Whale Plushy

For this last Christmas, I decided I wanted to make something personal for two of the babies I was doing gifts for. I planned to do one for Dexter too but haven't gotten around to it yet. I swear I do way more crafting/sewing for gifts than for myself/us. Any one else that is crafty do the same thing?

I found this tutorial when I was looking for a stuffed animal to make. I wanted something fairly simple and who doesn't love a whale!

Here is the tutorial with printable pattern pieces and I followed it step by step. I did the larger size whale and I'm glad I did because some of the curves were a little tricky to sew around and it would have been even harder with a smaller pattern.

You could add eyes with buttons but I like them without. It takes more stuffing than I thought it would and I used a little corner tool to help push the stuffing into the small areas but you could also use the opposite end of a wooden spoon. This makes a great gift for someone! I would definitely make another one and hopefully I'll get around to it eventually :)

Bright and colorful nursery

I realize I've been a complete blogging slacker. I don't know why I thought I'd have more time for this being a stay at home mom but I definitely have less haha. I can't promise how often I will post but I have some fun posts to share (including this one) that I hope to get around to soon.

The nursery in our home is probably the most decorated and most complete of all the rooms. I had a vision for it and it came together just like I hoped... this room makes me so happy! I shared the painting of the aqua nursery here.

I didn't want a particular theme in the nursery and wanted it to be bright and colorful and happy. I knew I wanted animals in it but not all themed around one animal. After finding the crib skirt and curtain fabric everything came together to go along nicely with those. The source list for everything I can remember, is at the bottom.

To the right of the door when you enter is the diaper changing area and dresser with photo collage above it. It is a mix of photos, printables, a mirror and a wooden painted letter. In the corner is a small trash can and the cloth diaper pail

On the left wall after you enter is the cube organizer that contain toys, books and a few bins. Two of the bins serve as laundry hampers and the other two hold blankets, babywearing wraps and extra wet bags. The door on the right side of the cube shelving is the closet... redo here.

Two of my favorite things on these shelves are the Hobbes that Dexter confidently points to when you ask him "where's Hobbes?" and the Star Wars print which was the first thing Eric and I bought for baby at a vintage bi-annual market when I was pregnant. It says "Dad, you are my father".

The opposite wall of the entry door has the crib and glider recliner. I've always loved the vintage look of the jenny lind crib. I spent many many hours in that chair and it was totally worth every penny. Since it is microfiber it cleans easily which is important when you have a reflux baby :)  The flashcards and thumbprint frame with thumbprints from people at my showers are two of my favorite part of the nursery. I have always loved the look of hanging flashcards in a nursery and it was the perfect way to have animals without it being too themey.

The final wall to the right of the crib has two windows and a little side table next to the glider. It was the perfect size for my water and phone and any other essentials while nursing. It was originally pink and my parents painted it yellow for us. My rocking chair and teddy bear from when I was a child are also on this wall. I had planned to add pictures or something on the wall in between the windows but haven't yet.

Over a year later and I still love this room. Good thing since I go in here many times a day!


Sources
Dresser: Craigslist
Diaper organizer: Amazon
Changing pad: Amazon
Changing pad covers: made by my mom
Dr. Seuss print: free online
Mirror: Target
Wooden letter: Craft Cuts
Robot print: etsy
1 Samuel print: made by me in photoshop
Frames: Target and HomeGoods
Cubby Shelves: IKEA
Gray linen bins: Target
Alphabet box: HomeGoods
Sunshine canvas: HomeGoods
Ceramic A, Z blocks: made by my mom
Books: various
Clemson piggy bank: Clemson Variety and Frame Shop
Star Wars print: Sable and Gray
White noise machine: Amazon
Red rocking horse: Lake Norman Antique Mall
Nightlight moon: Amazon
Crane truck: IKEA
Shoes: made by my mom, HomeGoods
Little People blocks: consignment sale
Camera monitor: Amazon
Alphabet animal flashcards: etsy
Crib: Amazon
Crib sheet: made by my mom and I
Crib skirt: made by my mom and I
Glider recliner: Best Storytime
Side table: HomeGoods, paint color: BM Dalila
Lamp: Goodwill
Cork lamp shade: target, only in store
Gray plush rug: HomeGoods

Stork Diaper Bundle

I saw this idea on pinterest but the link only took me to an uploaded photo with no instructions or other details so I decided to figure it out on my own and then hopefully this post will help others that may stumble upon it. What would we do without pinterest?

