Showing posts with label baby. Show all posts

Sunday, August 25, 2013

a nautical baby shower with help from oriental trading {and a giveaway!}

READ THE REST OF THIS POST -->>>» |


 Oriental Trading provided products for my review. All opinions are my own.

I helped my friends throw a baby shower for our sweet friend, Jenny and we wanted to do a nautical theme because Jenny decorated her little guy's room in that theme. With so many talented people around me planning this event, it turned out wonderfully and was such a special evening!

We knew we wanted the night to be very festive and fabulous, but we also didn't want to break the bank. We turned to Oriental Trading for some of our decor. I was so happy with what we were able to find on their site. They honestly have such a great selection of products and always at really affordable prices!

My friend bought these lanterns to hang in her home where the shower was hosted. They were very inexpensive but added such fun to the room.


We also bought some adorable patterned paper from Oriental Trading that fit our nautical theme perfectly! We used the patterned paper for a "message in a bottle" table where we had guests write a message to Jenny that we then put into baby bottles for her to take home.



share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
31 Comments

Monday, August 12, 2013

the kalli cap crochet pattern {kalliStrong fundraiser}

READ THE REST OF THIS POST -->>>» |



Today is the first day of the Kalli-Strong fundraiser I told you about last week, and that means it's time to release my newest crochet pattern: The Kalli Cap! I designed this with my friend Kalli, who is fighting breast cancer for a second time, in mind. It makes a great chemo cap, but it's a darling pattern for all babies, girls, teens, and adults.

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
1 Comment

Friday, July 13, 2012

beep! beep! boys quilt {pattern giveaway}

Many of you know that between Jessica and I, we have six boys, zero girls. Not that I'm complaining AT ALL, but I do have to say that girl quilts are usually more fun to make than boy quilts. Except every once in a while, when a darling quilt pattern like this comes along! I'm in love!

My little guy still does not have a quilt from me yet. Yet. I will get to it before he's one! And I love that this quilt, Beep! Beep! by Vanessa of Lella Boutique, might actually make it possible! It's a pretty simple design with super simple quilting (straight lines are my favorite).

Vanessa says that this is a quilt anyone of any sewing skill level can make. It utilizes simple applique technique; most of the work is tracing and cutting out the car and arrow shapes! The comprehensive pattern is available in her shop in PDF or paper format.

And because Vanessa is so sweet, she is giving away 5 copies of Beep! Beep! to our readers! To enter to win a paper OR digital copy of this quilt pattern, just leave us a comment and tell us what you would do with this pattern if you won. Would you make it for your own little guy, or a nephew, a friend's baby? Would you use that boy fabric stash you've been holding on to for years, waiting for the perfect quilt? Let us know by Thursday, July 19 2012 at 11:59pm PT--we'll post the winners on the 20th. Can't wait? Order the the pattern from Vanessa's shop now!

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
86 Comments

Monday, January 23, 2012

santa's little helper {welcome baby}

Look what Santa brought me for Christmas!
 Introducing Jonas Christian, the newest little birdie baby.

 Arrived on Santa's sleigh December 24th at 7 lbs. 11 oz.

Best Christmas present ever! 

I took a little maternity leave, but I'm itching to get crafting again. Many thanks to dear Jessica and friends like Shelley and Erin for giving me the chance to stay in bed until 10am, ignore my e-mail, and stare at that little face during the last month. It has been heavenly. But it's time to start showering regularly and getting out of my pajamas before the kids get home from school (at least that's what my husband tells me). So new tutorials and projects are coming soon. . . Until then, I have a few things to keep you busy.

First, here are a few of our past baby tutorials that have come in handy for me so far:
Welcome Baby Pattern Sale
To celebrate baby (and get me back in gear), all baby crochet patterns in my Ravelry shop are 25% off now through January 31st. I love that at Ravelry you can instantly download the patterns you purchase, instead of waiting for me to e-mail them to you.

And if you're gearing up for Valentine's day, we've added a love day round up link at the top of the page featuring some of our past projects.
I'm still up all night, typing blog posts with one hand, and sneaking in projects between naps, so be patient with me, but it's great to be back!

