I, like most of you reading this, have a need to make my home beautiful. For me that means a lot of things. It means trying to keep it clean and organized {which in a house with 3 little kids seems like a near impossible thing to do}. It means decorating for holidays. It means making my home a place where everyone want so come and CAN come and feel welcome. It means taking on home improvement projects. It means changing things up from time to time.
Next up on my hit list of home improvement projects is redoing my girls' room. My daughters are 6 and just about 1 year old. That means creating a space that is both cute and girly, but also functional for the two of them. It's kind of a daunting thing and I've been putting it off, but I'm getting kind of tired of looking at their blah beige room. It doesn't match their personalities at all!
I've been collecting different things that I like on Pinterest, but it's time to really sit down and narrow it down so that I can have a plan of attack! So here's what I have come up with:
1. I am going to beg and plead my hubby -- and if that doesn't work offer to bake him some of his favorite cookies -- to make my big girl this cute bed by Anna-White. Her plans are super simple and it's so much more fun to build your own furniture. Once built it will be painted white.
2. This is our existing crib. We bought it at Babies R Us about a year ago. {Technically my parents gave it to us as a baby gift for our newest addition}
3. We currently have a dresser similar to this in the girls room, but it is stained oak instead of white. I have a changing pad on the top and use it as a changing station. The drawers hold most of the clothes for my two girls. My big girl hangs her shirts and dresses in the closet and the baby's dresses and jackets are hung in the closet also. I plan to update our dresser and paint it white and add some new knobs to the drawers... just not sure yet which ones. ♥
4. For the first time EVER I am going to add a double curtain rod to the huge window that takes up more than half of one wall. Ya... it's nice to have the light, but figuring out where to place a bed, a crib, and a dresser was hard. These sheer drapes (from Ikea) will be in the back. (see #7 for the front panel) We don't have blinds on our window because they would be so wide they would need to be custom ordered. So, the sheer curtains will add privacy but allow some filtered light in the room during the day.
5. I saw this cute idea on Pinterest and I totally want to copy it to make one of these ballerina bow holders for my girls. Right now their hair pretties are in some boxes on a shelf in the bathroom. They are so cute though... why not make them part of the decor!?
6. Another Pinterest idea... I Heart Organizing used this Expedit shelf in her kids room closet. It divides the closet in half allowing each child their own space, plus using fabric bins or baskets you have extra storage space in the middle for socks, underwear, and other small things. More storage space is definitely needed in this room!
7. This cute print, I'm sorry to say, is no longer available from fabric.com but I bought enough yardage for drapes a while ago and I've been holding on to it. It is by Premier Prints -- part of their Bella collection. So, the super light pink dandelions on the white background are going to become the new front panel drapes for the huge window. Making your own curtains is super easy... watch for a tutorial on it!
8. I bought this lamp when my baby was just a newborn. She was having trouble spitting up at night and I wanted to be able to roll over and take a peek at her in the pack 'n play in the middle of the night to make sure she was okay. I bought this little lamp at Target with the intentions to move it to the girls room once she moved to her crib. It is in there now and my older daughter loves to use it to read at night before going to sleep.
9. This is my overall color scheme idea. Lots of really light pale pink with accents in a light ash blue, raspberry, and sage. I plan to create a custom quilt for my 6 year old with matching pillows and throw pillows. I have been collecting images on my phone as I go to Target and Home Goods of idea for pillows and quilts.
So, that's how it stands for now. I have been working these last 2 weeks to clear out the unnecessary "stuff" that seems to accumulate so that we are back to just the basics. Once the summer is over and we do some school shopping there will be a lot of clothes getting the boot. I think my 6 year old went through a growth spurt in about a week! All of the sudden her clothes are a little snug.
Stay tuned for an update! I am trying to figure out what to do with the walls. Right now they are an almond color. I'm thinking of cream stripes, or maybe painting them a very light ash brown color so that I can really add pops of color in the bedding and on the walls.
Does anyone out there have a big girl and a little girl sharing a room!? What do you find works well for you? I'd love some advice!!
Nesting Series: Baby Bibs {Pattern Included}
7.09.2013
There is nothing cuter than a baby.... except maybe a messy one!
Okay... so not all messy babies are cute... but I certainly think MINE is! Back when my son (who is now 4.5 years old) was just an infant I realized that the store bought terry cloth bibs just weren't cutting it any more. They were great when he was little and couldn't put up much of a fuss. BUT, once he was old enough to realize that he could take the bib off by pulling on it {because it was velcro} I could keep one on him.
