Free Bib Pattern

Lets face it, keeping baby faces clean is a full time job. Keeping their clothes clean doesn't have to be though. OK, maybe that's not true, cleaning baby clothes is definitely a full time job; but keeping drool and food off of them can be a bit easier. That's where bibs come in.

Baby bibs are really a necessity when it comes to making supplies for our little ones. They can be pretty expensive to purchase, but when you make them yourself, they can cost next to nothing!

Lets get started.

To begin making baby bibs, you'll need to make a plan. 

Which bibs do you need to make? What phase is your baby in and going to be in soon? Take a look at the checklist below to see what you need to have in your bib arsenal.

• The Drool Bib
• 0-6 months (for when your baby is in the drooling phase)
• The Cereal Bib
• 4-8 months (for when your baby is starting baby food)
• The Shoulder Snap Bib
• 4-8 months (similar to the cereal bib, but snap is on the shoulder)
• The Dinner Bib
• 5 months - 4 years (for when your child is eating solid foods)
• The Spaghetti Bib
• 4 months - 4 years (A large bib with a snapping pocket for messy meals)

Joy is modeling the Cereal bib

How many bibs do I need to have?

This is a real question that really depends on a few factors. 

First factor is your individual baby. If your baby is a drooler, and you make drool bibs, you might get away with having only one per day. But if your baby drools excessively, you'll want to change the bib 4-5 times a day. 

Second factor is how often are you washing? If you wash your baby's clothing and bedding separately from the rest of the family's, then you might only wash it once a week. In that case, you'll need more bibs than if you wash them with the rest of the family's laundry. 

What's someone to do who doesn't have a baby yet? 

I'd start with making 3 of each type of bib. Once the baby comes, you'll get a better idea of what your needs are. When you reach the stage where you want the baby to start using bibs, you'll have a desire and time to do something at your sewing machine. Don't feel like you need to rush to get it all done before the baby arrives.

5 baby bibs that coordinate make a great baby gift!

How to make baby bibs as a gift?

Making baby bibs as a gift is easy and fun! For a gift, I usually make one of each type. That's a bundle of 5 bibs that goes from birth to 4 years old. If you make the bibs in coordinating colors and fabrics, it is a pleasure to give the gift, and even more of a pleasure to open!

So how do I make a baby bib?

I have a sewing pattern for the baby bibs here. 

If you want even more of a visual, I have free bib making class with two of my daughters while we made a few of these bibs. View the free bib video below.

Don't forget to get the printable bib sewing pattern for the template and the step by step tutorial.

Happy sewing!

Fabric Necklace Pattern

Accessorizing babies is so much fun. I love to put fabric necklaces on my little ones. Is there anything better than being able to whip one out in 10 minutes? Now you can with this fabric necklace pattern.

This tutorial for a fabric necklace is super simple and it takes items that you might already have laying around in your house or craft room! 

I give you tips on length of your fabric as well as ideas to tie or put a snap on the end to secure the necklace in place.

I love that the head accessory can match the necklace.

This easter dress wouldn't be complete without the adorable necklace

I also give you adult sizes for this necklace pattern so that you can make some for yourself for any outfit! It's also an excellent way to make a teething necklace that will look cute on you, and will keep a little one busy.

Perfect length. I love how it naturally follows the line of the shirt.

Even busy babies won't mind being accessorized because it won't get in their way!

I can't wait for you to try this fabric necklace pattern! let me know if you have questions!

Click here for the pattern

How to fix a plastic snap

I love my snap press. It makes me happy to attach great snaps to anything. Whether a diaper, or clothes, I know that the snaps will outlive the item that I'm making. Unfortunately I tend to fly through my projects sometimes, and that can make for some 'snappy' disasters. I frequently attach a snap backwards or in the wrong place. Then I'm stuck with it. What makes matters worse, is that snap attachment is almost always the last step to a project!
I have a new solution! I made a quicky tutorial video to show off the new way that I'm removing messed up snaps.

If you can't watch the video, here's the quick version.

My husband had a soldering iron in the garage that never got used. It has a pointy tip on the end and it gets really hot! If your husband doesn't have one, they are very cheap on amazon:

If you put the snap on wrong, simply heat up the soldering iron and put the pointy tip into the snap. It will melt. While it's hot, pull the snap part. It's that simple! It comes right off! Just be careful not to lay that soldering iron on anything in your sewing room or you'll have a melted or burned mess on your hands.

Diaper Cover Patterns - Read before you buy anything

Understanding how diaper cover patterns are constructed will help you choose which pattern to use.

When shopping for a baby diaper cover pattern, whether free or paid for, you are going to want to consider how it is constructed before you do anything. This is about fancy diaper covers, not cloth diaper covers.
Below is the low-down on diaper cover patterns & tutorials to take the guess work out for you so that you don't waste time or money.
If you want to skip all the reading and check out my diaper cover pattern, go for it! You won't be disappointed!

Types of Diaper Covers and ways that they are constructed:

• Cloth diaper covers

• These are used to cover a cloth diaper to make it waterproof. This is not the type of diaper cover that I am discussing today.
  