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
34 Comments

Friday, January 20, 2012

no-sew pointed bow tie {tutorial}

Today we are featuring another fabulous tutorial from my dear friend Erin's blog, Lovesome. Go visit her and see all the other amazing things she is dreaming up!


It seems bow ties have taken over the wardrobes of men, babies, and boys these days, doesn't it? I must admit this trend has been a favorite of mine for quite some time now, and I love the pointed bow ties I'm seeing in all the old movies and shows I have been watching lately (downton abbey, anyone?).

With all the bow ties I see all over blogs I thought it would be fun to switch it up a bit and try something different.
Enter: the pointed bow tie. 

It often gets forgotten, and I think it's a great nod to men's (and boys') fashion from decades and even centuries ago. Making it out of felt not only makes these babies a breeze to whip up, but it also modernizes and adds a touch of whimsy, not to mention makes these the perfect fall accessory for the guy in your life (or girl, I would wear it too, and it would make an adorable hair bow).


supplies:
all you need is some felt (i bought sheets of felt at Michaels for $.20 each)
scissors
hot glue gun (this could also be easily hand-stitched)
the length and width of your felt depends on how big you want your bow tie to be. mine was 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, with a smaller strip that is about 1/2 inch wide and 2 1/2- 3 inches long. my little guy is one and this size is perfect for him, and i think he'll be able to wear this size for a few years. (i like smaller, more proportional bowties, but if you like them bigger just make your strips larger.)

how to:


1. cut one end of the longer felt strip into a point. lay the felt strip on a flat surface and bring the pointed side across the strip about 2/3 of the way.
2. turn the pointed side over and bring it back across the other side until it touches the edge.
3. adjust the point if you need to, it can touch the edge or hang over a bit, whatever you like.


4. scrunch the middle of the felt together, making it look like a bow.
5. wrap the smaller felt piece around the middle of the bow where you scrunched it, with the ends meeting in the back.
6. turn the bow around and dab some hot glue in the center of the bow, then fold the top end down over the glue. glue down the remaining flap, making sure the bow is tight and secure.
and then have fun with them!

To turn it into a bow tie I usually thread elastic through the center of the back of the bow tie, but if you don't have room you could glue elastic to it or sew/glue it to a pin or clip.

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
8 Comments

Monday, August 29, 2011

how to make a fabric daisy flower {tutorial}

READ THE REST OF THIS POST -->>>» |

Our most popular posts are still the fabric flower tutorials, like the fabric rosette tutorial and the organza flower tutorial. I love that this trend is still going strong! There are more ideas out there, too--we're not done with flowers. Check out this adorable daisy fabric flower tutorial from our cute friend Melynie. These are perfect to use up fabric scraps and would be adorable in a little girl's hair, or as an accessory on a bag. . .enjoy!

Fabric Daisy Flower Tutorial

Can you say cute?  Now you, too, can be the owner of an adorable little clip (you or your favorite little girl, whatever).  For this project you'll need:
  • White fabric
  • Needle and white thread
  • Scissors
  • Fabric glue (I used Fabri-tac)
  • Hair clip (and ribbon to cover, optional)
  • Yellow brad, button, or fabric covered button
  • White felt
Using scissors or a rotary cutter, cut six 2" squares.
Like this.

Now fold it once...

twice...

three times.

Fold the edges down to form the petals.


Clip the excess off,

so it's even.

Now stitch through the middle, making sure to catch all the layers.

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
13 Comments

Friday, July 15, 2011

no-hemstitch crochet edge receiving blanket {birthday bash tutorial}

READ THE REST OF THIS POST -->>>» |

I feel so lucky to actually know today's hilarious guest-blogger in person. Cami of You Seriously Made That!? cracks me up, both in real life and in her posts. We're both expecting (just 6 weeks apart) and she's starting to post fun baby projects that I'm planning on stealing--like this no-hemstitch receiving blanket tutorial. It's hard to pay for those little holes to get poked in your fabric, especially when you just paid an arm and a leg for it! Check this out. . .

