Mommy and Me skirts for Mother's Day

Hello there!  I wanted to pop in with a quick post about the Mommy & Me skirts I just made for Mother's Day!  This is a great sewing project for someone with beginner-level skills or someone looking for an adorable end product without spending a ton of time!  It's all straight lines!

I used this blog for the pattern, and it was so easy to follow!  The only change I made was to include more fabric in the hem, giving me the option to lengthen the skirt as my daughter grows.  My other suggestion is to only multiply the waist measurement by 1.25x - 1.5x for an adult skirt, as mine came out very full.  For my daughter I used the full 45" fabric width, which was a little more than 2x her waist.

The fabric is Paparounes in Crimson, and I bought it at Bobbie Lou's Fabric Factory.  I love her curated collection of quilting fabrics!!!  I just bought mermaid fabric (Mermaid Magic in Mist Metallic) to make another skirt like this for my daughter's birthday.

Photos are taken at the Capitol Riverfront in Washington, DC.  If you're local or visiting I highly suggest making some time to play and walk around this park.

Bonnie Projects

Light-Up Trick-or-Treat Bag

Happy October!  I've had so much crafty energy lately, it's been really fun :)  My latest project is a light-up Halloween trick-or-treat bag!

I saw the panel for this bag in my local quilt shop about six weeks ago, but I didn't buy it when I first saw it.  I kept thinking about it for weeks, so I finally went back, and bought the very last one!  It's a panel with instructions to make the bag, but there were a few other supplies I needed, like the fabric for the lining and the binding.  The panel also comes with some trick-or-treaters printed on it, which I think I'll save for future projects.  Maybe for Halloween bibs, or an applique on a kid dress?

 

Before I cut into my panel, I traced the pattern onto paper for future use.  I feel like if we have additional children down the line, they're going to want a trick-or-treat bag just like their sister!

The example in the shop was quilted all over in a random walk.  I decided to quilt mine by outlining the house and trees. 

Quilt Shop Trick-or-Treat Bag

The next step after quilting was to make button holes for the lights to poke through.  The ladies at the shop gave me the great advice to lay out the lights first and make sure they would reach from one hole to the next.  I also took into account they would need to go from one side of the bag to the other.  20 button holes later, and I had officially doubled the number of button holes I've ever sewn in my life.  Thankfully my machine has settings to make it easy!

From there I just followed the directions, and it came together quickly!  I think I might be more excited about this than Savannah, but oh well :)  It's cute, but I also like that it adds some safety on Halloween!  Also, the light are easy to remove, so it can go through the washer if it gets grubby.

If you want to make your own, look online for Northcott Fabric's Happy Halloween collection by Julie Dobson Miner.  The bat fabric I used for the lining and the stripe I used for the binding are both from the Here for the Boos line from Wilmington Prints.  All were available on Etsy at the time of the posting.  (By the way, "Here for the Boos" needs to go on a Halloween sign somewhere in my house...too funny!)

Octopus Costume for Toddlers

Following the release of Finding Dory, I got several requests from my Etsy customers for a toddler version of my infant octopus costume - kids wanted to be Hank the Octopus!  Because Savannah is 2 1/2 right now, I thought this would be a perfect time to come out with an updated pattern!

I made this costume as close to Hank's coloring as possible, using an orange knit with red dots and 1/2" red pom pom fringe.  I went with a smaller pom pom size for this costume, but I sort of wish I had used the larger size.  Etsy had a great selection of polka dot knits (I bought from Magic Fabric Designs) as well as pom pom fringe (from Creative Trims), and at reasonable prices!  I was much happier with the selection on Etsy than at JoAnn or Fabric.com.

If you're interested in making an octopus costume for your toddler, the pattern is available in my Etsy shop.  I really want to try one in purple and black one day to look like Ursula from The Little Mermaid!

I also started a Pinterest board to collect up links to fun octopus fabrics.  If you have good ones, please share in the comments!

If you'd rather make the costume for an infant, that pattern is accessible here.  Look how much she's grown in just two years!!!

You might also be interested in these posts:

Baby Octopus Costume
What to Put on a Baby Registry

Bonnie Projects

My "the dress is blue and black" Halloween costume #thedress

Back in February, a photo of a cocktail dress caused an uproar on the internet, with hundreds of millions of people arguing whether it was white and gold or blue and black.  This article does a good job of describing the whole event.

In any case, I immediately knew I wanted this to be my Halloween costume.  Initially, I envisioned making a dress half in white and gold, and half in blue and black, but I had trouble finding lace in both colors, and it seemed like a lot of work for a one-time Halloween costume.

Instead, I decided to buy an inexpensive dress and go from there.  I ordered six gently-used royal blue dresses from ThredUp.  When they arrived, three didn't fit right and one was actually purple, but one was pretty darn close!  My Mom made a matching jacket for it, so it could be as similar to the original dress as possible.

What do you think of my version of the dress?

Bonnie Projects

Baby Octopus Costume

Right after I found out I was pregnant last year, I saw the cutest baby dressed up like an octopus on Pinterest.  I did the math and realized I'd have a 5-month-old for Halloween 2014, and decided right then that the baby had to be an octopus!  Plus, at 5 months old, she'd have good head control but not be mobile...perfect for an octopus!

