Stylish Nursing Covers

Another baby item to check off the list! I made the pink nursing cover when Little Miss G was born, but also needed a boy version for this time. I like this tutorial but altered it slightly as the D rings I had lying around were a bit smaller. If you make yours straps thicker, I do think they work better so it's something to keep in mind.

The Amy Butler Charm series nursing cover (blue/brown seeds)works out to about 26x38 and the pink graphic fabric is slightly smaller as I had used a different tutorial a few years ago. Speaking from experience, the wider the nursing cover the better as a nursing Mom wants lots of coverage for her and her baby!

I like how in this tutorial she suggests using fabric covered boning and sewing it just underneath your first 1/2 inch turned hem. This makes the boning impossible to shift around. She also trims off a tiny bit of the plastic in the boning from each end so you are left with casing that completely covers your boning -this secures it nicely and doesn't allow it to poke out the ends!! I didn't do this for my first nursing cover and wish I had.

I also had a chance to use some of my fabric labels which makes the covers look "boutiquish" - I've seen these nursing covers cost upwards of $50 in a baby boutique! Thanks to Jessica from TwinFibers as she suggested Namemaker.com as a place to make your own personalized fabric labels.

Happy Friday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada! We took little Miss G to the pumpkin patch recently - the kids got to pick out their own little pumpkin. Little Miss G has been so excited talking about going to the "punkin patch" because she saw one of her favourite cartoon character do the same thing recently! She and her Daddy picked one out and she held on to it for dear life...her prized possession!

Don't these pics get you in the mood for fall? I love the bright colours, apple cider, cool evenings....totally cozy:) She loves running in the leaves and recently brought some home so we could trace them for a gift for her "gandma" - how cute:)

Happy Thanksgiving!

If it's a Boy - Car Seat Cover

The anticipation is killing me of course as we don't know what the sex of our baby is and I'm due next month. So....what does a woman do? Make two of everything!! Now, don't go thinking I'm totally crazy, I'm just making a few key things in both genders:)

(The top picture is taken from the back of the car seat; bottom picture is of the front)

I saw a tutorial by Allison at CluckCluckSew and at Make-it-do.com. They're both great tutorials and I used them equally in figuring out the dimensions for the baby's car seat. It really was easy to make up but I must say I'm not a big fan of sewing velcro. A couple times of ripping out the seams and now they're good. I went with pieced handles to make it a little more interesting and if I tell the truth I ran out of navy fabric!

These car seat covers are really nice especially in crappy weather and when you're just not open to people touching your baby (see Allison's post about "aka greeter deterrents"-spoken like a true mom)- not to mention the fact when they're sleeping and you just don't want them disturbed! That's why I chose navy blue as the inside fabric.

Happy Monday!

Wonky Star Block and Drunk Love Quilt Top

Jessica from Twinfibers requested a "wonky star" block for the PTQB2 (September). She provided us with fabric from the Rainbow Garden Collection by Prints Charming. Super soft and really colourful! It was my first time trying out this block. It was quite easy and I love the effect. It turned out quite symmetrical in the end which I hadn't initially intended but I love the look of the pieced border. Hope Jessica enjoys it!

I've also taken a picture of my Drunk Love style quilt (since it's a sunny fall day)which is going to be a gift for my stepson. My month in the PTQB2 was in July and with the exception of 2 blocks, these are what the group of talented women came up with. I'm still waiting on a few blocks and I need to make up more as well since my stepson is quite tall!!

How's your Friday going? Mine has been filled with some household chores, a little sewing and some rest....I'm 8 months pregnant and counting:)

Heart Block

August's PTQB2 was a block for Samantha. She requested a 12.5 inch block that represented Valentine's Day. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is a heart but I could not decide on how to make my block. I surfed the net for hours for inspiration as I wanted something a bit more untraditional. Then I remembered I had a pattern for a Scrappy Pieced Heart and went to town. Once I read the instructions a few times (you know what that's like:)it quickly came together and this is a pic of the result. I love taking my pics outdoors but only made it after 7 tonight so it's a little dark! Oops!

Not much blogging/creating going on here as I've been back and forth to the doctor for the past few weeks and just can't seem to shake this chest virus I have! Really makes a pregnant woman miserable...I've coughed so hard that I've strained an abdominal muscle and honestly this hurts more than the cough! Baby is okay, but mama is falling apart!! Oh well, enough whining...gotta get my little one to bed...

Nesting

With a few months to go before the birth of our second child, I thought it was time to make a little teddy bear for her/him. I brought Little Miss G to a yarn store in the area on the weekend and of course she announced she wanted a "purple bear" as well....so now I've been suckered into making two teddy bears:) I'm using the pattern from Erika Knight's book in Simple Knits for Cherished Babies. The bears are supposed to work out to approximately 6 inches tall...just wee ones but the yarn I've chosen is super soft as it's a cashmere blend.

So the knitting bug has bitten and I'm off to work on the bears. Did I mention it's well over 30 degrees celsius here with a humidex of over 40 - I've sent my stepson off to buy me some ice cream...way too hot for this pregnant mama:)

Giveaways and Worthy Causes

Wow, blogland is full of great giveaways and causes this week!! Check out Heather's awesome giveaway which ends this Friday, August 27th. It's for an AccuQuilt Go machine/cutter and three dies. How cool is that?! I would really, really like to win that one!!

Also, check out Alissa and support ActionKivu which supports women in the Congo by offering sewing workshops to women so they may support themselves and their children. These women have been through unimaginable atrocities including rape which NO woman should have to endure, let alone their children! Alissa has some great giveaways depending on the amount you donate. Check it out! I know we have a wonderful blog/sewing community so lets come together and support this worthy cause.