Fabric Bucket and Diaper Changing Mat

Last night, I was able to get some sewing done while baby napped. The other day, I had started a fabric bucket that I had found in a sewing pattern book I had gotten from the library. I decided to finish this. Because it uses upholstery fabric, I needed to use my heavy duty sewing machine that I got at Goodwill (my first sewing machine). After breaking a couple needles, I realized I was using light weight instead of heavy weight needles so I sent David out to buy me more. I also discovered the easiest way to thread the machine for this project was to have upholstery thread for the upper needle and regular thread for the bobbin. I only have one spool of upholstery thread that I had bought for the pouf so it's brown and didn't really look good on my dark blue fabric but that's okay. This bucket is for personal use anyway.

Boy oh boy was this project a pain! I thought it would be easy and it sort of was (after figuring out the broken needle problem) but sewing circles onto rectangles (the bottom of the bucket is a circle, to attach it, you sew it onto a rectangle) is not all that easy. Plus, the instructions were not very clear. I'm not very happy with the end result and it's smaller than I first thought it would be (as you may be able to tell from the picture, it's shorter than an iron). I would make a lot of changes if I were to make it again.

The other project I worked on last night only took 20 minutes, and most of that was spent tracing and cutting out the pieces. Our diaper bag came with a portable diaper changing mat. We have a changing table in the nursery (upstairs) but sometimes you want to change the baby downstairs. We had been using the mat from the bag but it's been a bit of a struggle to remember to put it back in the diaper bag every time. I decided to make my own.

I had some vinyl-y type fabric I had bought with no project in mind (it was really cheap and I liked the look of it---that's how I get most of my fabric). I decided to use this for both sides (top and bottom). Then I cut up an old blanket (the same one I used for my tree skirt) for the padding in the middle. I sewed it with the same idea as my burp cloths. Vinyl facing up, vinyl facing down, blanket on top. Leave a gap to turn. (I will note that because of the vinyl I used my heavy duty machine with the upholstery thread again). Then I top stitched it. I should've hand sewed the gap closed like I normally do but I decided the top stitching would be enough. Well, that ended up kind of messy to get all the ends tucked in and secure. It's okay though since again, it's just for personal use.

After I sewed it, I realized I should've sewed in ribbon to close it since it's really easy to roll up but there's not really a reason we would take this one on the go instead of the other one.

The lines you see going horizontal are just creases in the fabric. I wasn't sure how to iron vinyl without melting it. I also decided against putting a pocket on the bottom since I'll probably still be using this when baby gets bigger and I wanted there to be enough space on the mat and thought the pocket would take up too much space. Plus, we just keep the diapers and wipes on the end table right next to the mat anyway so I'm not worried about it.

To size the mat, I based it off of the one we already have but for those of you interested in making it without one to go off of, this mat is 12 inches wide by 24 inches long.

Water Resistant Fabric

I am getting frustrated at my fabric. There were some specific ones that I bought as the top layer of my reusable pads. Some are cotton, some are flannel. Currently, if you pour water on them or lay them in a puddle of water, the water beads up and pools or runs off instead of being absorbed into the material. This is true of new things, especially towels. So I washed them. I tried hot water. I tried cold water. I tried using (homemade) detergent. I tried using no detergent. I tried a vinegar rinse. I tried no extra rinse. I tried using dryer balls. I tried air drying them. These things got washed a LOT. If washing them was going to help, it would've by now. We never use fabric softener (which is what most people online seem to think the problem is). I also tried beating them up (twisting them, rubbing them, crumpling them). I am seriously out of ideas.

I am very disappointed because for once, I had a specific use for my fabric and it just isn't working out. Plus, I'm now not sure what to use to top my pads because this isn't working out. They're all different brands. They're from different stores. They weren't all bought at the same time. I truly don't get it. Some of the flannel topping I used for the burp cloths are from this bunch and after my excessive washing, they got absorbent. I'm not sure what makes those ones different from these ones. They were even washed together!

If anyone has ANY advice, I would really, greatly appreciate it because I am at my wit's end. I'm going to end up having to use this fabric for something else and I really don't want to.

The one thing I haven't tried is sun drying them (but that's because it's winter and we don't really get sun here in winter. I'll have to wait til spring).