I also have a soft spot in my heart for all things ocean-related.  This was my idea of fun in college.

My Mom was recently in town helping transition me back into work and the baby into daycare.  We came up with an octopus costume design, and she drafted a pattern and made it!  The baby's legs are two of the legs, and a removable belt holds the other six legs.  We used ball fringe as cute suckers.  We also topped off the costume, literally, with a hat featuring giant googly eyes.  SO CUTE!!!

The belt comes off for diaper changes, car seats, or irritated infants.  I plan to move the velcro as she grows so the legs will be useable as a dress-up prop for years to come.

If you want to make your own, the pattern is for sale in my Etsy shop.  It's beginner-level!

As a bonus, it turns out the legs also make great baby toys.  Savannah loved them!

 

You might also be interested in these posts:

Easy boppy cover tutorial
Zoo Quilt
Hula outfit for American Girl doll

Bonnie Projects

How to Make a Boring Onesie Girly

My Mom is here today sharing her latest project!  As a background on why we would want a John Deere outfit for a little girl, my family has a cattle farm in Alabama that we frequently visit, complete with all the necessary John Deere equipment!

Ok, ‘grandma to be’ is playing today….

I found a John Deere onesie at Goodwill the other day, very cute for our little granddaughter who is due to arrive any day now, but on the plain side. 

I decided to make it more girly, and found the cutest stretch ruffle ribbon at Hobby Lobby made with tiny gingham checks. I zig zagged the ribbon onto the butt of the onesie so it will all stretch over her diaper. I followed the lines of tractors in the print to make sure it was even. 

I sewed a few yellow flower buttons on the front for pizazz.

 

Then I played around with the ribbon to make a tiny hair band. I used the 14” length everyone online was talking about for infants. 

Super cute, took about 10 minutes, and all under $10 with lace left over for other projects!

Thanks, Mom!  Now she's ready for her first trip to The Farm!

Easy Boppy Cover Tutorial

We've been really blessed to inherit a ton of gently-used baby stuff.

One thing I'm looking forward to using is a Boppy pillow.  The Boppy and cover that comes with it are both washable, but I wanted a fresh and cute new cover.  Mom offered to make one while she was in town visiting.

The Boppy cover is made of three pieces of fabric and a long zipper.  It looked like it could be simplified though, especially if we used knit instead of a non-stretchy fabric.

We bought 3/4 of a yard of knit fabric and a 20-inch zipper for the project.

Using the original cover as a pattern, she cut out C-shaped pieces from a cute polka-dot knit.  She glossed over that third piece in the original pattern.

She pinned the two sides together, sewed it around the edge, and installed the zipper.  She made sure to use a stretch needle to get a nice stitch.

She snipped the seam allowance inside the C so that it would allow for more give.

And then we had a brand new boppy cover!  This one is fresh and new, and much softer than the original. 

You might also be interested in these posts:

Tips and Tricks for Slipcovering a Recliner

Bonnie Projects

Tips & Tricks for Slipcovering a Recliner

I am five weeks from my due date, and trying my best to finish up projects before the baby arrives!

I wasn’t dead-set on anything particular for the nursery, but I did know that I wanted a comfortable upholstered recliner!  I shopped around last fall, and was shocked that 1) upholstered gliders are really expensive, and 2) they don’t usually come slipcovered.  I wasn’t prepared to spend upwards of $800 for a chair.  I also couldn’t believe that a piece of furniture used primarily for nursing didn’t come slipcovered!  Wouldn’t the fabric get gross over time?!?

I perused Craigslist for several weeks, and eventually came across a $50 glider/recliner.  When I went to check it out, I found it to be the perfect size for my petite frame, and super comfortable.  Sold!

Now came the hard part…making a slipcover.  I’m not going to walk you through making a slipcover here - there are very talented people out there with excellent instructions.  But I do want to share some tips and tricks I came up with along the way that took my slipcover from “gets the job done” to “pro-style”!

Don’t say I didn’t warn you: making a slipcover is not easy, or fast, or even cheap (8 yards of fabric adds up quickly!).  But if you have the skills and patience, it can be very rewarding!  This project cost $80 in fabric, another $20 in supplies like velcro and elastic, and about 15 hours of work.

1. Buy more fabric than you need

I googled the suggested yardage needed for a recliner slipcover, and ultimately ordered 8 yards.  I had a little over one yard left over, which I plan to use to make a matching dog bed.

If your fabric is directional (mine couldn’t be turned 90 degrees without losing the pattern), and especially if it can only be placed in one direction (up must be up), you should order more fabric than suggested.

 

2. Pre-shrink your fabric

The reason you’re making a slipcover is so that it can be washed.  Many upholstery fabrics recommend dry-cleaning only, even though they are 100% cotton.  This is because they shrink.  A lot. 

Cut a sample of your fabric and run it through a normal wash and dry cycle to see what happens.  If it comes out OK, wash and dry all of your fabric to pre-shrink it.  I cut my fabric into two 4-yard pieces to wash it.

