Onesie Dress

Still more baby shower gifts to share...

This was probably the quickest and easiest of the clothing items I made. Prudent Baby has a very easy to follow tutorial for a onesie dress, and I knew I wanted to make one.

I decided to combine the idea with the necklace onesies that have been all over Pinterest. I really didn't follow any of the tutorials, but there are plenty out there if you want one. I just sort of eyeballed it and went with what looked good.

This was such a quick, easy, and inexpensive way to personalize one of those plain white onesies. Hooray for craftiness!

Embroidered Onesies

More baby shower goodies!

When I thought about practical, yet fun, gifts for the family and expected baby- clothes came to mind, of course. But, I wanted to be sure to make something that would be unique.

I took fabrics and colors from other projects and worked from there.

The onesie in the back left is an "S" in the owl fabric for the baby's first initial. Back right is a cupcake- in colors pulled from the owl fabric. And the front one, is my favorite.

I screen printed the skull and crossbones onto the fabric patch first. I used my Cricut to cut the shape out (from the Mini Monsters cartridge) of vinyl. Then I put the vinyl on the fabric and painted the fabric paint over that. I wasn't sure it would work- I was a little worried about the paint bleeding under the vinyl, but I shouldn't have. It worked like a charm!

Plus- I used the shape that it cut out as a tattoo for my sewing machine.

I'll definitely be trying the Cricut vinyl for screen printing single items again.

Bapron!

More baby shower gifts to share today.

I think I found this idea on Pinterest (are you on Pinterest? Man, that site is like a wormhole for me- but I've found some amazing ideas there.).

Since we've recently started feeding Noodle solids, I've noticed that bibs are a fun toy/challenge for her. She wants to eat the bib instead of her food. She has yet to yank a bib off, but they definitely don't keep the food off her clothes when they are in her mouth.

When I saw this, I thought it was genius. It's part apron, part bib- bapron! It has armholes and ties around the neck, so baby can't take it off.

The pattern and original idea are from a great blog called Craftiness is Not Optional. The pattern and tutorial are super easy to follow. Just pick out some fun fabrics that you love, and away you go!

I made this in two different patterns- the owls (from yesterday's post) and a blue and purple flower print I had in my fabric stash. I made the bias tape that is on the owl bapron, and used store bought (from my stash) for the flower bapron. It's funny how different the bapron can look, depending on the fabrics and colors you choose.

I have a few cut out at home for Noodle, but I haven't had time to stitch them up yet. I need to get on that!

*Feel free to find me on Pinterest, I've got a link over there on the right*

Loveys

Alright, I know I've been gone a while- again. But, I have been crafting while I've been away. It's just getting difficult to find time to craft, photograph, edit the photos, and blog.

The next few entries will show off some baby shower gifts that I made last month. Hooray!

Some good friends are expecting their first baby (a girl) in January. I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted to make for their new family member. Originally, I'd planned to make a blanket, with some matching loveys. Prior to starting the blanket, I learned from the mom-to-be that she had already received several lovely hand made blankets. So, I decided to rethink my gifts.

I made the loveys anyways, because I guessed that she had not received any yet. I know the mom-to-be will have to go back to work, and the little one will be in daycare a few days a week. Loveys are really helpful to have any time baby is sleeping away from home/in an unfamiliar place. Mom can sleep with them for a night or two before giving them to the baby, so they smell like her (and thus like home and comfort).

Of course, you can't have just one because if it needs to be washed baby might be upset to go without. So, I made two matching loveys- using this tutorial as a starting point.

I used a cotton print on the front and a minky fabric on the back. The minky is irresistibly soft, I wish I had my own grown-up size blanket like this.

I read a lot of things online about minky being ridiculously difficult to sew with, but that wasn't the case for me. Now, that could be due to my gorgeous new sewing machine (I got a Brother 294 stitch Project Runway machine for my birthday), or it could just be that I went slowly and was extra careful because of the warnings I'd read. Who knows.

I chose this cute owl pattern, because I remember the overwhelming influx of pink when Noodle was born. It was like a Peptol Bismol bomb went off in our house. Don't get me wrong, pink is fine- in moderation. But, I am always more than happy to get an item for Noodle that isn't pink.

These 10x10 loveys are super easy to stitch up and make a great gift. I'm planning to make some for Noodle soon.

Later this week, I'll show off some of the other gifts I made.

Sparkly Skirt

This is the last part in my dress-up gift series.

To complete the princess ensemble I made a very fun, very easy sparkly skirt.