 Stork Diaper Bundle

Materials

- receiving/swaddle blanket (this one is about 40 in by 40 in... made by serging around a piece of flannel)
- white cardstock and a color printer
- diapers - I used 24 size 1 pampers swaddlers
- yarn or twine or ribbon to tie diapers and stork

Find an image of a stork that you like. This is the one I used. I opened it up in the paint tool and used the eraser to erase the bundled part since I was creating the bundle out of diapers. It shortened his beak a little but it still looked completely fine since it starts to be black at that point anyway. Save the image. Print it out on white cardstock and then glue that piece of cardstock to the front of another piece so you have a double-thick piece of cardstock which will make your stork less flimsy. Using scissors, cut around the stork.

Roll up your diapers and secure the roll by tying yarn, twine or ribbon around it.

Fold your receiving blanket into thirds or fourths (hot dog style) depending on how big it is. You want it to be a little bit wider than the length of the rolled up diapers. Tie the ends in a double knot.

Place the rolled diapers into the tied up blanket. It helps to have two people for this so one person can hold the blanket up in shape so it doesn't collapse down as diapers are added by the other person. You can kind of fiddle with it to get the shape you want. Then tie your cardstock stork to the knot at the top again using yarn, twine or ribbon.

And your stork diaper bundle is complete! I liked putting it up on a cake stand for a nice centerpiece look.

I would also suggest not using newborn sized diapers so the new mom doesn't have to take it apart and undo the diapers right away if she doesn't want to. I think this is a great alternative to a diaper cake since it is less involved but is still a great decoration at a baby shower and useful to the new parents!


Get the full details from this Cute as a Button Shower.

Rubber Duck Baby Shower

At the end of November I threw my sister in law a Rubber Duck Themed Baby Shower. I asked for her thoughts on what themes she liked and this was one of the top ones. They did not find out so it also needed to be gender neutral which this theme worked well for. An old friend of hers did the invitations and ordered a cake. I made the decorations and some of the food. Eric and Keith's mom generously offered up her home and thankfully their Aunt Kathy and two friends, Carla and Emily, offered to help make food.

Note - I had challenges getting enough light in the photos because the house is a bit dark on that side so I had to really amp up the exposure in some of them.

I made the Baby Duck banner and circle garland using my Silhouette and then the garland is sewn together... it's the easiest garland to make.

Megan's mom brought these delicious sugar cookies from her favorite bakery and they were a big hit!

My mom gifted Megan a diaper cake which also served as the perfect centerpiece. She made the felt duck on top... very impressive.

The shower spanned lunch time so we had a lot of food. Here was the menu:

- Little sandwiches - chicken salad, pimento cheese
- Pasta salad
- Muffins
- Hummus and veggies
- Ranch onion dip with pretzels
- Corn dip with chips
- Lemonade and water served in mason jars

I scattered little rubber ducks on the tables and used food labels I made (a post on those in the future).

This was the sign on the door I made welcoming everyone inside.

And I decorated the mantle with some onesies I made using my Silhouette. Of course the Clemson one you have probably seen here on the blog before and then the other two are related to Megan's job and Keith's job.

Mom to be with the two grandmothers.

First everyone ate and then we started in with fun activities and games. Megan's friend Jen supplied the wonderful Wishes for Baby cards to fill out and Megan's sister Nichole came up with the other activities and games. We guessed M&Ms in a bottle, played pin the pacifier and paired up to try to make the best diaper out of toiler paper.

I made this boy duck and girl duck guesses foam board for everyone to put their name on and it was dead even (Abby was on the fence with girl first and then changing later). Guess we will find out who is right in less than a month!

After the games Megan opened up her gifts and everything was so cute and we did a book in lieu of a card so that there is a nice library started for Baby LaForce. I only wish I had taken a photo of the Clemson quiet book that Carla made... it was fabulous!

To finish out the shower we served the cake.

