares from Pink Chalk Fabrics seemed like a great head start. I got a little more inspiration on design from Pinterest. Unfortunately I didn't get the quilting completed in time for the shower, but I'm well ahead of the baby's arrival, so I don't feel too tardy.

baby quilt in progress

I don't want to give too much away, but here is a snapshot of my current project. I'm hoping to finish up by this weekend!

baby shoes

I've been following Shwin & Shwin, a blog about kids clothes for a while now. There are a lot of sewing blogs out there, and a good number of blogs about sewing kids clothes, but this blog has patterns and tutorials and all kinds of detailed info. It's not just a place where the creator posts photos and brags, it's actually helpful! Also, the stuff they make is really well designed. I especially like that the boys clothes are just as unique as the girls clothes. It's easy to add ruffles and other embellishments when you're sewing for a little girl, but I'm more impressed with the details they put into the little menswear.

I made the shoes below for friends who just found out they are expecting a little girl. The pattern is based on this one for newborn mary jane shoes. I love the little pleats and comfy felt lining. My first attempt I cut along the line that is apparently supposed to be the seam allowance, oops, and they ended up doll-sized. I made another pair of the mary janes and forgot to take a picture before giving them away. This pair I skipped the strap and went with the ballet slipper look. Ta da!

a quilt for Baby E

Our dear friends Blake and Sarah are expecting their first child any minute now. In fact, she's more than a week past her due date, and I'm hoping for her sake she's experiencing early signs of labor at this very moment.

I finished their quilt last weekend. Here it is!

Patrick found this verse from Proverbs, and it seemed appropriate for a baby blanket.

 

I had doubts about the colors when I ordered the fabric online, but I'm pleased with the outcome.

Letterpress is a hobby and the nursery has an alphabet theme.

I couldn't resist making "quick change trousers" from Handmade Beginnings with extra fabric.

sweatsuit refashion

I bought a big sweatshirt from Walmart at the beginning of the summer (it was clearance on top of already cheap) with a refashion in mind for myself, but I ended up using it to make a cute as pie sweatsuit in about 12-month size.

I am planning to make a Halloween costume for Atlas - a furry creature to be revealed at a later date - and I want to base the design on a cozy one-piece outfit we already have. Since this is my first time drafting a pattern, I figured a practice round would be a good way to start. I opted for the sweatshirt remodel because the half zipper option allows me to avoid any of my own zipper/buttons/snaps. As a result, it's not the most diaper-change-friendly outfit.

I started by tracing the original garment - turned inside out and flattened on a roll of Ikea craft paper. I left room for seam allowances and hems.

The design is super simple - a single front panel cut on a fold, opposite back panels, and sleeves.

I cut the pattern out of the XL sweatshirt utilizing the front zipper, collar, and even the cuffs. It took a bit more time to get everything lined up correctly, but in the end it saved me a bunch of effort hemming and finishing the garment.

I couldn't resist a final touch of style. I had plenty of extra fabric to make little shoulder things - what are they actually called? Anyone?

Add buttons and an adorable almost-one-year-old!

outfit for a one-year-old

Have I mentioned how much I love the book Handmade Beginnings? Renewing it from the library just wasn't enough. Last month I made a dress from a pattern in the book for a first birthday present, and I just finished another project for another birthday boy. This little guy's growing fast! He's wearing 24-month clothing for the length, but doesn't fill it out. So I made a pair of 18-month "quick-change trousers" in 24-month length.

These are a simple pattern with an elastic waistband. There is a lot of room for creativity because they are reversible. I went with a basic lightweight grey corduroy for one side, but couldn't resist a bold wacky flannel print for the other.

The gears and bolts in the pattern made me think of wheels (both our boys will spin the wheels on strollers and other toys), but Patrick immediately thought of his dad's cycling interest and helped design and make a onesie to complete the outfit.

 

Patrick screen-printed one large gear and I appliqued three small ones from the flannel fabric to look like a bicycle.

An embroidered chain completed the look. I'm pleased with how it turned out, but not entirely confident it will hold up very long on a playful toddler. Maybe he'll outgrow it before that's an issue.

here come the elephants! next up, Baby M.

I've been looking forward to making a blanket for our friends since they day she announced their pregnancy, and when nursery pictures popped up on her blog, I used the color inspiration to find fabric online. The paisley print is my own obsession but also compliments one of the fabrics they used for nursery decor, and the chevron compliments the angles of the bunting featured in the nursery. I added rows of elephants and giraffes to lend to the infantile quality of the blanket, and also because as a couple they have a huge heart for Africa. I'm pleased with how it turned out.

I purchased more fabric than I needed because I wasn't sure if I would be able to use all the rows of animals. As it turns out, it was cut in such a way that I was unable to use several rows. I'm not sure who would cut through the middle of a row of elephants on both the top and bottom of a piece of fabric rather than shift to include only whole elephants.

So there are fewer animals than anticipated in the final design, but I have enough fabric to make the blanket large enough to cover a full sized crib. Babies of course aren't supposed to use blankets in the crib, but cribs often turn into toddler beds, and in the meantime it's a decent size for a play mat.


I also had enough extra fabric to make a big floppy tote bag. The bottom is reinforced with stiff interfacing and foam, and the sides are covered in generous pockets.

one week out

One week until the baby shower, and I have some hand stitching to finish up. I'm still on track to complete my gift project on time. Here's another preview:

blanket in use

Sometimes moms will ask me if they should hand wash the baby blankets I make for them. In a way, it's flattering that they think so highly of my art. There certainly isn't anything we own that gets hand washed for Atlas. On the other hand, it's even more flattering to see a blanket I've made get good use. I've seen this one show up at parks and playdates and even the beach! So cool.

hats

So I started on hats, and I just can't stop! Also, Ravelry is the best thing ever. Free patterns!