• Single layer diaper covers

• Sewing in elastic
• Can be made with elastic touching and pinching the baby's skin
• Bias Tape Elastic Casing
• Diaper covers can be made by using biased tape as a casing for elastic around the legs and waist. This keeps the elastic off of the skin but can be a pain to work with so I would call it intermediate level sewing. By using bias tape, the leg of the diaper cover will come down a bit more then typically desired.
• Fold over elastic casing:
• Diaper cover patterns frequently are made this way, but it is a bit tricky. In a nutshell, you fold over the raw edge inward and sew a casing for elastic in the waist and legs. I personally don't prefer this way because  I like things to match up when I sew them....and the leg holes DO NOT match up when folding over the casing.
• Using FOE elastic
• very few diaper covers use FOE (fold over elastic) as a binding. This is a neat idea, but there are limited colors of FOE that would match fabrics that you might be using.
  

• Lined diaper covers

• The diaper cover pattern that I have is made this way. I use a lining to create elastic casings. This way, most seams are completely hidden as well as the elastic. Everything matches up properly everytime so you don't have to worry about tearing out stitches.

But what about ruffled diaper cover patterns?
These are also constructed in a few ways. 

• Ruffles

• Diaper cover patterns often will be for ruffle diaper covers. These are SO cute! But what happens if you need to make a diaper cover for a boy? Do you HAVE to add ruffles?
• Many instructions will have a multi-pieced tutorial for ruffled diaper covers that do not include instructions to make a regular, UN-ruffled diaper cover.
• My pattern and tutorial includes both! The Ruffle diaper cover & the regular diaper cover.

• Types of ruffles
• There are the type of ruffle that is ruffled on the top and frilly at the hem
• There are the type of ruffle that is ruffled in the center and frilly at two hems.
• My diaper cover pattern has a ruffle that is on the top

• Serger rolled hem or Sewing machine hems

• Before you purchase a pattern, you need to make sure there is directions for the machine that you have. For example, many people only have a sewing machine and not a serger - those people need a pattern that is geared toward sewing machines. Otherwise the directions for the ruffle will keep you guessing.
• My pattern has directions for both serger & sewing machine instructions so you can use either!

   

Elastic measurements - do they exist or do you have to guess?

• Measure it yourself or Guess

• It is VERY common in diaper cover patterns that are circulating around the internet for the author to say "measure the waist" and use that measurement. While that might be good, what about if you are making the diaper cover for a gift? Or what if you are making the diaper covers for your unborn baby...or even a few sizes up? This doesn't make any sense to me.

• Wrong elastic measurements

• It is also very common for elastic measurements to be COMPLETELY OFF! Whoever thought that a nb waist is 18-20" is out of their mind. Yet I frequently have customers who tell me of their previous experience with these HUGE elastic measurements.
  

• Real elastic measurements

• My pattern gives REAL elastic measurements. If your baby is a bit larger then most, then by all means measure and use that measurement. If you are like me, you are sewing at naptime though and require the measurements on hand.

Lastly, my take on the diaper cover pattern options

By now you have probably seen that I obviously have my own design. :) I hope you try it. I have 100% money back guaruntee with my patterns...because I know you'll love it if you use it.
Since you are searching for a diaper cover pattern, just use mine. You'll love it - and you'll especially love how it looks, fits and feels on your baby. The best Diaper Cover Pattern ever is just a click away.

Swaddling Blanket Pattern - Finally a solution to no sleep!!

Will a swaddling blanket pattern save your life? Yes - if you have a baby! Make your own perfect swaddling blanket with my swaddling blanket pattern! It has a front pocket for baby's legs, velcro tabs on the wings, and it fits any baby perfectly from newborn to 12 months!

Have you ever tried to swaddle an angry baby at 2am? I have. It's terrible - first you can't get the screaming baby's arms down which make it impossible to wrap comfortably. When the arms stop flaring, the baby is kicking the blanket down. When your struggling has finally got the baby wrapped up, you realize that you should have changed her diaper. Start all over. This was my life - until I designed the swaddling blanket pattern.

This swaddling blanket has a front pocket that you place your baby into - screaming - kicking - flailing...it doesn't matter because the baby will still go into the pocket. Once the baby is in the swaddler pocket simply wrap the wings over your baby and touch tape them into place. VOILA you have a PERFECTLY swaddled baby in 3 seconds who is already showing signs of cheering up!

So why should you buy this swaddling blanket pattern over any other? Because this one is the best. :)

Seriously. Not only are there 33 colorful and crystal clear images to guide you in this sewing experience, but the detailed descriptions rock. The pattern pieces fit together perfectly and go together in a snap.

The velcro strips are in the absolutely perfect locations for adjustability. Like I said, this fits babies from nb-12 months so there has to be adjustability.
The shoulder area is contoured to fit your baby. It really does fit nice and tight without you worrying about bulk by the face.
Even the foot area of the front pocket has 'comfort darts' that allow extra room for baby's feet.

This swaddling blanket pattern is certainly the best one available. 

I want you to be happy with your purchase of this pattern. In fact, if it's not everything that you hope it will be, I'll give you $ back! Yup - I'm so confident that you will absolutely love this swaddling blanket pattern, that if you don't like it, I'll give you 100% refund. 