We got a photo with the Clemson girls (minus Susan who happened to be in Clemson to root our Tigers on to a win over the Gamecocks. Yeah!).

Carla is due just a few day after Megan so we got a great bump photo of them. Can't wait to meet these two babies!

Sister in laws!

Eric and Keith's family was also a big help taking down the shower. I was extremely thankful for their help (especially being pregnant 13 weeks at that time) as a shower has lots of things to clean up and take down afterwards.

The shower was a big success and it was a great day honoring the mom to be and her little one, nicknamed Peach. We are very excited for his or her arrival!

Cape on Backwards Baby Bib

I made this bib for my sister in law expecting a baby in February. We had a shower for her about a month ago that I hope to do a post on soon :) She likes to use the word fool a good bit like "that fool just cut me off" for example. I knew she had seen this phrase on pinterest before too and liked it. My mom and I found this free bib pattern for a reversible bib and I found some soft white fleece in my fabric stash as well as some fun gender neutral red and yellow fabric in her stash. I went with the toddler size bib thinking that the baby wouldn't really be wearing a bib until around 6 months and a bigger size will get longer usage.

I wanted one side with the white fleece and one side with red. We cut out the fabric using the pattern and followed the instructions but instead of having the raw edge (which would have been fine if not using fleece for one side) I liked the idea of the bias tape going around in a coordinating yellow color and adding some color to the white side. The bias tape part was the trickiest piece and next time hand basting first would be a big help.

After it was finished, I created the words design in my Silhouette software and printed it out on red heat transfer vinyl and ironed it on.

She got a great laugh out of it when opening it at her shower! Can't wait to see my newest niece/nephew in it!

I highly recommend the bib pattern, it was very easy to use.

My most ambitious sewing project: DIY Pouf

Much earlier this year, I was coerced into the most challenging sewing project I've ever done but in the end it paid off. That sewing project was a pouf. If you don't know what a pouf is, it is sort of like an ottoman but usually more attractive and softer. My pouf was finished in July but I just got around to taking some finished photos of it to share. But I am giving you a sneak peak at a couple of the new family room pillows I made a the photo below.

I had never attempted sewing a piece of furniture before and it was a bit intimidating but I had the craft girls over and the three of us figured out the steps together. We didn't finish them that day but got to where the shell was basically together and we had stuffed a few things in. Danielle actually had her denim one mostly stuffed.

I am not going to go through the steps one at a time because the BHG tutorial does just that and we followed that step by step. You have to register to get the instructions and pattern but you can opt out of any communications. None of us ended up using a tight woven burlap material like it did because we didn't think it would be as comfortable. I found mine gray fabric in the JoAnn's drapery/upholstery sale section for $9 a yard and you need 2 yards. It has a little bit of a church pew feel to it.. a little velvet-y but it is not velvet, if that makes sense at all.

You do need a lot more things to stuff it with than you think. This is what took the longest and I didn't even work on the pouf for a few months as I was waiting to clean out husband's closet so I'd have more pants and shirts to stuff in my pouf. Old towels work well too and there are at least 3 full sized towels in my pouf.

I found the finishing design with the embroidery thread to be a great activity while watching tv and didn't mind it at all and I usually HATE hand sewing type stuff. You have to do several stitches before it will look right... I did one and started thinking I was doing something all wrong but you need to do more for it to look like the right design. It helps to use a metal sewing gauge.

The cost breakdown: I already had an old sheet on hand for the lining, so I had to buy the outside fabric, thread, fusible bonding, embroidery needle and embroidery thread (it called for 4 skeins but I only used 2). So the whole pouf cost less than $30 to make using a coupon. And all the stuffing came from items I already had and I already had some poly-fill but even if you needed to buy poly-fill (use a coupon) that would just bump it up to $35. You'll end up with plenty of extra fusible bonding for future use too.

I would definitely make another one of these provided I had enough things to stuff it with as that was what took the longest. Guess this goes to show I should be braver with my sewing projects. We've been using it a bunch and it is very comfortable as a foot rest or as an extra seat in a pinch. The only complaint I have is that is it a little heavy due to all the stuff in it but it needs to be that way so it fills out and is a sturdy piece of furniture while only being filled with old clothes and towels.

Hope you decide to make your own pouf!