As promised, here is the tutorial for the Pinwheels.
Download fabric_pinwheels_tutorial.pdf
It's more blabla than pictures but I hope that you'll get what you need out of it. You are welcome to complain if it turns out to be obscure.
January 28, 2008
January 13, 2008
Making a Birthing Quilt
What is a Birthing Quilt?
A birthing quilt is something that I made up completely about half way through my pregnancy.
The idea was to make a twin size quilt, with cheerful colors, that I could bring with me to the maternity ward when I go into labor.
I must admit that for a first timer as myself the thought of delivering a relatively large ( to look at them through the nursery window) baby is a little bit disconcerting. So I devised a plan to make looking forward to the birth more appealing, less traumatic. I am sewing my own birthing quilt.
Being past 32 weeks you'd except it to be finished, but of course it isn't. So to get back on track I decided to share with you the pattern I whipped up, this way now other people know and I can no longer procrastinate.
That said I have already made a whooping 75 blocks!
The block I am showing is terrific to make Moda 'Charm pack' quilts. It can be made any size you'd like.
This is a very quick block, unless you become lazy and stop working on the project for weeks like I did!
Download birthing_quilt_pattern4.pdf
January 09, 2008
Chickpea Infant Bib pattern
The January free pattern download has arrived! I don't know if I'll be able to do this every month this year but it would sure be fun. Could it be a New Year's resolution... I'm afraid not. Last year I decided to try and go vegan but instead I got pregnant. I now sometimes will hide and eat McDonald hamburger in secret, destroying all evidence before I get home. Those resolutions can have weird side effects, be warned!
The pattern is for a small bib, that is easily customized with printable fabric or embroidery. It would make an excellent shower gift in multiples and is so light that you could send some all over the world. I have just loved making this pattern and the prototypes, using really bold print fabrics that are hard to fit in a quilt. They also go in the washer and drier nicely, where they wrinkle a little to a beautifully cool finish!
As usual with those, please only make bibs for yourself or as gifts, and not for sale. but DO send pictures, I just love pictures!
Download bib_pattern_final.pdf
here is a pic of the shape of the bib
January 01, 2008
Making Baby Things with 3 yards of Flannel
Around Christmas time Joann's has all kinds of irresistible sales... such as $2 a yard flannel. I don't usually buy fabric from them being that I work for a fancy fabric store (makes you sort of a fabric snob). But those little owls looked so Japaneses to me I had to give them a chance. So for a grand total of six green ones I left with 3 yards of owls. What to do with them now ?
Last Friday I turned 30 weeks pregnant, and suddenly the thought that I haven't actually made anything for the baby pointed its ugly head. I have since entered an industrious period and here is the result of phase 1:
one square swaddling blanket, one changing pad, two burp cloth.
A few words of explanation:
3 yds of flannel, scrap of terry cloth, contrasting cotton thread.
For the square swaddling blanket, use the width of the fabric minus the selvages as side dimension. Once you have two squares of exactly the same size, iron them right sides together and trace round corners with a pictogram pen and a plate. Cut the rounded corners to shape. Sew a half inch seam all the way around leaving a few inches for turning.
Turn the blanket, iron the seams flat, shaping the corners.
Sew a decorative stitch along the edge with a contrasting
color thread.This step will close the turning hole. I chose an heirloom stitch with a wing needle
because the motif reminded me of the XXX on the fabric. The extra thickness you get from using a 1/2 inch seam creates some stabilizing for the embroidery stitch.
For the changing pad, use as much of the left over flannel you'd like. ( Mine is about 24inch by 18 inches finished). Cut a piece of terry the same size as your flannel and repeat the same steps as for the blanket: iron, round, sew, turn, iron. This time I just topstitched the right side edges, because the terry makes a bulky seam.
For the burp cloth, I ended up with enough fabric for four equal rectangles. The process here is the exact same as for the blanket, except much faster!