Crocheted Blanket: No Hemstitching Needed!!

I absolutely love making large receiving blankets for friends who are having babies.
They take forever to make, but so worth it. And oh so practical (which I love)
I'm too lazy (and cheap) to go get my blankets hemstitched, but with this tutorial, you will never need to hemstitch your receiving blankets again because I came up with a cute and easy solution... 
okay okay, my MOM came up with a cute an easy solution. She's smarter than me anyways. 

Crocheted Receiving Blanket Tutorial

Materials:
1 1/2 yards of flannel (fun print)
1 1/2 yards of flannel (corresponding print)
Sewing Machine, pins, scissors etc.
# 10 cotton string
Small Crochet Hook (size 1)


Step 1: Cut and Sew
Grab both pieces of flannel, and cut two identical large squares. Mine ended up 42x42, but yours can be bigger or smaller, depending on the width of your fabric. It's easiest when you use a rotary blade, but you can get away with scissors. 


Line up both pieces of fabric, right sides together, and pin it in place, and sew with a 1/4 inch seam.

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
16 Comments

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

toddler summer dress with silhouette heat transfer border

I had a piece of white cotton that I'd accidentally spilled some hot pink powdered clothing dye on. Not enough to ruin it, but enough to make it's use very limited. Then I noticed that the hot pink heat transfer material I got from Silhouette was the exact same color. Problem solved.

I've been wanting to use this shape/border on something for a while, so I decided to make a little girls' sun dress and use this shape as a border along the bottom. To save heat transfer material, I duplicated my border and cut both pieces along side each other. Next I weeded, or removed the unwanted pieces, from my plastic sheet with a sharp tool. Then I cut them apart.

For the dress, I measured my toddler model for the length, width, armholes, and neck I'd need. Then I doubled and folded my fabric in half and cut a simple dress shape out of it, which gave me two identical pieces. For the back piece, I cut a slit in the middle of the neck about 4 inches long. Before I sewed the dress together, I laid my heat transfer pattern on the front of one piece. The nice thing about it is that it is sticky, so it stays in place. I laid the second piece on top of the first and matched up the second piece of the pattern so they'd match when I sew the side seams.This was easy because I could see the first shape through the light-colored fabric. Then I ironed it on each piece the same way I applied the heat transfer material to my t-shirts the other day.

 I finished my dress by finishing the arm and neck hole and slit seams, then sewed the pieces right-sides together. I did a wide hem along the bottom and voila, sweet sun dress in less than an hour!
 

Ooh, wouldn't this shape be cute on a pillow? Or burp cloths? Hmm, I might have to put one more project together before tomorrow when the Silhouette heat transfer material sale ends! If you love this shape, get the Silhouette heat transfer material bundle, which includes the most amazing digital cutting machine and three rolls of heat transfer material for $219 ($125 savings!). Or if you have a Silhouette, all their heat transfer material is 25% off through May 25, 2011. Just use code LITTLEBIRDIE.

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
5 Comments

Friday, March 18, 2011

raspberry or strawberry free crochet pattern {and a crochet hat head size chart}

How adorable is this little raspberry? My friend Melynie told me she heard that over and over when she was out shopping, but I didn't quite believe it until we went to the grocery store together. Seriously, I don't know how she gets any shopping done when her little sweetie is wearing this hat! We were stopped by so many people who wanted to talk about how cute she was in it.



It started with this pumpkin hat I shared with you in the fall.


I loved the idea of making a hat that wasn't worked in the round. This little strawberry uses the same stitch as the raspberry hat above, but it doesn't have the scalloped edge, and the stem is replaced by little leaves.



I delivered this delightful pink strawberry hat to a friend who just had the CUTEST baby girl--can't wait to see it on her!


Do you love it or what? It's a perfect spring hat for baby. You can find the pattern below, plus a step-by-step tutorial showing how to join a new color of yarn to your project, and a hat size chart you can use to determine how big to make hats for different ages. Happy spring!


