Make Room for Baby

OH . . .SEW HAPPY!

COLETTE'S NURSERY

Devin writes:  "Wish I had a better camera to take better pics with, because the crib bumper & skirt are really beautiful!  I chose the fabric for Colette's room to be a mix of soft blues and greens.  I shy away from the pinks, etc.  The fabric was from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern collection." 

Devin also used the 'formula' in the Make Room for Baby Kit instructions to have the skirt 'kiss' the floor, giving it that 'designer's touch'.

Thank you Devin, for taking the time to send in the photo of the finished nursery, it looks great!

 

        LAUREN 

Lauren writes:  "The affordable stuff out there isn't my style but, the stuff that is, is too expensive.  I'm okay at sewing and I figure this can't be too difficult.  I've found some great fabrics that I'm really excited to use."

After a few e-mails and sewing tips, Lauren sent the picture along with another note . . .

"I got my fabric from Mood fabrics in LA and I love the way it turned out!  thanks so much for your help.  I love your site!"

Lauren, what a memorable project and a great accomplishment, not to mention the hugs and kisses you stitched in that darling fabric.  Great job!

 

 

HARPER'S NURSERY

Krystal writes:  "Thank you so much for selling a great product.  Our bedding couldn't have turned out better and it looks just like the $1000 bedding we were about to purchase from a local boutique."

I love hearing from you and seeing all of your great ideas and beautiful fabric choices.  I especially like to hear that you have exactly what you had hoped for and more, while saving lots of money . . . for strollers and lots of other things!  

If you are thinking about sewing and have your doubts, I hope these ladies have encouraged you.  I am always available and can send detailed instructions on each and every step.  

Zippers being one of the things I hated (yes, dread was not strong enough at one point, although this is not a pair of pants), I can reassure you that it is simply sewing along the edge of the 'teeth' on the zipper. You do not, should not, and there is no need to sew a flap over that zipper!  The zipper is tucked away between the mattress and the bottom of the bumper where no one goes for even a peek!

If you still have doubts, visit a fabric store and see how many beautiful choices are out there.  Sew many choices!

 

 

 

MAKE ROOM FOR BABY 'COLETTE'

 

 

Another pretty baby's room, designed with love and sewn with hugs and kisses.

Mommy Devin sent this photo of her baby 'Colette's' new room.  Choosing soft blues and greens from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern collection. , it stands out beautifully against the linen colored walls with the white furniture and trim.  

Devin preferred the skirt touching the floor, which designer's call  'kissing the floor'. I love that word picture.   It sounds so much better than dragging, or explaining a little less than a quarter of an inch on the floor. 

Just softly touching like a kiss. 

When it comes time to lower the mattress, the skirt will now  be 'puddling' on the floor, oh, sorry, not a good word picture for a baby's room!  A good way to avoid this is using 'tucks' .

  

 LITTLE GIRLS' DRESSES WITH 'TUCKS' 

The best example would be in a little girl's dress, (mom's, don't be afraid to use tucks on a boy's cribskirt, sooner than you think they will be in a tuxedo shirt with 'tucks'!  It's a nice touch in so many ways.

   

To help you get a better picture of tucks, I am using the drawing from the dress pattern.  

For the crib skirt, it will be faster and serve the purpose to do a one inch tuck, which will take up the fabric two inches.  Lower the mattress with the skirt to check out how much shorter the skirt needs to be. This will be the number that needs to be in the tuck, or several smaller tucks. Placing the fold of the tuck just over the stitch line of the original hem works well and you can use that as a guide line.

To mark a sewing line, try using  1" masking tape for making the straight line and sew along the edge.  I use this method when I need to attach a trim, ribbon or ric rac in a straight line or perfect square on the front of a quilt or the length of a bumper. Finish the stitching and pull off the tape.

If you have any questions on construction, feel free to e-mail me at: info@makeroomforbabykit.com

 

Razzle Dazzle to Lavender Ice

BOOK    COLORS FOR YOUR HOME

I recently attended the HOUSE BEAUTIFUL COLOR INSTITUTE at the DCOTA.  What a wonderful experience..  I am so grateful for the internet at this moment, because I will give you the links rather than trying to share my notes!  

