Taggy Blankets- Do I need them? Who knows???

But now I have two.

I whipped these up quick with some leftover ribbon, quilting fabric, and minky.

Even if the baby doesn't enjoy these they are satisfying my nesting urges.

Cheers!

DIY Baby Gym

Obviously I have been having fun making baby things, and this project is no different.

Supplies needed:

• 1x2x8 foot pine board
• 3/4 inch dowel (at least 30 inches)
• Round wood ball (mine are 1 1/4 inches from Joanns)
• Eye Hooks
• S-Hooks
• Chain

I started by cutting my 1x2 down in to 4 equal pieces about 2 feet long. Using my miter saw I cut one end at a 30 degree angle. This provides a stable foot for the gym.

I don't think this is necessary but it looks better in my opinion. 

Next, I marked 1 1/4 inches down from the top of the now 2 foot board and taped two pieces together (just to make sure they are at equal spots on each pair of legs)

Using a 3/4 drill bit I drilled a hole through both boards.

I also drilled a 3/4 inch pocket in my wood balls. 

This was really hard. At first I tried holding with one hand and drilling with the other but all that did was cause bodily harm (so don't do it this way!). After taking a chunk out of my hand I clamped the ball and then drilled. You don't need to drill very deep, this is just to keep the legs from sliding off. 

Thread the dowel through the holes and glue your wooden balls to the ends.

Once everything is dry, measure down an equal distance on each leg (on the inside) and add your eye hooks. 

Attach the chain and S-hook. You don't have to use an s-hook, you could just attach the chain to both sides but the hook makes the whole thing collapse flat. Like so:

There you have it. A simple wooden baby gym: no bells or whistles.

Even better the whole thing cost around $20! I whipped it up over two afternoons (I let the glue dry overnight) and completely by myself. Even 7 months pregnant, it was a pretty easy project.  I hope I was clear enough to help you make your own.  

Cheers! 

Baby Quilt #2: Critter Patch

I couldn't very well stop with the bunny fabric. The whole line is adorable.

Again, my inspiration photo didn't have directions but here's the way I built it.

• The three main rows are made up of 12-3x6 patches. (36 total)
• These three rows are attached with a strip of 2.5 inch white fabric and then bordered with the same. 
• The thin strip is made of 2 inch wide strips of varying lengths pieced together in one long strip. 
• The whole thing is bordered with a 6 inch wide strip of white. 

I backed the finished quilt with some blue minky I got from Pick your Plum a few months ago.

My little one may not have a name, but he is going to be warm! I am so happy with how both quilts turned out. This one was by far the easiest to piece together, lots of straight lines.

Cheers!

Baby Quilt #1: Mid-Century Modern

The color scheme started with the Critter Patch Organic cotton quilting fabric in Orange Bunny Toss and grew from there. 

My inspiration photo didn't have any real directions (in fact it was a link to an item on an Etsy page that didn't exist anymore) but I figured it out as I went.

If you are feeling inspired, this is how the quilt works out:

• 42 squares made up of 3 pieces. 
• Each square is made up of 2- 2x5 pieces of fabric of your choice and 1-2x5 piece of white. 
• Each square is bordered in strips of 2 inch white (I used muslin but cotton would work). 

I built each row one at a time joining the squares with a piece of 2x5 white and then attached each completed row with one long piece of 2 inch wide fabric. 

For a backing I used a Moda pattern called Fairy Tale Friends. 

This would be a great scrap busting pattern. I could easily see this in a monotone all blue or pink, or even a fun rainbow. If you can sew a straight line you can make this quilt. 

Cheers! 

DIY Changing Mat Clutch

I don't know if it is nesting, but I've been going a bit crazy with sewing projects. I'm hoping this one comes in handy (haha).

I found a great little fabric shop in Ballard that has some of the best fabrics. Made by Marzipan's tutorial was super easy to follow, even for the novice seamstress that I am.

The one change I made to her plans was that I used a laminated cotton for the mat pad to make it wipeable (she uses a clear vinyl over the fabric instead).

Cute for something that will see a lot of not so cute stuff right? So tell me, was this a waste of time? Did any of you veteran mommies use these? I feel like I am riffling around in the dark with the whole baby item thing. There are so many lists with all of the "must haves" that seem silly to me that I wonder what I really need to be focusing on.

In other news, we started painting the nursery this weekend and I'm loving how it is coming together. I have a feeling it will be my new favorite room in the house!

Cheers!

Floorboards and Caulk

Hands down the worst part of a project for me are the little details.

I spent yesterday on my hands and knees filling nail holes in the trim and preparing to paint. My Ikea chair (an $8.00 thrift store find) is my first and only piece of nursery furniture. The rest is still to come. I've been emptying the room slowly to get ready to start putting it all together. I can't wait to start!

Cheers!

Craigslist Score: Baby Things!

We've been tossing ideas around about how we want to deal with the sleeping arrangement once the little guy is here. Originally I thought we could just move in to the guest bedroom for a few months (it's right next door to the nursery). Then, as I was sitting in bed worrying one night I casually mentioned to Daniel that I didn't know how I was going to be able to sleep without constantly checking that he was still alive. Daniel thought it might be a good idea to room in with the baby.

Of course that lead to all other problems of logistics. Do we buy a bassinet, a pack & play, keep him in a hamper on the floor. Luckily Craigslist to the rescue!

One rainy drive and $40 later it was mine. I'm in love. It is the most quintessentially baby thing I own (besides onsies) and it is just so adorable I could die.

Did you get a bassinet? If I had to pay full price I probably would have just sucked it up and dealt with my separation anxiety but for $40 I don't mind that it will only get 4-6 months of use. 

Cheers!