My fabric shrunk 5%.  If I hadn’t pre-shrunk it, it probably wouldn’t fit on the chair again after its first washing!

3. Start with the largest pieces first

The smallest pieces can be made from scraps at the end of your project if you're running short on fabric, but you can never get those large yardages back once you cut them up!

Cut the pieces for the largest parts of your slipcover first.  You won’t regret it!

 

4. Decide on a centerline for your fabric

I had two options for my fabric - the shapes with the flowers inside, and those without.  I photographed the fabric with both ones on the centerline of the chair, and the shapes with the flowers just felt right.  I made sure to use those shapes as the centerline for all the largest pieces of the slipcover.

5. Pin your pieces together on the chair

Why take it off and on a billion times?  Just fit the pattern to the chair!

I wasn’t quite sure how to handle the odd-shaped back of the chair, so I pinned the flat back on first, then draped the front piece until everything looked right.  I never would have designed a pattern this way, but it just felt right when it was all pinned in place.

Also, start with huge seam allowances.  If you have 2-inch seam allowances to start with, you won’t be short on fabric if you have to make adjustments later.  You can trim these down once you’re happy with the entire slipcover.

6. Use any removable pieces as patterns

The seat of my recliner is removable, and even had a zip-off cover.  I removed this and used it as the pattern for the slipcover. 

On top of that, I salvaged the zipper from the original seat cushion and reused it in my slipcover.

Having a separately-covered seat cushion makes a slipcovered piece look much more professional.

For the front “legs” of the chair, you can make a paper pattern by holding up a piece of paper and lightly tracing the edges with a pencil or creasing with your fingernail.

 

7. Make a separate cover for the foot rest

The downfall of many recliner slipcovers is in the foot rest.  If you have a snug slipcover, the foot rest won’t want to function.  You can fix this by creating mini slipcovers for the foot rests.

Mine looked like hairnets, essentially long rectangular boxes with an elastic band around the edge.  They still didn’t want to fit nicely, so I also added straps that secured with velcro around the back, to hold them in place.

  

 

8. Use velcro instead of a hemmed skirt

My chair didn’t seem like a good candidate for a skirt around the bottom.  To give it a clean edge, I velcroed the fabric around the bottom of the chair.  One side of the velcro was attached to the slipcover, and the other side of the velcro was stapled to the inside of the chair.  This gave the finished product a beautiful and clean edge, but the slipcover is still 100% removable.

 

9. Secure all your seams by zigzagging or serging

All those raw-edge seams hiding inside your slipcover are going to ravel when you first wash the slipcover.  You can prevent this by going over all the raw edges with a zig zag stitch or with a serger.

10. Take care of problem areas

One reason the people listed this chair on Craigslist for so cheap was that the recliner lever had torn through the cushion seat.  This was because the rubber cover had torn, leaving raw metal exposed.  I fixed this by making the lever it’s own padded slipcover.  Look, it's camouflaged!

If you notice problems like this before you purchase the furniture, make sure you have an idea for how to fix them.  I knew I could fix this, so I wasn’t worried about it!

 


Look how well it turned out!  Snug-fitting, clean lines, the pattern matches up - you can't even tell it's slipcovered instead of reupholstered.  I can't wait to spend many hours in this chair with my baby girl!!!
 

Hopefully these tips will help you make an awesome slipcover for a chair in need of a little love!  I’m so pleased with how this one turned out - for a fraction of the price, I have a comfortable, custom recliner/glider for my nursery, and it’s washable!!!

You might also be interested in these posts:

Facelift for a sad sofa
Overdye a comforter for a new look

Bonnie Projects

A Zoo Quilt for Brooks

Here's my latest baby quilt, made especially for Baby Brooks!  Brooks' Mom pointed out that he and our baby will be in the same grade!

Sweet little Brooks is the second child for our friends.  I made his old brother, Brecken, an Eye-Spy quilt a few years back.

Eye Spy Quilt

Since the family already has an Eye-Spy quilt (you can make your own), I thought I'd mix it up a little with this one!

The pattern is called Zoo Sunsets, and was designed by my Mom.  Her design calls for the animals to be solid black, and placed on top of sunset prints.  I've been more interested in modern quilts lately, so I mixed it up a little, making the animals out of bright prints and putting them on a white background.

I also modified her quilt by shrinking it to be crib-sized.

She usually traces and cuts the shapes by hand, but I wanted to try using a Silhouette.  I transferred her images to the Silhouette Studio software, and had my Silhouette Cameo cut them out for me.  To be perfectly honest, it didn't do a good job, and it was more of a pain to transfer the images, clean them up, and deal with the sub-par cutting job than it would have been to just use my Mom's tried and true method.

But anyways!  After that I had my animals, and was able to put the quilt together!

I found the perfect backing at a local Modern Quilt Shop!

Aren't the animals cute?!

I love all the fun colors and animals, and I hope Brooks does too :)




You might also be interested in these posts:

Penelope's Eye Spy Quilt
Giuliana's Eye Spy Quilt
Quilt from Upcycled Dress Shirts

Bonnie Projects