How To Make a Modern Silhouette

{I'm re-posting this project from last year for Mother's Day! This is a fabulous gift for anyone who's looking for something easy, crafty and personal to do last minute!}

Happy Mothers day to everyone! I made this simple silhouette of Lula for both of her grandmothers for Mothers Day. It turned out so cute that I plan on making a larger scale one for Lula's bedroom.  Here are the instructions for making one:

Materials:

Decorative paper (I just used some scrapbooking paper from Hobby Lobby)
Exacto knife or scissors
Profile photo of your child printed on cardstock
Spray adhesive
Picture frame
Black acrylic paint
Paintbrush or Sponge brush









First, I outlined the profile with a black marker, simplifying it as much as possible. Don't forget to add in an eyelash and neck!

Next, I simply cut it out with an exacto knife.

Next, I flipped the photo over and painted the backside black.  I did about 2 coats to eliminate any streaking:

After it dried, I sprayed some spray adhesive to the back of the silhouette and attached it to the scrapbook paper.  DONE! So easy!

There are so many options and variations for this project. You could do the silhouette out of the decorative paper on a solid background. Or you could make the silhouette white on a printed background...you could probably do it on fabric, or just do the traditional black on white.

Green Project for a Green Day--Cloth Wipes & Solution

I posted this last St. Patty's day and thought I'd bring it back out from the archives...enjoy!

Lula's cloth wipes have been mysteriously disappearing and the ones that are left are getting a little nasty.  So, I decided it was time to make a fresh batch!  I found some flannel in fun colors on sale and cut them into a bunch of rectangles.  I just used an old wipes container as a guide and cut my flannel so that it will fit nicely in the container.  

I used a blanket stitch to sew two pieces of flannel together so that they are fairly thick and durable. Notice I did not worry about making them perfect! Once you wash them, the edges will fray a bit and they are being used to wipe a baby's butt after all, so no need being a perfectionist on this project!

Once I was done, I had a nice new stack that fit perfectly in our cute wipes container!

And now for my  homemade wipe solution: 

Basically you just need about 1 tsp of Dr. Bronner's soap and about 2-3 drops of tea tree oil. Mix it with a few cups of water and pour over the wipes.  Tea tree oil is naturally anti-bacterial and smells great! Much better than the store bought wipe smell.  Some people prefer to put the solution in a spray bottle and spray it on a dry wipe before using.  I prefer the other method just because it's one less step! Either way works, though!

There is your green project for St. Patty's day! Enjoy!

An Attempt at Baby Shoes

I've been wanting to make Jane some shoes, and when I found a free pattern online, I decided to take a stab at it. I've never made tiny shoes before...or any shoes for that matter.  Although the pattern was very simple, it was a little difficult to work with such tiny fabric pieces and pleats.  I also somehow made a mistake and didn't line the inner bottom sole on the shoes.  Hopefully my next ones will turn out much better.

They did come out very tiny, so thankfully Jane has small feet. However, they don't stay on very well, so next time I will make the elastic a bit tighter.

 

 All in all, my craftsmanship was not great for this first attempt, but they are still pretty cute. I have my next pair cut out.  It's a great way to use up scraps and would be a fabulous baby gift!  Maybe I will whip up a few coordinating headbands!

scrappy flower headband

We had a family photo shoot yesterday, so I decided to whip up a new headband for baby Jane.  I followed this fun tutorial for making flower pins, added a piece of felt and attached it to one of Lula's old headbands and voila! I think it's pretty sweet.

New Diaper Bag!

I knew I wanted to make a new diaper bag for baby #2 because I was just not satisfied with the one I made when I was pregnant with Lula. I wanted a bag that was nice and big and deep but still resembled a purse. I found this pattern on etsy and it looked super cute and easy.

I also fell in love with this fabric by Joel Dewberry. I am kind of obsessed with it. I thought it would be the perfect gender neutral fabric without looking too "babyish".

The coordinating brown fabric is also by Joel Dewberry. It's perfect because it has a little more texture than a solid color, but still doesn't take away from the main fabric. 

I did add a few extra pockets to the inside of the bag that the pattern didn't call for. 

I can't wait to start using it!

Festive Flags

Even though we are keeping baby #2's nursery the same as it was for Lula, I still wanted to add a few elements to spice things up and make it more personal for this baby. I've been seeing a lot of fabric flag creations on etsy and other places and decided to make one of my own!

I followed the directions for the flag banner in One Yard Wonders, although you don't really  need many directions at all! I basically made 2 triangles of fabric, sewed them together like you would a pillow, leaving the short end open.  Then, just attach all the flags with bias tape. That's it! 

I can't wait to see how this will look up in the nursery!

Quilt Top Done!!

I've been working hard on Lula's new quilt and I'm finally done with the quilt top! I got so excited, I took pictures before ironing the seams, so that is why it looks rather rumpled. I absolutely love how it's turning out so far. 

Can't wait to post pictures of the finished product! Now to figure out what to do for the back?