In the end, you can make this set as a gift for a friend in about the time it take to watch a movie, or two episodes of Law and Order (your choice). I decided to practice my swaddling skills with the blanket on a large sock monkey. It went very well, the monkey cooperated without a sound, although his arms had a tendency to stick out. Once I picked him up however something weird happened, I felt a strange emotion, as if it was suddenly for real, the baby, all of it. I managed not to cry which is a good thing because I wasn't alone in the room... close call.
PS: A lot of great books and patterns I read have rectangular swaddling blanket, they recommend buying 36 inches of fabric twice. I think that from what I have seen and heard from my friends babies, a square blanket works better. As we all know babies are not actually made of socks and its easier when you don't have to struggle with one arm to find out which way is which (on the blanket not the baby). On the plus side of buying 42 inches twice, the blanket ends up bigger and will be useful much longer, or so I am told...
PS: Thanks to eveyone for their super nice comments on this post. I feel really energized to make more and more. If anyone needs more in depth instructions or pictures I will be glad to provide some.
December 16, 2007
Felt Tree Skirt How-to
This picture is the result of the Tree Skirt experiment conducted with the thick felt I made in the last post. I am happy that I had so little time to think about what I was doing, this way it was really spontaneous! It's minimalist and it hides the Uber-ugly plastic tree-stand underneath. We found a really European looking tree this year. It makes me feel back at home. Unfortunately this kind of branches doesn't take well to electric lights. They are too far apart and the strands look a bit weird. So we chucked the idea.
This project take an hour at most if your felt is ready. (Read last post to see what this is about.) The total cost for the skirt was $9 with a 50% off coupon at 
Joann's. That fact alone makes me happy !
I used two yards of the white felt, one yard for each half circles. The felt shrinks a lot as it thickens so the skirt won't be 72 inches wide in the end. Once washed there is no risk to see anything through the material, it is completely opaque. Find the middle of each long sides and place a pin. Tie a string to that pin as shown right. Make the string as long as you can to get a half-circle out of the cut of felt. You will use that string as a compass. On the other end of the string tape a disappearing ink pen, see picture below. Draw a nice half-circle holding the pin in one hand and keeping the string straight.
Make a smaller circle, mine is 3.5" radius close to the pin. Cut both half-circles on the line with pinked shears, regular scissors will do the trick too. From the left-over felt cut two bands, about 1.25" wide. I used pinked shears on one side of each band too. You will sew these bands on each side of one of the half-circle. My seam allowance is 1/4 in. and the seam length is 4mm (long), you are working with really thick layers of felt here.
The picture below gives a view of the sewn band. Although it might be hard to see that both sides of the band are sewn on the back. The buttons are sewn on the other half-circle. I used four vintage red buttons for each sides, eight in total. Which means that the button holes are 
on the thick two layers side. I used a simple seam reaper to cut the holes with no apparent problems.
By this point you should be able to button each side of the skirt and put it on the tree. It really goes quite fast and leaves you loads of time to sew on buttons, rickrack or even embroider it.
I decided, in part because of exhaustion, that mine would remain white as snow, as long as it's not covered in cat hair!
December 07, 2007
December 04, 2007
Christmas Pixie Pattern and tutorial
The pixie pattern has arrived ! here: Update: sorry but the pattern is no longer available for download (sad!)
The photo-tutorial is also ready for you to use.I have been working on this project way too many hours so I am sure it's filled with typos and such. So please, don't hesitate to ask questions and to give me feedback. What I would really love is to see some pictures of your creations.
A little note of advice: the smaller your pixie, the harder to sew. So don't hesitate to enlarge the pattern on a copy machine. You'll have to resize the limbs but that should be easy.
Please remember that this pattern is there for you to enjoy but not to sell. Thanks !
All seam allowances are included and all seams are 1/4".
Pour les francophones, Vous pouvez poser des questions si vous avez des problemes de traduction!
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