DIY Burp Cloths

I have a variety of flannels and cottons with baby/nursery prints that I had planned to use to make things for Teeny. Most of these are fat quarters so I knew it had to be a small project. I decided to make burp cloths because they sounded really easy and I could get 3 burp cloths out of one fat quarter. We also need more burp cloths because we only bought a 4 pack and I hear you need more like 12-20 (depending on your baby and how often you do laundry).

Online, it appears most people use those pre-fold diapers and either use them plain or add a decorative strip. My mom used these and swears by them too but I didn't want to buy something in order to make mine so I used what I had on hand: microfiber towels (like the automative cleaning ones--you can get 2 for a 1 dollar at the dollar store).

I prewashed all my fabric (I usually skip this step but since it was going to be for a baby and their skin is so sensitive I thought it was necessary. It also added absorbency to the flannel). Then I cut each microfiber towel in half so it was approximately 7x12 inches (these sound small to me but if you put it on your shoulder, it actually covers a lot of space so I'm not worried about it. Plus, the store bought ones aren't much bigger either). Then I cut a fat quarter of flannel and a fat quarter of cotton in thirds the long way (in other words, cut the 22 inch side into 3 pieces, about 7 inches wide). I found this wasted the least amount of fabric and towel. You could technically do it in half and have 11 inches wide but then you waste 2 inches of your towel.

Then pin your three pieces together: cotton right side up, flannel right side down, and the towel on top (if you put the flannel on the bottom like I did, it gets stuck in your machine and you miss stitches. I'm not sure why but it's VERY frustrating so leave the cotton on the bottom. My machine didn't have a problem with the towel). Sew around the whole thing (I used about a quarter inch seam allowance) but leave a gap to turn. Turn it, iron it, and hand sew the gap closed. Then I top stitched about a half inch around the whole thing. Some people also say to top stitch it twice across the middle (cutting it in thirds) but I didn't find this necessary. Then you're done!

I made two last night because I ran out of time to finish my third one. The feet are my flannel side and the animals are my cotton side. I'm also not entirely sure why they ended up two different sizes (this was true before I even sewed them) but that's okay. I am very pleased with them. I did a water test on them (since I don't have a baby to do it for me yet) and the flannel and microfiber both absorb really well (and dry quick!) but the cotton for some reason is repelling the water, which is why I thought it would make a good back. It takes a good half ounce (in the same spot) before the cotton starts to feel wet.

Reorganizing My Fabric

Due to other projects, it is going to be a while before my sewing table/area in the library gets done. This currently puts me in the dining room (which is fine since we don't use really use it anyway). However, my fabric organization was starting to become non-existent and I was going crazy. I would know I bought something and then have an impossible time finding it on my shelf. Or, more commonly, my piles would tip over as I tried to look for things on the bottom.

I solved this by going to the dollar store and picking up some plastic storage containers (the ones about the size of a shoe box) and I sorted all my fabric into color categories (red/pink, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black/gray, white, brown, and miscellaneous for the ones that are too many colors to decide). The only container that is packed to the brim is blue, so this actually works out quite nicely. Now, I just know not to buy anymore blue fabric until I use up some more.

Some of my littler pieces (I call them my big scraps because they're smaller than a fat quarter but too big to be in my scrap bin) do have the potential to get lost in these but at least I know if I have it, where to find it. This also takes up a lot less space on my shelf so I have more room for my bigger fabrics (I only put my fat quarters or less in the bins) since the bins can stack.

I still have more organizing to do but by going through my fabrics like this, I can really see what I have. I decided to sort by color because my mother in law used to sort hers by category (holiday, seasons, polka dots, Asian, etc) but then she'd forget she'd have certain things when she was looking for something general because others were still by color. I thought about doing it this way but I want the potential to use all my fabrics (some day, it would be nice to get few enough that I'll feel like I need more. I'm not there yet and I probably have less fabric than a lot of people).

I also decided to reorganize my patterns, both the envelope ones and ones I already have cut out from previous things I've made. I had started keeping them in an accordion file folder thing (you know, those plastic things with like 7 folders in it?) but that was getting full really fast. I'm currently in the middle of fabric covering some binders so I can put all my patterns in sheet protectors and organize them that way. The fabric covering looks really cool but I'm running into some snags. I'll share later when they're done.