Originally I was thinking I would make a separate waistband for the skirt- but my sewing machine was not having it. I love this sparkly material, but the waistband became more trouble than it was worth. I think once I have my serger up and running (and I know how to use it), I might try doing a skirt like this with a separate waistband.

At any rate, this skirt is basically a big old rectangle with a hem on the bottom and a gathered elastic top. So easy and quick. I took the birthday girl's waist measurements and doubled them (with a little room to grow). Then I cut the fabric to that length (width will depend on how long you want the skirt). I used my rolled hem foot on my sewing machine for the bottom hem (detail in the bottom right inset photo). I put comfy no-roll elastic in the top.

I swear this is a very easy project, and it turns out looking so much harder than it is. Impress your friends!

Tonight I'm going to break out my crochet hooks for the first time in a decade (at least)- if I'm successful, I'll have a new project to share next week. If not, I'll share another birthday project from last week.

Cape for a Princess

This is the second part of the dress up gift I made for a little girl who turned two recently.

The birthday girl's favorite colors are aqua (turquoise) and purple. I fell in love with this purple and silver striped fabric when I was shopping for materials. It's very lightweight, so even on the hottest of summer days (and boy we've had some hot ones here this summer) it's still wearable.

I got the pattern for this over at Prudent Baby (one of my new favorite sites for kid projects). They used faux fur for the collar, but I opted to use a sweatshirt material (because I had it in my fabric stash and I feel like it's easier to clean than faux fur).

I used a simple lilac ribbon for the tie on the cape. In the inset photo you can see how the drape a little better (sorry, all I had to model was my iron).

It was really easy to sew up and it turned out fantastic. I know that when I was two, I would have loved running around the yard with this waving in the breeze.

Princess Hat

This is a project from a few weeks ago. I would've posted it sooner but my little lady (who is not so little anymore at 15lbs) has been sick.

A few weeks ago we went to a birthday party for my friend's two year old daughter. I wanted to make her something unique and special. Out of the hodge podge of ideas I had, I decided to go with a Princess dress up set.

This Princess hat was pretty easy. All I needed was some felt, tulle, and sturdy interfacing. I've sewn with interfacing before, but in the past I've used light to medium weight interfacing. This stuff? Was crazy sturdy.

I cut out a triangle shape from the aqua felt- in retrospect I should have made the bottom curved, but I didn't think about that until too late. The bottom part was the length of the birthday girl's head circumference (so, if the head you are sewing for is 18 inches around, you want an 18 inch bottom), plus an inch for her to grow into it. I cut the same shape out of the interfacing and ironed it onto the felt.

Once that was done, I cut the "R" out of purple felt and appliqued it onto the aqua felt. I used an iron on fusible web fabric to attach the "R" to the aqua felt before I sewed it. I wanted to make sure it didn't slide out of place. I just used a simple zig zag stitch to attach it.

Before sewing up the side seam of the hat, I took my tulle (4 strips- 2 each of aqua and purple) and attached them to the top of the hat- with the short ends facing in towards where the seam would be.

Then, I sewed the two sides of the triangle together and once I was finished, I turned it inside out. Viola! Quick and easy project.

Later this week I'll show you the other pieces of the dress up set.

Personalized Onesies

More blogging goodness- Hooray.

My husband's coworker recently had a beautiful, healthy little girl. We wanted to give them a small gift (separate from the office gift) because we also do things with them socially.

Like myself, my husband's coworker is hoping that she can offer her daughter a wardrobe that isn't all pinks. If you've been in any store that sells baby clothing recently you'll know what a challenge that can be sometimes (personally, I've taken to shopping the boy section on occasion- what? My daughter can rock a guitar onesie like no one's business.)

Mom & Dad both enjoy comics which is something that we have in common. I decided to make some fun onesies for their new baby that would celebrate their love of comics and superheroes.

I took some scanned comic panels and arranged them in photoshop, and then printed reverse images onto iron-on material. From left to right we've got Women of DC, X-Men, and Tiny Titans. The inset photo (Girls Kick Butt!) is on the rear of the Tiny Titans onesie. They all turned out fantastic.

I think the next time I consider making a personalized gift like this, I'll look into printable fabric. It's a more permanent medium and I think the extra dimension would make the onsies even more interesting.

Wet Bags

Yeap, I'm totally posting two days in a row.

Yesterday I mentioned sending some gifts to my friends who recently had twins and I shared with you the humorous gift I made.

Today, I'm sharing one of the more practical gifts. Homemade wet bags!

