Easy decoration for kids' clothing

It has been awhile, I have had time to post. And no wonder! Our family grew up in size with another member :) - our second daughter. It actually has been awhile and this month she turned eight months (ah, time flies!), but life with a toddler and a baby has been so hectic, so I haven't had any time to write in here.

Our family's latest member 

Even though the new addition to the family, the busy days and restless lifestyle with two small kids (our older daughter just turned three) I still found, once in while, time to craft. Most projects have been small and always late for the planned deadline, but it did not matter, at the end of the day, they were precious stolen flakes of personal time. 

So here it is, one of the easiest DYI project, of course in the spirit of the events taken place at home.

Two easy decorations for kids' clothing:

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I. Decoration with buttons 

Easy decoration for kids clothing

Needed materials:

• T-shirt, that needs reviving :), my older daughter has been avoiding plain T-shirts this summer, and I decided to give them the opportunity to get back in the game
• Buttons
• Needle
• Threads, that match the buttons colors 
• imagination :) 

Easy decoration for kids clothing with buttons by steps

It is very, very easy to get it right. The only thing you actually need to pay attention to is the place, where you will sew the buttons. I gave a try with my model, my older daughter (she was very happy to help and eagerly put the T-shirt on) and measured the place on the right hand side. Then you simply sew the buttons up. And pretty much, that was it.  And the result was impressive, my kid could not literally take her hands of her "new" T-shirt. 

Tip: I collect all buttons from old pieces of clothing before I throw them away, but you might be able to find some very nice buttons ridiculously inexpensive at the local fabric shops. All shops have a collection of buttons that are left only one or two of a kind and they are giving them away for peanuts.

II. Decoration with adhesive patches for clothing

Easy decoration for kids clothing with adhesive patches

We all have plain T-shirts or shirts that simply beg for extra decoration, especially kids' pieces of clothing. So again an easy project that will make your kids happy with their plain T-shirts. 

Needed materials:

• fun adhesive patches
• plain T-shirts
• iron
• thread and needles (optional) 

Well, this is rather self-explanatory project :). All you need to do, again is measure the place you will place the patches, iron the patches and enjoy the result.

Tip: For better endurance, usually I add extra layer of iron-on glue. You can buy iron-on glue tape from any shop that sells sewing supplies, or in my case from IKEA. Make sure you use the ironing program without steam when you iron the patch. 

 

Optionally, you can sew the edges of the patch. This way the patch really stays on.

Good Luck! 

Valentine's day card in purple

Purple rain card for St. Valentines

This year I decided to join the monthly competition by Sinelli's blog "Valentine's card without red or pink" (the blog is in Finnish and for those who are wondering what is Sinelli - it is one of the biggest crafts stores in Finland or wonderland for me).

So, Valentine card without red or pink? Nice and.... yes, challenging. So I though, and thought... and after reorganizing my crafts stash several times (it is good that my husband is not aware the amount of staff for crafting I have, :))))) , I came up with purple. 

So here comes the list for the needed materials: 

yarn - for knitting the purple heart

thread - first time sewing a card

card base

paper  "Victoria and Albert V&A" by Papermania

a patch for fabric

gems

ribbons in purple and white

lace ribbon

glue 

printed text 

This rather simple card requires a bit of preparation - the heart I knitted myself, for which I need to modestly share I am quite proud of, as I am now learning to knit (just two months ago I started).

knitted purple heart 

Although, I big amateur in knitting, I manged to came up myself with the stitches I had to knit to achieve the heart pattern. Knitting with this thin yarn and needles size 2 was new for me and I had made some mistakes, but nevertheless I think it suits the vintage look of the card. However, to be honest, I realize that I miss the smooth and professional look of an experienced knitter's work, but I just have to practice more. Once the heart was ready I decorated it with the lace ribbon and two flower shaped purple gems. 

Additionally, I sew the card just to add some more decoration. I've seen other sewed cards and I find that this technique adds quite nice and adds different touch to the card. The birds decoration is a glue patch for clothing and I had a big dilemma, if I want to use it (not that I don't like it, the opposite - I like it a lot, to place it on a card, but there it is now...). 

And the rest it some ribbons and text...and this is it! 

Valentine's day card in purple

The card was not chosen as a winner, but if you look at Sinelli's blog page it was very tough competition. 

And last but not least.... I couldn't help but hear Prince's song "Purple rain", while I was writing this post, so if you have reached the end of the post, please click here and enjoy the song ( I respect Prince quite a lot as an Artists :) ).  

That's all from me today. I hope you have had a wonderful Valentine's day in a purple rain ;).

DIY baby pocket bib

What else can make you smile more than a child's excitement when you make something for him/her? Well, it is a rhetorical question for me. Nothing. Of course :). 

Do it yourself pocket bib

This is the purpose of this post; to share with you the excitement of my 1,8 years old daughter when I made 

this bib for her (and one her bunny). 

I like easy and cute craft ideas that everyone can do with as little hassle as possible. 

So, if you own a sewing machine and a little bit of patience, this can be a fun Saturday afternoon project, which will bring you also lots of gratitude (or at least that was the case with me and my baby-girl). 

This summer, I saw the bib pattern from a friend, who saw it from a friend. And I was intrigued by the idea to make one for for my daughter. I like sewing in general,  but unfortunately my Singer 8082 machine was a cheap and not very good purchase choice and I had to wait till have it fixed in order to make the bib. 

But finally, here it is ready and already in use. And I dare to say, my baby never said "No" to wearing this bib, as she saw me sewing it and when it was ready I explained it was made for her. Ah, the smilies! 

Needed Materials: 

waterproof fabric (the one I used is for raincoats- water-repellent from the outside and cotton from the inside) 

color suitable threads

double fold bias tapes

sewing machine

Chose materials for the bib

I chose colorful floral fabric suitable for a girl and few different one-color double fold bias tapes. Oil-cloths are very popular fabrics for making baby bibs, but I found out that oil-cloths are hard to fold (and you do need to fold the bib to carry it with you when your child eats outside), and once folded then it wrinkles permanently. Also food that collects in the pocket of oil-cloth bib if not washed thoroughly right away it may go mouldy. The fabric I used, as it states above is for raincoats. It folds easily and food can be wiped away with a wet paper cloth if you eat outside and once home you can simply hand-wash it (it also endures machine wash). 

Measurements of the bib

The pattern of the bib can be found in JPG at the bottom of this post. I used my friend's bib as a model, but I  made a little improvement to the original. I made the pocket (the crumb guard) wider than the bib base, so it stays open all the time and easily collects food.  

Moms will definitely appreciate this, I am very very sure... :)))) 

Measurement of the pocket (crumb guard) of the bib

And with the left overs from the fabric, I made a bib for my daughter's favorite stuff toy. :))))) 

Bib for the bunny

Good luck! I am sure your child, niece, nephew, cousin, friend's child etc... will love the result :) 

P.S. Please find here the pattern of the bib, and excuse my handwriting and drawing. ;) 

The bib pattern