End of the Year Updates

I am back! David went back to work today. I find it really hard to get anything done when he's home just because we don't have a schedule anymore so my blogging kind of fell to the wayside. I apologize.

As always, the end of the year is a busy time but I managed to get a lot done! The main thing I am most proud of is reading 85 books in one year! Around the beginning of December, I had gotten sick and wasn't reading as adamantly as I was before and I got really behind. I managed to catch up and I finished two days early! My goal for this year is only 30 because with a baby, you never know what your day is going to be like. I doubt I'll be able to spend entire afternoons devouring books after Teeny is born.

I also sewed our curtain tie backs for the living room. I'm sorry I don't have a picture but maybe I will add one later. Since our curtains are gray and turquoise, I used turquoise fabric for the tie backs. You need almost a whole fat quarter, at least if you make them as wide as I did. I didn't taper them or curve them. They are just rectangles. I designed them after a headband I had made the previous night (that I'm also excited about!). I wanted them to be 2 inches wide with a quarter inch seam allowance so I cut three strips of 4.5 inches (I had three spots that needed a tie back). Then I folded them in half, sewed along the long, open side and flipped them. Then I ironed them with the seam down the middle of the back. The edges got folded in (to hide the raw edges) about a half inch (but you can do however much you like) and pressed. Instead of using interfacing, I top stitched a quarter inch around the entire thing (which will catch your folded in edges). Then I hand sewed on little plastic rings we had (you could also do d rings or anything similar) so they can hang on a hook by the window when you want them to hold the curtain. I think they look great and I regret not having a picture. They were really simple and a lot easier than what I found some other people doing online. Hopefully, the directions are clear enough.

We had the chance to freeze more meals before Teeny comes. We now have the quinoa with vegetables, chili, cream of potato soup with brats, and empanada filling. I'm hoping for more but this is a great start. For those of you interested, this is the empanada recipe I used (http://www.turntablekitchen.com/2012/02/argentinian-beef-empanadas-a-return-to-calm/) We did make a few changes and I would by no means call them authentic. Our dough wasn't working out (we only got 7 circles out of it anyway) so we decided to stack them (i.e., make a circle, fill it, put another circle on top and seal the edges) and that worked out better. We still ended up with a lot of extra filling and not enough dough (but that's fine because we just froze it). We didn't put an egg wash on top and we also left out the capers and the hard boiled eggs. It was still really good and we were really impressed with how they turned out.

I think that's enough updates for today. You can hopefully expect another blog post tomorrow and then returning to my regular schedule.

Finished Christmas Tree Skirt

Please ignore the dirty floor. The tree is in the foyer, which is still considered a construction zone. As you can see, it's not perfect but that's because it is nearly impossible to sew a circle without something bunching somewhere. It was almost really difficult to sew the binding to the inner circle (the one that goes around the tree stand) so if you look at it in person, it's a disaster. I may fix it next year but it's good enough for this year.

I didn't really follow a pattern for this that I can share. I wanted to make a different tree skirt but it ended up being too complicated to finish anywhere close to Christmas. Plus, it was only 18 inches across because it was meant for a table top tree. I extended the wedges to make it bigger for our tree (our tree bottom is 60 inches but it has a lot of room between the floor and the first set of branches so it didn't need to be that big). This skirt is 36 inches. Then I cut out 16 of my wedges (this gave it a little overlap over the opening that allows you to put it around the tree) from my fabrics. It's hard to see in the picture but I have a plain white, red poinsettias, gingerbread men, red and white polka dots, red swirls, red and green plaid with shiny gold, and red with branches. I originally had more green in there but red was still going to be too dominant because I don't have all that much green fabric left since making my leaf hot pad so I decided to do a green binding instead.

The binding actually worked out perfectly because I had made too much for my brother's blanket and this was almost the exact right size (I had just a little extra). This also made it less work for me since it was already folded like a binding.

All my fabrics were at least a fat quarter if not bigger. It was nice I could use the fat quarters though. I planned that on purpose because the original way I had extended the wedges made them 18 1/2 inches. I knew I wanted to use some fat quarters because they were Christmas-y so I cut the wedge to 18 inches instead. Of course, if you are using only bigger pieces of fabric, you could easily make the wedge bigger to whatever you want.

