Fabric Haul

Okay. I guess it might not technically be a "haul." But I'm pretty stoked about these woven cottons that I just picked up.  I'm not shy about buying crafty goodies when I've got the money for it, especially when there's a coupon involved.  And for this fabric I scored with several coupons.  Happy dance!

In case you hadn't noticed, I'm pretty much the worst photographer. This photo doesn't show off the colors at all. But they're so darn cute! From left to right, the solid colored broadcloth are a robin's egg blue, a lime green, a light denim blue color, and a light sea foam green. The nursery prints pick up little bits of all of those colors.  (Oh my gosh, I am so disappointed in this picture!  Blah!)

I plan to use these to make some little baby bonnets using a pattern by Polluted Pixie, and some coordinating reversible baby shoes using Weepereas' pattern. I've made the little shoes loads of times, and I'm excited to pair them with these bonnets, which I've never tried before, for some sweet little gift sets.  I'll mostly be shooting for unisex, but there will also be some gender specific bonnets and shoes. (The farm scene is definitely boy and the polka dots are totally girl.) 

I'm excited to get started, but alas, the fabric is enduring its pre-wash and shrink at the moment.  Keep your eyes open for pattern reviews for these little ones in the future!  And hopefully the pictures of the finished sets will turn out a whole lot better than this miserable nonsense.

Pattern Review: Bucket Hat

I have a toddler with very sensitive skin, who refuses to sweat, so outside play in the summertime is really rough on him.  He gets a rash from sunscreen and he overheats really quickly, then takes forever to cool back down.  If I can keep him shaded and moistened, he can stay at a reasonable body temperature without burning.  I decided to make him a hat that I can wet down.  I wanted one with a wide brim that would also shade his lily-white skin.  Enter the bucket hat.

The Pattern: Reversible Bucket Hat Free Sewing Pattern

The Designer:  Oliver + S

I've never made a hat before, so I didn't know what I was looking for or what to expect.  I saw some super cute patterns for bonnets on Etsy, and almost bought them.  (I'm talking sweet little brimless bonnets with animal ears.  *sigh*)  In the end, I decided I've spent enough on patterns this paycheck, and a free pattern was the way to go while I decide if millinery is my cup of tea.  Or even my glass of milk.  I like fast projects that don't take too much concentration, so that was important too!

I browsed Pinterest for a while and this hat pattern kept coming up.  I would see a cute hat and click on the link, and almost every single time it was some variation of this pattern by Oliver + S.  I figured, if that many people were using the pattern, it had to be pretty good.  And it is!

The pattern is just 3 basic pieces - the top, the sides, and the brim.  Assembly is really easy and fast for the reversible hat.  With this pattern, you can use your imagination for all kinds of embellishments and variations, or you can just keep it simple like I did.  And it takes very little fabric.  It took about 2 hours to complete, from the time I hit the print button to the time I clipped the last threads of the finished project.

I am really lazy about hand stitching, so I was happy to see a blog post describing how to assemble the hat using just your machine.  You can find that tutorial here.  

My toddler claimed the hat so fast that I didn't get to take pictures of it until his nap time later in the day, when the hat had already been doused with the hose several times, which is why it looks a bit crumpled in the photos.  I'm pretty impressed with how well it holds up to the abuse.  I chose not to use interfacing for the brim, since I wanted to use it as an air conditioner, but the finished product is a nice, crisp looking hat, that I'm sure would keep its shape really well if you actually follow all the directions. 

The pattern has 4 sizes, which fit an 18" head (0-6 months) to a 21" head (6-8 years), so I will absolutely be making hats for my other littles as well.  I've got some butterfly fabric that is just begging to be a hat for my youngest daughter.  

The Oliver + S website has lots of free patterns and excellent videos and tutorials, which are great for anyone who is learning to sew.  They also have a book called Little Things To Sew. It's full of sweet projects that look simple to whip up.  

Now if only the hat came in teen sizes, I'd make one for my daughter to take to camp this summer!

Applique Onesies

My crafting goes in topic spurts. Although I've mostly been working away getting ready for my baby's arrival, there are still gifts to be made! 

This morning I made these little guys for my cousin and friend:

This was the first time I've made applique onesies, but they've been on my mind to try out for a while. They were darn easy!  That's good for me, because I end up with lots of baby gifts to make.

There are lots of tutorials and patterns on YouTube and Pinterest. You basically just cut out the shape in a double-sided fusible interfacing, iron it onto the fabric of your choice, cut that out, and then iron the fabric onto the onesie.  You can topstitch the pieces down like I did here if you want. It's not necessary, because let's be real - how many times is the baby actually going to wear these before he outgrows them? But I like how the contrasting-colored stitching makes the applique stand out. (You can't see it very well in the picture, but I used white thread on that blue and white fabric.)

I found the pattern for these little ties here.  And here is a bloggy tutorial.

The online pattern has two sizes, a 3-6 month and a 2T.  I didn't love how thin the smaller tie was, so I just shortened the larger one by an inch. I also trimmed the top portion just a bit to make a more concave shape to fit the neckline of the onesie. Easy-peasy!