Before I had my little zucchini muffin (she gets all kinds of bizarre vegetable nicknames because it's more fun than calling her "the baby," though we do that too), I never really considered the fact that I might need to bring an extra outfit for her in case she needed to change while we were out and about. Now? Sometimes I bring two extra outfits- because you never know.

The first time I had to change her clothes, I had no idea what to do with the dirty clothes. I didn't want to put them directly into my diaper bag because they might get everything else in there dirty. So, I scrounged up an old grocery bag to use. Which made me think, "Hmm...wouldn't it be nice to have a reusable and washable bag to put this stuff in?"

The answer, is yes, it is nice. I made these bags without a pattern, just kind of winged it. I based the shape on the brown paper lunch bags I used to carry to school- but a little larger. The bags are lined with washable rip-stop nylon and have velcro closures. You can see the lining in the inset photo above.

These are my new favorite baby gift. They're super quick and easy to make and the materials aren't at all expensive. They use about a half yard of fabric each (with some to spare- just in case of mistakes) and a little bit of velcro.

Baby Cross Stitching

Some friends of ours recently had twins. I wanted to send them a few gifts. Knowing how much the gifts we received have helped, I thought for a long time about what to send.

In addition to some more practical items, I stitched up this sampler for the new parents. They have a great sense of humor and I knew they would appreciate this.

The pattern is from Subversive Cross Stitch. I modified the pattern to include two pacifiers and changed the colors up a bit (I wanted something a little more neutral and brighter). I'm happy to say that the parents understood the spirit in which the gift was given.

Tomorrow, I'll share some of the more serious gifts.

Finally!

Michelles Diaper Cake
Originally uploaded by Cup O'Cake Designs

Back on January 3, I promised to reveal a secret project in a week. Here we are, a month later, and I am finally revealing the project.

Due to my camera issues, I wasn't able to get photos of the first diaper cake I put together (on January 3) which is what caused the delay on this post.

I have made a diaper cake before, but this time when I was looking for toys I had a hard time finding things that fit with the theme I was using. For the first cake (in January), I was going with a Rock & Roll theme- the parents met while in a band together and are expecting a boy. I found some interesting toys on Etsy, but I didn't have enough time to order them and await their arrival.

For Christmas, my husband got me the book One Yard Wonders. It's got 101 patterns for projects (ranging from home decor to accessories to clothing) that use only one yard of fabric. I flipped through the book and saw patterns for baby booties and bibs. I was sold immediately. If you can't find what you want at the store, why not make it?

Using the patterns as a springboard, I then decided to make two rattles from scratch to go with the cake. For the original cake I made two electric guitar shaped rattles.

The cake pictured above was for a baby shower last night. She and her husband do not know the sex of the baby (what a fun surprise!) and have painted the nursery in sage green and cream. She is my husband's coworker so I was able to find out the nursery colors as well as the fact that she had many elephant toys and stuffed animals as a child.

The booties and bib were made using One Yard Wonders. I cross stitched "Wild about Mommy" onto the bib, and handmade the elephant and corn cob shaped rattle toys. The elephant actually is not a rattle, but has a squeaker inside. (The corn cob is an inside joke between my husband and his coworker).

You can see more photos of this diaper cake on my flickr account.

Many thanks to M. Mulligan for the photo of the January diaper cake.

Ten Things Any Baker Would Love to Unwrap this Holiday Season

Long time no post, huh? I've been doing crafty things and baking, but I've been busy and forgetful when it comes to pictures. I'm sorry. But to make it up to you and your loved ones, today I'm featuring 10 gifts any baker would love to receive this holiday season.

1. Kitchenaid Stand Mixer.

If your favorite baker doesn't already

have one of these, you will

score huge points by giving them

one. They're expensive folks, so I understand that it may not be within

your reach. If it is, and

you can't make up your mind. Ask yourself this one question, "how often does my baker need to mix things?" Because if the answer is more than once a year, this is a perfect gift. The first time I made cookies after I bought my mixer? Amazing. www.kitchenaid.com

2. Extra bowl for the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer.

If your favorite baker already has a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer then I am willing to bet they've

discovered what I have: one bowl is not enough. I can't tell you how frustrating it can be to have to stall out on a baking project because you have to wash your mixing bowl before you can whip

up frosting or the other half of your dough, or whatever it is. Another mixing bowl will solve that problem. www.kitchenaid.com