Strawberry or Raspberry Crochet Hat Pattern

This pattern is for size 0 - 3+ months. You can adjust the pattern for the size of your choice using the head size chart at the end of this post. Just change the number of stitches and rows until it reaches the number of inches specified in the chart.

Size I/5.5 hook, size G/6.0
Red or pink worsted weight yarn for berry
Green worsted weight yarn for stem
Yellow or white worsted weight yarn for strawberry seeds

Stitches used: Sc, dc, sl st, seed st
Seed stitch: (sc in next st, dc in next st) across

Ch 39.
Row 1: Seed st: (Sc in 1st st, dc in next st) across. Ch 1, turn.
Rows 2 - 28: Seed st: (Sc in 1st st, dc in next st) across.

Your piece should be a rectangle approximately 4" high by 14" long. Continue to scalloped edge if desired, or to finishing step if no scallop is desired. Don't fasten off yet.

Scalloped edge: For a less prominent scallop (like pink example), change to a G hook now. For a more noticeable scallop, keep working with your I hook.

Ch 1, turn. Begin working scallop stitch along long side of piece: (Sk st, 3 dc in next st, sk st, sl st in next) across. Don't fasten off yet.


Finishing:

If you're making a strawberry hat, use a yarn needle and your yellow or white yarn to make small, evenly spaced stitches from back to front to create seeds. On the red strawberry I did a single little stitch. On the pink strawberry I did a tiny "V" stitch. I did a stitch on every other row across and down, creating a diamond pattern. Fasten off.


Inside of hat will look like this:


Next, fold piece in half, matching up short sides and scallops. Holding short sides together, use a yarn needle and matching yarn to stitch short sides of piece together to make a tube (easy way). Or, for a less visible seam, join the ends using your hook and the seed stitch, working sts in end of each row (a little more complicated, but worth it if you're up for it). You should work about 28 sts. Fasten off.


Green top and stem, no leaves:
Change to size G hook.

Round 1: Join green yarn to top of tube with a sc. Sc around top of tube (39 sc worked).

How to join a new color of yarn in crochet:
Insert hook where you want the color to start. Grab your new color of yarn with your hook.


Pull the yarn through the stitch. One loop on the hook.


Now finish your single crochet stitch by yarning over and pulling the yarn through.


It's on!


Now continue on with your sc in the remaining stitches.


Round 2: Dc 2 together (2tog) around (this is a decrease st that will decrease your number of sts around by half).

Round 3: Dc 2tog around.

Additional rounds: Sc 2tog around until stem is at desired width. Then sc in a tiny circle (this can be challenging, so be patient with yourself!) around and around until stem is desired length. Fasten off and weave in ends.


Green with leaves:


Round 1: Join green yarn to top of tube with a sc. Sc around top of tube (39 sc worked).

Round 2: Dc 2tog around until you have 8 sts left.

Leaves: Ch 10. Sc in 1st ch from hk. Hdc in next ch, dc in next 3 chs, tc in next chs, sc in next 2 sc. Repeat 3 more times.


Size Chart for Crochet Hats

0 to 3 months
Hat circumference 11.5" - 13"
Hat height: 4.5” to 5"

3 to 6 months
Hat circumference: 14" - 17 "
Hat height : 5.5” - 6"

6 to 12 months
Hat circumference: 16" - 19 "
Hat height: 6.5"

12 months to 3T
Hat Circumference: 18" to 20"
Hat height : 7"

3 to 10 years
Hat Circumference: 19" – 20.5"
Hat height: 7.5"

Pre-teen to teens
Hat Circumference: 20.5" - 22"
Hat height: 8” - 9"

Womens
Hat Circumference: 21.5" - 22.5"
Hat height: 10"

Mens
Hat Circumference: 23" - 24"
Hat height: 10" - 10.5"


If you make this hat, I'd love to see a picture of it! Oh, and I should mention that all my patterns in my shop are on sale 3 for $9 for a limited time! I'm working on a few new patterns for spring, so stock up on the winter patterns while they're cheap!

share this on »
{Facebook} {Twitter} {Pinterest}
36 Comments
LinkWithin Related Stories Widget for Blogs