For my batting, I used an old fleece type blanket that was nice and thick. I decided not to do a backing on it because nobody seems the back of tree skirts anyway and the blanket was thick enough. It does look a little funny when you're sewing it though because the blanket is blue but that's okay.

Looking back, it was actually pretty easy to make, once you have the wedge (if you want to make a tree skirt but need a wedge, you can either use a wedge ruler (which I don't have) or find a pattern to a tree skirt that uses wedges and adjust it to your size). The hardest part was probably binding it. This is only my third ever binding I think plus it was on a circle. I'm not that technically gifted yet! I think it all turned out really nice though.

Our Christmas Decorations

The past couple days we have started to put up our Christmas decorations. We NEVER put stuff up before Thanksgiving but we have been known to do it the day after. Before just seems too early.

We had bought some new stuff on clearance after Christmas last year, so this was our first year using it. Our most exciting purchase was probably our solar LED white lights. We have them wrapped around the trunk of our pine tree out front. You do have to clear the snow off of the solar panel every time it snows but we haven't really had a problem. We like that these don't add to our electricity bill and we will most likely purchase more after this holiday season.

We also have multi-colored lights strung around our huge living room window (on the outside---when you string them on the inside, I think it looks weird). These are not solar or new. We really like them though, especially because it seems like most houses in our neighborhood only have white lights and those can look rather plain by themselves. This is the first year we have put them around our window so we had to put in nails to wrap around. Last year, we had them wrapped around our porch posts and that looked nice too.

Our front door wreath is not new this year but it still looks really nice. It's big and was too heavy for our magnetic door hook so we had to buy an over the door one. It has fake frost, berries, and pine branches. I obviously didn't make this one, like I did our fall one. Wreaths are a little hard to store though. We keep ours in a plastic bag on top of our ornament box.

Inside, we have our (fake) tree. We are almost done decorating it but we were both too tired to finish last night (plus we watched the live Carrie Underwood version of The Sound of Music). It comes pre-lit with white lights but we add a lighted star (that is too big to fit on the top of the tree because our tree is 8 and a half feet tall in our 9 foot foyer), garland (silver and blue), and ornaments.

This year, we have our little fabric Christmas tree and penguin that I made this past season. They're cute and help decorate our living room. We also have new bows we bought to put on our porch posts but have since discovered the wire to attach them is too small to fit around the pole so we are debating what to do with them. They may just end up on our tree.

I wish we had a mantle or a stair railing to wrap garland around because I always think that looks nice but we aren't getting either one. I also want to get a nativity scene but those are pricey so we will probably wait on that.

It is my family's tradition (and now David's and mine) to listen to Christmas music while decorating the tree. We listened to Pandora's station for country Christmas last night and it was really nice.

Now all that's left is Christmas cookies! We are making 28 dozen (7 different kinds) plus fudge. We are obviously going to have to share if we want to eat them all in time! We will most likely be making those next weekend (with our new mixer!)

Oh! And I will be making a tree skirt since we don't have one but I don't know that it will be done in time for this season. It's a rather tedious one but I'll be sure to post if I finish it.

Stuffed Turtle

I made a stuffed turtle! My picture doesn't do it justice but if you look at the tutorial I used, you can get a better idea. Mine has four different greens for the shell sections and then the head, feet, tail, and belly are all the same. I think it turned out really cute. It was fairly simple to make as well.

I will note that the tutorial includes the pattern but I couldn't make it print big enough. The two inch test square is more like an inch and a half so my turtle is a little smaller but everything still worked out okay. In this project, I learned how to sew and stuff tiny things (like the feet and tail) and I did struggle with it but it worked out well. I didn't pay enough attention to my seam allowances, mostly because the pieces were small and hard to work with, so on a few of my pieces you can see the seams on the outside. If I were to give this as a present, I think I'd try to fix that but since it's just for me, I'm leaving them. They bother me but they don't look awful.

Sewing the shells seemed to be the hardest part because of the curves and they didn't look like they formed a circle to me but in the end, I think that's the part that turned out the best! Definitely took me by surprise.