3. BeaterBlade for your Stand Mixer.

If your favorite baker is anything like me, they get annoyed by th

e fact that their mixer (and these come for other Stand Mixers, not just

Kitchenaid's) leaves ingredients along the

edges and bottoms of the bowl. This

means we have to stop the mixer, regularly, so we can scrape down the sides (and bottom) of the bowl to ensure that all of our ingredients are incorporated. This blade has spatula like pieces on every side of it that scrape the bowl as you mix. Don't believe that it actually works? Head on over to the website to check out their side by side video comparison. I promise you won't be disappointed. www.beaterblade.com

4. A Spoonula.

What's a spoonula, I can hear you asking. Well, it's just what it

sounds like. A spoon and a spatula all rolled into one. A spoonula

will really help your favorite baker scrape their mixing bowl, to ensure they get all the dough, batter, frosting, or whatever out. Good for rolling up that last cookie, filling that last cupcake liner, or eating leftover dough. The price is so nice you should buy two.

www.crateandbarrel.com

7. Rolling Pin Bands

Does your favorite baker ever use a rolling pin? Chances are, they could use a set of rolling pin bands. Sure you can live without these, but why would you want to? These bands stretch and fit

over most rolling pins- one on either end. The bands then work to ensure that your dough is an even, consistent thickness. That means your cookies should cook for roughly the same lengthe of time, and no one's going to whine about how they got the "small"

cookie. Win, win, win! www.amazon.com

6. A Silpat Mat

Is your baker constantly complaining about cookies sticking to baking sheets or having to buy more parchment paper for baking

? This is a perfect solution. Silpats are reusable, washable mats that you can use on cookie sheets or jelly roll pans in place of greasing your bakeware or using parchment paper. They may cost a little more, but they're worth the price. www.silpat.com

7. A Cookie Spatula

I know, I can hear you asking me why in the world you need a special spatula for cookies. Is this 100% necessary? No, probably not. Is it extremely useful for someone who bakes a lot of cookies? Definitely. This particular cookie spatula is made out of silicon and has saved some of my more finicky cookies from breakage. This could even be a stocking stuffer! www.crateandbarrel.com

8. A Cake Stand

If your baker doesn't really decorate cakes, you can feel free to skip this one. However, if they do- this is a great gift. This cake stand tilts and rotates, allowing you to get into all the nooks and crannies of your cake without accidentally jamming a finger into the frosting. I have one that just rotates, which is nice, but not as nice as this one. www.wilton.com

9. Off Set Spatulas

This is another instance in which I recommend buying more than one. Off set spatulas are going to make your favorite baker's life so much easier when they're frosting a cake or cupcakes- or even just filling up their piping bags. They allow you to put just enough pressure on the frosting that you can smooth the surface without pushing too hard and leaving

uneven dents. Buy them in more than one size. Small is good for cupcakes, medium for cakes, and extra large is great for filling your piping bag. www.wilton.com

10. Cupcake Courier

I don't even want to talk about how I used to transport my cupcakes. The Cupcake Courier is a lifesaver! This thing holds and transports up to 36 (3 dozen) cupcakes. You can use one tray or all three at a time. Plus, the space between trays (and the lid) is big enough so that your beautiful frosting doesn't get smushed. The trays are all dishwasher safe. Plus, it comes in three very chic colors. www.cupcakecourier.com

So, there you have it. 10 amazing gifts for the baker in your life.

Wait, what's that you say? You have a baker in your life but you're not sure if they have these tools. So, you want ideas that won't overlap with any tools they might have already? Umm. Ok, no problem. I can do that.

2 Bonus Tools that your Baker will love:

1. Hostess Aprons

Hostess aprons are about the cutest things out there. These are stylish aprons (sometimes half aprons, sometimes full aprons) that are just asking to be worn when you have company. This isn't that dirty apron you abuse when you bake- this one is a special occasion apron. It's not something most bakers would buy for themselves, but it is something that every baker would love to have. I couldn't pick just one, so I encourage you to head over to www.etsy.com and search for "hostess aprons." Etsy is a website that features handmade products ranging from aprons to soaps to cards to patterns. Support handmade items and make your baker smile.

2. Deni LED Cake Tray

Alright, this is definitely a luxury item. I found it while I was looking around for recommendations and I thought it was so clever I couldn't resist posting it. Are you always struggling to cut the right amount of slices in your cake? This is the perfect product for you! You put your cake on this tray and then use the LED input screen to tell it the number of servings desired. The LED lights around the tray will then light up, showing you exactly where to cut your cake. Viola! You have the perfect number of slices. Unnecessary? Yes. Fun? Definitely.

Happy Holidays everyone. I hope you're all baking up your favorite holiday treats.