Stephen Drucker, the Editor in Chief for House Beautiful showed up with a purple tie, Mystical Grape #2071-30 to be exact!  Purple is a color that definitely brings charm and humor while looking at black and white pictures of the first editions of House Beautiful, just teasing... Mr. Drucker did a fine job of entertaining as he shared the history of design and color. 

Our keynote speaker, designer Jeffrey Bilhuber, was a delight, like lemon Drops #2019-50 from Benjamin Moore.  His point being, color is emotion, as in yellow brings delight, red feels like romance and passion.  Color is also pattern, such as gingham on the walls and curtains.  Be sure to look for his new book with Rizzoli, Defining Luxury, The Qualities of Life at Home. He painted a colorful picture of the challenge in naming new paint colors.  

Visit paint with ben for some fun with words and color. For serious planning, check out the Virtual Fan Deck for the latest in all the colors. Expect to spend some time playing!

Go with confidence.  Pick out the colors that you love, see what jumps out first, and work from there. If you are starting with fabric, look on the edge of it for the little color blocks, the least of these can be the wall color.  

 Make Room for Baby is for the Creative, Unique, One of a Kind, Have some Fun, DO WHAT YOU LOVE, and enjoy the trip... making your own bumper, designing your baby's room.

Quoting Jeffrey Bilhuber, "a decorator's job is to take you to new places". I want to take you to new places that also give you a rewarding experience.  Let's step out in confidence and do what we love, in color, style, and theme, creatively saving while we do!  

Mr. Peanut

This may be a long stitch...but I keep thinking of the peanut and it's usefulness.

Stay with me, this will connect somewhere down line.

The amount of ideas I have trying to escape my brain and turn into 'rocking' crib sets is keeping me up at night. You could say I am sleeping like a baby, not.  I'm also starting to stockpile fabric (like I did when I was quilting!)    There are just so many beautiful colors and combinations out there. Heather Bailey keeps adding to that!  LIVE Textile offers organic and Spoonflower will print your own design.  

In a nut shell... Make Room for Baby is there to swing the creative door wide open by personalizing your baby's room.

Start with an 'Island story' using tropical prints and a grass crib skirt  (buy a twin, cut it down, any left over can be trimmed and used as fringe on a throw pillow for the glider, not in the crib). You can also design your own print, sketching with fabric pen and paint.  Simple palm trees and sailboats would be darling.  You could sew hand drawn patches on a backround print, or make a border.

Another expression of surrounding the baby in love is having brother and sister decorate the fabric by using their own 'handprint'.  Kind of like finger painting, creating an all-over design.

If you are not the sewer and could care less about the DIY pleasure, but know what you want and can find the means to have it done, the kit works well to pass on to your designer-workroom.  They will be grateful that you come with the solution.   Many a workroom has put in hours of constructing a bumper only to be disappointed in the finished results. Let them know Make Room for Baby has the formula!  

Now, to connect the dots  to ...  Mr. Peanut!  

George Washington Carver found over 100 uses for the peanut, (of course, I stick with peanut butter, never mind).

Another use for the bumper inserts!  Restore your favorite bumper, fatten up a new one, revive the one you have now!   I love it, more ways to save money!  

Make Room for Baby Salutes Heather Bailey!

Heather Bailey  is leading the Parade for all of us who " March" to the beat of a different drum. She has inspired thousands to dream, create and make beautiful items.  But let me back up to connect some dots.

I was ready to launch Make Room for Baby and needed to be with "like-minded" women (who could relate to sticking your finger and lip together with hot glue, among other injuries we suffer).

I attended the Creative Fest  in Toronto. The Canadians seemed to have a corner on crafting. Some of the women I met had been meeting for the past 15 years at this Festival for a "girls only" weekend. I felt like I had been living in a cave. How could I have traveled the world and missed out on this? It was really a spectacular, inspiring time.

I was laughing hysterically with hundreds of "crafty women" listening to a speaker named Elinor Peace Bailey".  She was  "on a roll"  with a TRUNKLOAD of beauties. Her family of dolls.