Now that I have made this, I feel like I could make other stuffed animals. I did like that this one didn't need any unusual supplies like to make the eyes or mouth (there are no eyes or mouth). Some things call for that but I don't think I"m ready to go out and buy that stuff yet. This is my first project I have come across in a long time that didn't even use interfacing! All you need is some scraps (I did use fat quarters but you don't need something that big), regular sewing supplies (machine, thread, rotary cutter, pins, etc), and fiberfill. That's it!

This project could easily be made in an afternoon and it turns out so cute. Here is how mine turned out (I once again apologize for the bad picture.)

So his head is on the left and you can't see his tail. What you may think is his tail is actually another leg.

Wet/Dry Bag

Do you remember way back when in March or earlier and I was working on making a wet/dry bag for my reusable pads? Well, I finally finished it this weekend! The project was started on my old sewing machine and it was basically my first machine project. It was also my first (and so far, only) project with a zipper. I was getting the instructions as to how to make it from David's mom. Then we kind of forgot about the project and by the time I rediscovered it, it had been months and I still didn't know the next step. It turns out, all I had left to do was sew along three of the four sides (not the zipper side for obvious reasons) and I was done. It literally took about two minutes to finish and I had been waiting months to finish it. Kind of funny. It definitely feels good to have it done though.

So the basic design is based off a bag I already have but this one has a liner (for the dirty pads) and a center piece (kind of like some wallets have) to keep the clean from the touching the dirty. The final bag only measures 8 x 5 but I think it is a handy size for even a smaller purse. I also had the option to square the bottom but decided not to since squaring the bottom on my tote bag was such a pain.

Obviously due to being pregnant, I haven't been able to try it out yet. I'm still excited for it and I think it's awfully cute. You could also use this design for anything else that you want two compartments for.

The outside takes less than a fat quarter and that's all you need if you don't want to line it. If you do want a liner, that'll also be less than a fat quarter but since I used a different fabric, I'm not sure if one fat quarter would do the job or if you'd be better off with two. The divider part also has interfacing in it (what doesn't?) to make it stiffer. It doesn't really matter what thickness you use since you'll be folding that piece in half anyway.

I'm not going to put all the details here but if you are interested, let me know and I'll see what I can help you with. This type of bag is very easy to make, not like the tote bag.

I apologize for the blurry, dark pictures. I was kind of in a hurry. Also, for the one with the center thing, it actually is the right size and doesn't bend like that naturally. I just bent it so it was easier to see.

Sleeping Eye Mask and 2nd Leaf

Also over this weekend, I made an eye mask (the type used for sleeping). I had some elastic left over from my bag bag project and I wasn't sure what to do with it, especially since I had such a hard time getting it in the casing. This was the perfect solution because I didn't have to run it through anything and it was almost the exact amount I needed (I may have an inch or two leftover..). This was a really simple project that took me about a half hour. I found the instructions here but it did take some deciphering to figure out what to do (I, for some reason, can't really read other people's instructions (even with pictures) and know what to do after the first read-through. The elastic step really made me pause for a while but looking back, there was no reason to be so confused.)

I had some soft cotton fabric for the outsides and then I used a black felt for the inside. I only top stitched it once (and I stitched the opening closed too because the top stitch wasn't close enough to the edge for that) and I admit, it's not very good but it was my first time top stitching anything.

It really blocks out light well but I haven't used it for sleeping yet. You could make a casing for the elastic if you'd rather but I think it's just fine this way.

In case you were interested, I finished the leaf for David's coworker last night. I did make a few mistakes this time, such as forgetting to make my browns (the veins) thinner than the rest of the strips and then I ran out of that fancy brown to use for the stem so I had to use plain brown (although I do like it this way). However, I did not do one side upside down this time so it does make the v's I was talking about before. I also had to use a different fabric for the back since I ran out of the other stuff but I think this goes with the requested fall theme.

I also top stitched it along the veins and down the stem. I still need to do that on mine but now that I have my walking foot, I can do that pretty quickly. This top stitching turned out better than my sleeping mask top stitching.

Table Runner

This weekend, the family project was a table runner. I had found a picture of one I liked online but there was no pattern. However, since my mother-in-law is a well-experienced quilter, she was able to come up with something. She didn't make one but since this took me nearly six hours, she was helping by the end of it (as was David). I also learned a lot this weekend, such as chain stitching.

