2.26.2011

Homemade gifts are always better

You know how when you want to give a gift to someone and you want it to be memorable, how hard it is to find the perfect gift?  I'm rarely satisfied with the options I have to purchase.  Not that they're not nice quality or that the person won't like them but I know it will most likely be a gift that's forgotten and won't have any sentimental value to it.

My precious niece, Olive, whose birth I witnessed, is turning one!  I can't believe its already been a year.  Her mom is throwing a birthday party today and I wanted to get Olive something special.  I know she's only one and doesn't have any clue about what's going on and won't remember anything about this day but I wanted to get her something special.

I had the crafty itch and decided to see what I could come up with.  My sister said Olive loves to take things out of bags and put them back in.  She could do it all day long.  I thought it would be fun for Olive to have her own little bag instead of disassembling mom's purse every time she got the urge.

I pulled out some scraps and this is what I came up with:


It is the simplest of bags and only took about a half hour to sew but it will serve it's purpose!

Now, something to go inside the bag.  I started looking for baby toys online and was reunited with the wonderful site called The Purl Bee.  It's awesome!!  She has tons of tutorials and even sells sewing and knitting supplies.  She had this tutorial for a toy she called "Best Bunnies".  I thought they were so cute and perfect for a one year old!  This is how mine turned out.  It is one bunny with alternating fabrics and the bunny has 2 faces, one on each side.





2.04.2011

Projects on my "To do" list

Since I found out we're having twin girls (yay!), I've given myself the go ahead for a few new projects.

Car Seat Canopy x 2
I haven't found the right fabric yet, but I'll be making 2 of these to make our car seats coordinate a little better.  Since we already have one infant car seat, I'm going the cheap route and buying only one more (not matching) so I'll use the canopies to help them be a little bit matchier (made-up word).

"Moby/Sleepy Wrap Lookalike"
This is the only carrier that can carry twins comfortably and safely.  I know I can buy one of these babies for $40 but I figured I'd try to find the fabric and make my own.  It shouldn't be too hard as it's just one strip of 5.5 yards by 30 in fabric.  If I buy 60 in fabric I can get two for one!  I have yet to find the right fabric.

Car Seat Replacement Pads
Again, since I'm not going to be buying matching car seats, I've been mulling this option over for a while now.  I'm considering attempting my own car seat pads.  I think they can be pretty involved and it's always hard for me to do 2 of one project because I feel satisfied after I've done the one and can't make myself start it all over again.  Do any of you have a good pattern for these?  It's certainly not something I can bust out on my own.

So keep checking back! I'll be working on these things this week.