Blankets

For a beginner at the sewing machine, I felt like these turned out not so bad! Each of my kids got a blanket for Christmas this year. I cut 6 inch squares because I am lazy and the clear thing that goes over my rotary board is 6 inches wide.....6 inches on a TWIN size quilt is small. Next time I'll be less lazy!

Girl #1

Girl #2

Boy #1

Boy #2 (The baby, that's why it's smaller.)

Quiet Book (so far!)

I decided having 2 babies a year apart is going to be REAL fun for sitting through 3 hours of church, so I am on a major rush to get some projects done that will keep them entertained as they get older. I looked online at SO many places for ideas, I'm sure I won't give credit to everyone involved but I will do my best! (See bottom of post for websites.)

The Pellon: I purchased Pellon, or Interfacing, at my local JoAnn store. It was EXPENSIVE ($5.99a yard for the thick stuff!) I was able to get 16 pages out of 3 yards. It was 20 inches wide, so I cut the pages so they are each 12 inches across and 10 inches up. (Left a little bit extra room for the button holes on the sides.)

The Binding: I looked at a lot of different ways to bind it together. (Like glue, or not cutting the pages but sewing them together right down the middle then folding the whole book together.) The one I liked the best was sewing 3 button holes in the side of each page and using rings. I prefer this way because I can take pages out and add to it as I go. Eventually I will make a fabric case for everything so the little parts can't get lost.

The Designs: Some of the templates I used from Homemade By Jill, but most of them I either hand cut, or printed clipart off the computer and traced it onto my felt.

The Felt: The felt on rolls at Joann's is usually $6 a yard, but it was on sale 50% off. Felt is a lot wider than other fabrics, so I only needed 1/3 yard of each color. I got 15 colors off the roll and bought some of the 8x11 felt sheets that were not offered on rolls (Like sparkly red, sparkly white, sparkly black, tan, and hot pink!!) Buying the felt off the roll is SO MUCH CHEAPER (if you get it on sale) than buying the felt sheets so don't be deceived!!

Here's what I have so far. Definitely not finished but it's a word in progress.

Rocket Ship that blasts on the string all the way to the moon!

Boy playing Peek-A-Boo!! I would love to add words to this page, but my handstitching looks terrible so I am still trying to figure out what to do. (I know, the hands on are backwards...I'll fix it later!)

Fish tank and fish food. Fish food is velcro'ed on. When you feed the fish, you pull them up the string to make them swim to the top to eat!

Tree with snap on apples and a bucket to put them in after they've been picked.

Balloons to match and snap on. (I went for snap vs velcro because they are quieter for church!) Decorative stitch on the strings!!

Winter Mittens so baby can put his hands inside!

Farm House with barn doors and finger puppets inside!! Also not shown, an owl hiding in the upper flap.

Plate and items to build a sandwich. Still debating if I should velcro these. They stick together pretty well already!

Fall Tree with a little flap and a birdie! Decorative stitching of my Singer came in SO handy!! It made the leaves look like they had veins without any extra work from me!

Where I got my ideas:
http://homemadebyjill.blogspot.com/2009/10/audreys-quiet-book.html
http://homemadebyjill.blogspot.com/2009/06/finished-quiet-book.html
http://www.scribd.com/doc/15920304/Quiet-Book-Instructions
http://www.drycreekdesign.com/quiet-books.html
http://www.simplicity.com/p-1986-crafts.aspx
http://naptimejournal.blogspot.com/2009/04/quiet-book-ideas.html
http://sewcando.blogspot.com/2009/09/quiet-time-part-2-quiet-books-abound.html
http://www.quietbook.blogspot.com/
http://swishina.blogspot.com/2009/10/quiet-book.html
http://sewing.about.com/od/toysanddolls/ss/childshapebook.htm

Sorry if I left anyone out!!

Fabric Toy Bucket

So I have seen a couple of these online and thought I would try one out. I don't like any of the tutorials that I saw (either too small or circle buckets) so I kind of was sewing by the seam of my pants (haha). This bucket is quite LARGE!! 20x20x20. I was at first a little disappointed I made it SO big, however now I love it because it fits ALL of the baby toys (Bumbo, Ball Popper, Boppy included!) I made the mistake of not prewashing the denim and ended up blue all over. Oops, that's a beginner sewer for you!

I honestly can't even type any directions for you because I just kind of figured it out as I went! Sorry, but at least you can get a good look at it!

Baby Beanie

My child's teacher made every student a beanie this year for thier Christmas Present. (How awesome is that!) She gave me a quick tutorial and I never realized it was SO easy!! I made one for the Chan Man since his baby hats are all super thin and don't fit his ginormous head. Before you start, measure your child's head circumference, and from their ears up however long you want your beanie to be. Mine was 20 x 18, and it was a little bit big but that's ok!

1. Cut fleece to desired shape. Roll one of the long edges 1/4 of an inch, then another inch. Pin along the bottom.
2. Sew along this strip you just folded. (I used a decorative stitch that looked like snowflakes.)
3. On the other long side of the beanie, cut strips that will be the tassles at the top. (about 3-4 inches down.)
4. Match the short sides together and sew together. Turn beanie right side out.
5. Tie a piece of yarn or string below the tassles.

This one was SO easy and oober inexpensive. Beats buying a beanie at the store!! AND, if you make one for older kids you could do a matching scarf AND mittens. So cute!

Car Seat Cover

I started seeing these everywhere this summer and then I found a GREAT tutorial from Make It And Love It so I decided I'd take a shot at making one! This one is attached with grosgrain ribbon, however I have seen other designs with buttons or velcro straps at the top. (I have not yet figured out how to sew button holes on my machine, so I stuck with the velcro.....beginner sewer here!)

1. Buy 2 pieces of fabric 1 1/4 yard each. (I used flannel because the patterns were cute and it's cozier than cotton.)
2. Lay pieces together with the right sides together. (the pretty sides touching, ugly sides on the outside.) Cut any excess fabric so you have a perfect rectangle. Pin around edges.
3. Sew along the edges of the fabric leaving a 5 inch hole when you get to the end.
4. Turn the blanket right-side-out through the hole you left. Hand stich the hole shut.
5. Measure from the top of your blanket (long ways) 22 inches down. Mark with a pin.
6. Measure your blanket short-ways and mark the middle. Then measure 4 inches out on each side. Mark with a pin. (You are locating the two places where you will sew the ribbons and you want them to be even.)
7. Measure two strands of ribbon 22 inches long each. Use a match to seal the ends of the ribbon so it won't fray later on.
8. Find the middle of the ribbon and sew each one to the two places you just marked.

I LOVE this car seat cover because I can take it off and use it as a blanket or a bottle prop if I don't have anything else to use. Fabric on sale at Joanne's is $3 a yard, so with all the other stuff you need to make it, this Car Seat Cover costs less than $10 to make yourself!! Can't beat that in ANY store!