She would pull one out and introduce us. Telling us how they came about and their many escapades.  As she wove their stories we all knew we had met them personally at one time or another...some we raised an eyebrow at and others we wanted to join for a cup of tea.  She honored us by passing them around the room so we could actually inspect the incredible workmanship from dyeing her own fabrics, to sculpting their faces and bodies.

Elinor Peace Bailey, (Heather's mother-in-law) had us laughing until we thought we would split a stitch. She enjoys people and life in BLAZING COLOR! She also let us know that "if you have even looked at the fabric, it counts as using it!". (We know who we are and where we have hid all the boxes.)

She was kind enough to give me a moment and pass on her words of wisdom. Suggesting I visit a blog that called HELLOmynameisHeather.

Like the chicken and the egg, you don't know which came first "Heather" or "Blogging". Her site is what blogging is all about and why I look forward to her posts!

A Closer Look at the Make Room for Baby Kit

The Make Room for Baby "KIT" includes the following items:

• 6 Bumper Pillow inserts
• 1 Full Length Zipper
• Instructional Booklet - includes the measurements, yardage, drawings and instructions: 

• Bumper
• Crib skirt
• Fitted Sheet

There are no messy pattern pieces because you are only cutting straight lines for the bumper, skirt and sheet, ties and bows.

With a scissors and ruler/yardstick you will be able to cut the pieces out.  If you are a quilter and have a rotary cutter and mat, it is even easier. Also, check out Jo Ann’s Fabric for these items, they often have a 50% sale going on.  If you have never used a rotary cutter and plan to learn sewing, it is a must, and will amaze you how quickly and STRAIGHT you can cut.  

I will get into each step on another entry, but for now, the best way I can explain how the bumper works would be to ask you to pick up a throw pillow on your bed or sofa. If you unzip it, take out the pillow insert, you now have the cover with a zipper on the bottom. The bumper cover will be the same idea of a zippered cover.  The cover will be cut in 12”  high and the lengths depending on the width of the fabric and direction it is cut.  All of this is shown in the instructional booklet.  When this long zippered cover is sewn together, the last thing you do is sew in the divisions creating the 6 pockets, giving you easy access to remove the pillows for laundering or dry cleaning.

THE  ZIPPER

I realized my dread and lothing of zippers came from having to sew the flap which covered the zipper, and never feeling it looked right.  However, for the bumper cover, the zipper is on the bottom of the bumper, it actually is sitting on the zipper.  So, forget about the flap, you are going to simply stitch right along the teeth of the zipper and leave it exposed.

FITTED SHEET

The fitted sheet is a rectangle with the corners cut out and stitched together, finishing it by sewing a pocket along the edge for a quarter inch elastic.

CRIB SKIRT

The crib skirt, gathered or tailored has four sides stitched onto the "decking" (the fabric that lays on top of the bed spring.  Hem the sides and bottom edges.

These are the basic ideas behind the design.  Adding your creativity to each step is where the real pleasure and reward comes in.

Pillow Talk

My friend  Liz and I were talking tonight about all the great information on the web, how much we can apply it to our lives, learn new things and save money at the same time.  We were just bubbling over the fact of “Dr. Oz” sharing so much stuff on “Oprah”and even more on her web site.

I’m thinking that is  “exactly” what this blog needs to be.  Fresh ideas, pictures, questions answered, tips, and shortcuts on how to make it yourself.  Which means you save money and can pick out the fabric you want or even design your own print with those great fabric pens.  Not to mention, patchwork, embroidery, tye-die and applique.

What I hope you will all find from this is a great experience in creating and sewing up the crib set exactly like you hoped for.  No more disappointment in thinking you have to settle

for what is available out there, when it is the wrong color, or, right color, wrong style, or,  just plain too expensive.

Get ready to “color outside of the lines”,  and “think outside of the box”.  We’ll share our ideas and where we get stuck.  News on, what, when, where, and how to be resourceful.

You can do it....I’m here to help...a picture is worth a thousand words....(I just need a few more lessons with my camera!)

and sew on and sew on.....let’s have fun,

Shirley