How To Make a Personalized Tote Bag

Lula needed a bag that was just hers to take to the nursery at church. I was always switching bags and never had them labeled with her name.  The kind nursery workers were always asking me if her bag was labeled, and of course it never was.  Anyway, I decided to make a super simple bag with her name permanently on it. It can also be a little library bag. The pocket in front is perfect for stashing a little library card. It really is so simple,  I just came up with the pattern to fit our needs.  Here is the tutorial:

Here's what you'll need to make one bag:

FABRIC:

  1/2 yard canvas-type fabric for bag

  1/2 yard cotton fabric for lining, handles and pocket

  1 8in. X 12in. piece of felt

Thread

Pins

Sewing Machine

Scissors or Rotary Cutter

1. From the Fabric, Cut the Following:

2  14in. X 16in. pieces of canvas fabric (for bag)

2  14in. X 16in. pieces of cotton fabric (for lining)

1  8in X 12in. piece of cotton fabric (for pocket)

2  5in. X 22in. pieces of cotton fabric (for handles)

2. Make The Felt Letters: Draw out your child's name on a piece of paper in block style. Use this as a pattern to cut your child's name out of the felt. Make the letters about 2 inches tall. Pin the name towards the top of one of the pieces of canvas. Sew the letters onto the canvas, using a coordinating thread. Since felt does not unravel, you can just sew one seam down the middle of each letter to make it super simple!

3. Make the Pocket: Fold the 8 X 12 piece of cotton in half, right sides together, and pin. Sew all sides (except for the folded edge), leaving a space about 2 inches open on one edge. Turn pocket right side out and pin directly onto the front of the bag under the felt name. Sew around the pocket, about 1/8 inch from the edge. In doing this, you will be attaching it to the bag as well as sewing the 2 inch opening closed.

4 Sew the Outside of the Bag: Pin right sides of both pieces of canvas together. Do the same with the pieces of lining.  Stitch around 3 sides of the canvas, leaving the top open, turn right side out.

5. Sew the Lining: Stitch around 3 sides of the lining, leaving the top open. In the same manner as the pocket, leave an opening at the bottom of the lining a few inches wide.

6. Attach the Straps:  Fold the cotton strap fabric in half  lengthwise, right sides together and pin. Sew along edge.  Turn straps right side out and pin one to the front, and one to the back of the top of the canvas. The straps should form a "u" when hanging down on the canvas.

7. Assemble Bag: With straps pinned to the canvas bag, place it inside the lining, right sides together and stitch along top edge. Pull canvas through opening in lining, then stitch opening closed.

8. Add the Finishing Touches: Put lining down inside of the bag, and press with a hot iron. Then, top stitch 1/8 inch around top of the bag to secure all the layers. You are finished! 

The Beginnings of a Quilt

I have finally started on Lula's quilt that will go on her "big girl" bed.  So far,  I think it will be super cute. This is my inspiration for her quilt:

I just loved the modern design of this quilt with the white, bright colors and off center blocks.  You can read more about the quilt above on this blog.  Lula's won't look exactly like this, but same idea.

Here is a little preview of some of the blocks that I've made:

I can't wait to see what it looks like when it's all done!!

Another Headband

Here is a picture of the headband I made to go with Lula's easter dress.

Like the other ones on my previous post,  I modified a Heather Bailey pattern and added felt circles for embellishement.

The most impressive thing about this headband is that Lula kept it on her head almost the entire day! I will now have to make tons more for her to wear this summer!

Easter Dress

I made my first dress for Lula to wear for Easter.  I used this pattern.  Even though I had never made a dress before, it was really easy.  I had to have a little help with the zipper and bias tape, but other than that-no complaints! 

I used this fabric from the Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks line.  I love how it turned out!

Here is the model hersself!

You should definitely try this pattern if it's your first time making a dress. Super easy and cute!

Hooray for Headbands

I've made a ton of headbands using this free pattern from Heather Bailey.  However, I recently made two for a new baby friend and decided to change it up a bit.  I eliminated the ties and added felt embellishments! It's such an easy and cute baby gift! It literally takes 10 minutes to make one-anyone can do it!

Here is a picture of the other one I made. (Isn't that tree fabric the cutest??)

18 Months and Tour of Lula's Room

Lula turned 18 months a couple of weeks ago. I can't believe it! I hadn't taken any pictures of her in a little while so we had a little photo shoot in her room. (Notice the flower hair clip she is modeling) I just had to share them!

I also thought some might be interested in seeing a few of the projects I did in Lula's gender-neutral nursery before she was born. We had little to no budget, so everything was sewn or re-painted ourselves! (along with my mom's help)

This is the bedskirt I made using some cute fabric by Alexander Henry. The orange dot is by Amy Butler.

Another one of the many things you can do with freezer paper! I made these to match the animals in the fabric. It's just fabric that I stenciled and stretched onto canvases, then stapled with my trusty staple gun . They are hanging over the changing table/dresser.

We found this 100 yr old rocking chair at a garage sale for $20! I painted it white and re-covered the cushion, then made a matching pillow. It's super cute, but not the most comfortable for those late night feedings. Thankfully we are past that stage, but I may be investing in a more modern glider for future babies!

We did not have a budget for furniture, so we just re-painted my old bedroom furniture from when I was a little girl.  We replaced the hardware and did a little sanding to achieve the "shabby chic" look. The dresser doubles as a changing table which I love.

And lastly, panel curtains using that same orange Amy Butler dot.

Making things for Lula's nursery was so incredibly fun for me. I also love the fact that it's totally gender neutral and can be used again for a boy! There you have it, a little piece of the life of Lula Maureen!