So try it today! There's nothing to lose! Click here to go to the swaddling blanket pattern

Crib Sheet Pattern - Perfect fit this time!

Recently I wanted to make crib sheets for my baby. I tried different patterns and not one of them fit right. So of course I decided to take matters into my own hands and make a crib sheet sewing pattern for myself and my customers. Of course crib sheets double as toddler bed sheets. But what about a toddler bed flat sheet? You got it! I have also made a toddler bed sheet pattern that includes fitted and flat sheets.
Want to check it out? See my Crib Sheet Pattern and let me know what you think!

This pattern fits all standard crib mattresses. A standard crib mattress is 51-52" x 27.5" x 5-6". Measure your mattress - I bet you have a standard size.

This crib sheet pattern comes with directions to make crib sheets out of many types of fabric. I have quite a few fabric ideas on the tutorial. Don't worry though...I won't make you find some outrageously wide fabric - it uses regular widths! You can make a crib sheet with standard 44/45" wide designer fabrics, broadcloth, flannel or even 60" wide minky or fleece fabric.

Speaking of fleece: Have you ever heard of sewing FLEECE CRIB SHEETS? Oh...these are the most wonderful thing. They are not only incredibly soft, but fleece crib sheets draw moisture away from your baby's face. This helps to keep tears, spit up, or drool off of your baby's cheeks so that rashes don't appear. As a mom of 6, I have had my fair share of rashes and fleece sheets were the only thing that kept them dry. Use this crib sheet sewing pattern to make fleece crib sheets for your baby!

Are you in a financial crunch with a baby coming due soon...or are you trying to save money by making your own crib sheets? If making crib sheets cheaply is what you are going for, I have a few money saving tips in the tutorial as well! Heck, you can match your decor too with these money saving tips! These tips not only help you save money, but give you great ideas on how to recycle things that you wouldn't have thought of otherwise. Almost all of my patterns have 'budget friendly' ideas which include cheap places to buy fabric for the project, where to get fabric for free, where to get fabric to recycle..etc. The thing that irritates me most about sewing things for myself is that sometimes it can cost more then buying...so I like to find ways to stay considerate of mine and my customers budgets. Use this crib sheet sewing pattern to save yourself some money!

I don't require my customers to do any 'figuring' with any of my patterns. The measurements & directions are laid out very clearly so there isn't any guessing. All of my patterns, including this crib sheet pattern, also come with step by step directions with VERY clear images on how to do that step. Each step has AT LEAST one image. You don't need to guess or spend time trying to figure something out...I have it figured out for you.

This pattern & tutorial comes with a printable pattern piece. All of my tutorials and patterns are pdf files which can be printed on a home printer using standard 8.5 x 11" paper. The pattern pieces require NO SCALING as they are already made to size. 

This crib sheet pattern is incredibly easy! Try it today!

Nursing Pillow - Do you need one?

Do I need a nursing pillow? What type should I buy?

This is often a question that people ask when they are getting ready to have a baby. If you have never nursed before, you might wonder if you will even be able to....and spending an extra $50 on a nursing pillow doesn't sound likely. So what is the point of having one anyway?
When I had my first baby, I didn't have a nursing pillow right away - and within a week I had to have one! Many women nurse exclusively, as I have with all of my children. When you are holding a baby in your arms for a few minutes at a time, you might not think about having a 'helper' to hold up your baby....but When your baby has been nursing for 30-50 minutes, you quickly realize how badly your back, shoulders and arms hurt!
The point of a nursing pillow is to help you hold your baby. It eases pressure on your back and shoulders and allows you to sit straighter and more comfortably. Your baby can rest in your arms at a height that is comfortable for you to hold him while he is breastfeeding.
If you decide not to breastfeed, a nursing pillow is still a great way to be comfortable while snuggling your baby. You will be holding your baby day in and day out for the first couple months...do It comfortably with good posture - use a nursing pillow.
There are other great ways to use a nursing pillow as well. One way to use a nursing pillow is to lay it on the floor. Then place your swaddled baby in a semi-upright position. This allows your baby to see around the room (and see you) while you are doing all the things new parents have to do. Another way to use the nursing pillow is when your baby starts to sit. Simply place the pillow on the floor around your sitting baby. This will help them stay upright as well as be a soft place to land when they inevitably topple over.
If you are looking into purchasing a nursing pillow, there are a number of brands available. Through experience however, we have come to see that they are all very similar. The generic pillows are identical in functionality as the big brand names yet offer a lesser cost.
The brand name pillows have some pretty cute covers though - for the solution to this, I recommend either sewing a nursing pillow cover yourself, or going to Etsy.com and buying a handmade, great quality cover that will fit your pillow.
If you are at all crafty, you can easily sew a nursing pillow for free or for just a couple dollars. I bet you have all the necessary tools/supplies needed in your home to sew one of these yourself by re-purposing a couple things that you don't use anymore (old pillows, stuffed animals, sheets...etc).
When shopping for or sewing new baby items, you can do without a lot of things. However, make a nursing pillow a priority. You'll be glad you did.