So the one I liked was really bright fabrics so I gathered up all my bright stuff (I believe I had 17 total, mostly fat quarters) for the front. The back I decided to do dark colors but mostly because I didn't have big enough fabric to do a plain backing. The finished product is 50 inches by 13 inches.

You cut out 48 strips of your top fabric (2 inches by 9 1/2 inches) and sew them into pairs (here is where chain stitching is really helpful and makes it go faster). Then sew those pairs together (but only do 8 of them or your numbers won't come out right!). Then sew the remaining pairs onto your sets of 4. This sounds much more complicated than it is. Also, assume a quarter inch seam allowance and be sure to sew right sides together. Iron open in between each addition.

So now you have 8 squares. Cut 4 of these diagonally from top left to bottom right and the other 4 from bottom left to top right. Lay out all your pieces. This part gets confusing because of the different directions you want and how you now have A pieces and B pieces (depending on the way the diagonal goes). Also, 2 of them (one A and one B) are now extra). Here is what mine looks like. If you want to keep the diamonds in the middle, be sure to make your pieces face the right way. Other than that, design is up to you.

Once it's all laid out, you sew together the sections (they're sort of separated in the picture). It's easiest if you sew the diamonds first and then add the outer pieces to it. You'll have four pieces then. Then, you sew those together and your top is done!

Next, you cut out 35 strips for the back and sew these together (since you aren't making the blocks for the back--or at least I didn't--you can just sew these all together at once if you want or do pairs and then add pairs, etc).

This next part is when David and his mom pretty much took over because I was getting exhausted (did I mention I missed my nap?) so I am a little fuzzy on the details. You want batting in it. So you arrange your batting on the bottom, your backing (my dark colors) face up on top of that and your top (the colorful part) face down on that. You sew around the top (your others aren't the right shape yet) and you may need to pull out your walking foot since it's getting thick. Be sure to leave a big enough opening so you can turn it. I believe ours was about four inches.

Then you turn it right side out, iron, and stitch the opening closed. You can choose to top stitch it if you want (especially if you're going to wash it) but otherwise, you're done!

I definitely thought this was going to a less involved project but it was still fun and I'm happy with the way it turned out. I don't see myself making another one for a very long time though.

Recent Sewing Projects

I have mentioned some sewing projects I have been working on in previous posts but I haven't updated you all on them for a while now. The first, is the coasters (you can find the link under my crafts and projects tab). I'm actually almost done with them. I would've been done a long time ago but I am hand sewing them. When I started, I didn't have a sewing machine. Now I do but I'm still kind of timid with it (still trying to get the hang of it) so I don't want to mess up what I've already started. They're very cute and I'll be sure to post pictures when I'm done. I did make a few changes to the original but that was only to make it easier to hand sew. We have been needing coasters for a long time. I know we could buy them at Goodwill or some place but it seemed like a good project to start with.

The second thing I am working on is a wet/dry bag for my reusable pads. It's about 8x5 and has a zipper across the top (my first zipper!). My mother in law is helping me lots with it since I wasn't really sure how to get started. The outside is cotton (fat quarters actually) and the lining is a polyester something (for water resistance). It will have a divider in the middle to keep the clean ones separate from the dirty ones. I'm about halfway done with it but I haven't worked on it in a while because I have been doing this one with my machine and I've already had to rip open a bad seam (which meant I got to buy a seam ripper! I love getting new supplies).

For my birthday from my mother in law, I got a couple books about sewing and things to do with fat quarters (which are pretty much the only fabric supplies I have right now) so I am excited to get started on new projects. I should probably finish what I've started before I move on though...

Fat Quarters

I have had a recent obsession with going to fabric stores and I like every single fabric I see! I limit myself to the bargains and clearance but I still end up with way too much with no projects in mind. I have a lot of fat quarters now in all sorts of colors and patterns and I am looking for things to make with them. I don't have a sewing machine yet but I am getting pretty good at hand-sewing. Everything I have googled though for fat quarters seems so....pointless, like just to use up the fabric itself. I like making things that have a real purpose in my life, not like pin cushions and pot holders. Yes, these things have a purpose and are cutesy but do I really need any more? I've been thinking about making bags and things with them but I don't have THAT much experience yet. If anyone has any ideas for other things, I'd be happy to hear them! In the meantime, I'll just keep collecting pretty fabric :)