That's when I developed the bib pattern that I have been using for the last 2-3 years. It really hasn't changed much at all. I use metal snaps on my bibs so that older kids -- who still need a bib -- can't pull it off.
I used to make a bunch of them and sell that at wholesale prices to a couple of distributors, but with my new little one I just don't have the time I once did to sit and sew as much as I would like... which makes me sad, but I LOVE spending time with my kids!
So, now that I only make them for craft shows, boutiques, for my own kids, and occasionally for my Etsy shop, I figured I would share my pattern with you guys! The only thing I ask is that you respect my time and willingness to share this with you and only use it for personal projects. If you are interested in using my pattern in your Etsy shop or to sell your products just shoot me an email {kdbuggieboutique@yahoo.com} for permission. Thanks!!!
MATERIALS: So, what materials should you use for your bib. Personally I like to use a cotton print and a cotton chenille. However, chenille can be hard to come by and can be a little pricey... so any terry cloth or flannel would work just fine. I know some people use fleece or minky for their bibs also. In my opinion the minky and fleece are kind of tough for bibs because they don't absorb well. If you choose to use one of those for the back of you bib I suggest using a flannel or terry cloth layer (adding an extra third layer to your bib) on the inside so that there is a little extra fabric to collect those messes that we all know kids can make.
As far as the snaps verses velcro debate ... you have already read why I use snaps. That doesn't mean you can't use velcro because you absolutely can! If you have a little one who has no desire to take their bib off then by all means stick with the velcro (no pun intended, lol) because it is easier to work with.
You will need:
• 1/2 yard of your front and back materials (enough for 4 bibs)
• metal snaps or velcro
• a sewing machine, thread, scissors or pinking shears, and an iron
• a pen or chalk marker
• the bib pattern (found at the bottom of the post)
SEWING THE BIB:
Print out the pattern. It comes as a PDF file with two pages. Simply cut out the pattern and tape the two piece together. The pattern comes in two sizes as well, a long toddler size and a smaller infant size.
Cut out a rectangle piece from your two fabrics that is 17"x10". Then on one of your fabrics, trace your pattern on the WRONG side -- the one without the print on it {aka not the pretty side}. You will want to find the approximate center of your fabric. You can do this really easy by folding it in half along the width (hot dog style) and pressing it with your finger. Line up the center of the bib -- where it says "place on fold" -- with the crease in your fabric. Then using either a chalk marker or a regular pen trace around the outside of your pattern. Flip your pattern over, line up the the center again and trace around the outside of your pattern.
This is where my bib pattern differs from a lot of others. Instead of painstakingly cutting out the top piece for my bib and then tracing and cutting out the bottom piece... and hoping that they line up okay, I opt for a much easier method... DO NOT CUT IT OUT! Yep, that's it. Just don't cut it out. Take this piece with your traced bib on it, place it on top of your bottom bib fabric {right sides together} and pin them together.
Take your fabric over to your sewing machine. If you have a 1/4" sewing foot great! If not, you will want to have a 1/4" inseam. With a 1/4" foot simply line up the edge of your foot with the traced line and follow it all the way around being sure to include the hole for the neck. By sewing on either side of the line you drew for the neck strap and hole you will create the two neck straps.
Now is the time to cut! Using pinking shears trim your sewn bib close to the traced line you drew. If you don't have pinking shears {the scissors that cut the zigzag lines} you can use regular scissors. Just be sure to clip the fabric around the curved edges so that it will lay flat after flipping it right side out.
After trimming off the fabric turn your bib right side out. You may need to use something to help get the corners of the neck straps completely turned. My go to tool is actually a crochet hook. It is small and it's not sharp so for me it is the perfect turning tool. Once your bib is all turned take it to your iron and press it out nice and flat. Good ironing is the key to a crisp look. Fold the fabric from the opening under so that it is inside the bib. Line up your two fabrics and pin them in place. This is also a good time to attach one of your tags.
All that is left is to top stitch your bib. I use an 1/8" seam allowance and sew around the entire edge of the bib. It closes the hole that you had from turning your bib right side out and keeps my tag in place. I then sometimes go back and sew another top stitch that is about 1/2" from the fabric edge. It is decorative and helps to reinforce the edges of the bib. After sewing take your bib back to your iron to set your stitching.
You can now add either metal or plastic snaps, or velcro to your straps and it is ready for use!
{I used the longer toddler sized bib for hers}
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