Happy (Hectic) New Year

Happy 2015, my blogosphere friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season! I know that I did, and I am so excited for all of the many possibilities that 2015 holds. I have so many things I want to share with you, and more detailed posts will be coming about each of these things in the coming weeks.

I shared in my last post before Christmas that Prince Charming and I are expecting Baby M #2 in April, and we are thrilled for Eli to become a big brother. He himself is 14 months old now, and he is amazing to be with and watch. He is growing and learning every single day, and he is so smart and mobile. Moving from a family of three to a family of four will be a big, albeit great, transition, and we are looking forward to jumping in head first. However, we have A LOT to do to get ready for Baby M #2 to arrive. First and foremost is preparing the nursery. We will be using the same nursery that we made for Eli for the new baby, and Eli will be moving into a new room. This means we have to dismantle our current guestroom and store/get rid of whatever is currently in there and prepare the room for our firstborn. He will be sleeping in his dad's crib for whatever time remains for him to do that, and we will be giving him our dresser (it is simple and will fit well) while we get a new set of bedroom furniture. The tentative plan is to do a baseball themed room, so I will definitely be making some posts soon about our baby boy moving on up to his first big(ger) boy room.

As for our new furniture, I am very excited to see how that pans out and to share with you how it does. If you have followed my blog for long, you will have noticed that I love to browse and build idea boards with items from Wayfair. Their products are so chic and comfy looking, and their prices are typically reasonable with free shipping. I have never ordered an item from Wayfair, however, until now. We made the leap and ordered the Signature Design by Ashley Zelen Four Poster Bedroom Collection in the size queen. I haven't had a bed frame since college, so I am so excited for this purchase to come in and praying it is in good shape from shipping and handling. The picture from Wayfair of the set is below.

The wall color in the picture is very similar to what is in our bedroom currently (Benjamin Moore Affinity color Sparrow), and our floors are a little bit darker. I can't wait to see how this set looks in our space. I will probably be ordering some items for Eli's new room from here as well so long as everything goes well with delivery and customer service (if needed). And I will definitely, for you my friends, put a post or two up with before and afters and a detailed review of the furniture and of my Wayfair experience in general.

In the midst of all of these house changes, it is now Mardi Gras season in the Big Easy. That means beads, parades, and king cakes. Unfortunately for me, I have just this week been diagnosed once again with gestational diabetes (thanks, genetics) and will be unable to partake of the delicious goodness that is the Mardi Gras treat. By the time baby arrives, Mardi Gras will be over, and any good New Orleanean will tell you that you don't eat king cake out of season! Oh, well! There is always next year.

As a huge surprising treat, my parents will get to come down for a visit during my week off for Mardi Gras break thanks to Southwest's great ticket deals they are running for next month! Their presence and help will be, I am sure, greatly needed and appreciated as we try to use some of that vacation time to prepare for baby. My sister, Cookie, and new nephew will also be joining us for a few days. We so rarely get to be together as a family being as spread out as we are, so I am very much looking forward to that visit.

In addition to all of this family growth, I have been presented with an amazing opportunity to possibly publish a book in the next year. This is so exciting, but I am not going into it too much just yet as it is still in the very earliest stages and may not happen at all. But it is something I am praying God will guide me through and be glorified through as the process unfolds. Hopefully, I will have more information and details to give you on that in the coming months as well.

As you can see, there is a lot going on in this Miss NOLA-ssippi's world. I hope to have more opportunities to blog soon (and sew and cook and craft...), and I look forward to sharing all of the wonderful adventures in store for 2015 with you!

In Christ Alone,
Brittney

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DIYs of Baby Muller's Nursery

 Hello, Blogosphere Friends!

 

As a follow-up to my post about Baby Muller's completed nursery, I wanted to be sure to give you an up-close look at the DIY projects I (and Prince Charming) completed for the room. When we found out we were expecting our first little one, I knew that I would want to add some personal touches to the nursery and not necessarily purchase everything. Not only did this turn out to be economical, but it really helped me feel like I was helping prepare a personal place for our baby to grow. It also gave me something to do when the nesting urges kicked in that was productive and reached beyond wiping everything down for the millionth time. :)

 

The first project was the painting of these giraffe canvases under the influence of a print I saw on Pinterest. You can see the original print here. It was truly the first thing I ever saw that inspired the color palette for the nursery and gave me a general idea of what I wanted the nursery to feel like. I also knew, though, that I didn't want to do a giraffe or animal themed nursery. I wanted the overall look of the room to remain more neutral than that. I adjusted the colors of the giraffes to better reflect the colors within the room, and instead of keeping them all together on one canvas the way they are on the print, I broke them up into three separate canvases to center over the crib. Although not identical to the print, I was really happy overall with how they turned out. I would never claim to be an artist, and I did this free-hand. The fact that they looked like giraffes at all made me happy. :) I bought the plain canvases at Michael's. The center one was larger than the two on the sides. I also bought paint colors at Michael's using the fabric swatches I received from Carousel designs to guide my selections. The entire cost of the project was around $20-$25 between the canvases, the paint, and the set of brushes I used. These have truly turned into one of my favorite pieces in the space, and I would encourage any new mom to try their hand at making some art for their baby's nursery walls.

 

Speaking of art on the walls, the next DIY was something I was really excited about making. If you have read my blog, you know that I am a huge Beatles fan. While browsing Amazon for items to add to my registry, I stumbled across this wall decal featuring lyrics from a great Beatles song, "Golden Slumbers." I was super excietd, but I knew that I didn't want to just stick a decal on the wall. I needed to brainstorm a way to display the words without ruining the wall. When I need to brainstorm, I hit up my Pinterest account. (Clearly...I have over 7,000 pins. Crazy much??) In my browsing, I saw several empty picture frames that people had used to display wall-decals. I thought this was a great solution to my problem, but I didn't just want an empty frame. I wanted to display the words over some sort of print. I had leftover gray and white chevron fabric from a project I did earlier this year, so I decided that would be the backdrop of my lyrics. After receiving the lyrics at my Beatles Baby Shower, Prince Charming and I made a run to the Hobby Lobby on the northshore to find a frame. I knew I didn't want to use a white frame because most of the furniture in the room was white. I wanted something a little more rustic and distressed. This frame was just the ticket, came in a perfect size for the decal, and was 50% off the day we were shopping. Score! When we got home, we assembled this by simply cutting the fabric to size and placing it in the frame. Then, over top of the glass of the frame, Prince Charming followed the decal directions to stick on the words. It turned out really sweet, and I love that whenever we want, we can scrape off the letters and reuse the frame. This project cost us around $25 to make from start to finish, and hung over the changing table, it is one of the focal points of the room.

 

 

The last two DIYs of the nursery were sewing projects. I received my first sewing machine last Christmas, and with friends who had babies on the way, the first thing I learned to sew on it was a simple baby blanket. I knew from the get-go this would be something I would make for my little mischka. I ordered a yard each of our nursery's crib bedding fabric and a matching minky. I thought this minky was awesome because it was different than the typical dotted or solid minky I have found at my local fabric store. I generally followed the tutorial from Sew for Home: Stylish Baby Nursery. I stuck with the easiest blanket with just a simple top stitch around the edges. All of the tutorials featured at the site are easy to follow and really cute! If you can sew a straight line, you can definitely make a baby blanket for your little one, too! 

 

The final DIY in the nursery was a cover for the changing pad. This one sort of sprung up out of necessity. While I had remembered to register for a changing pad, I didn't realize I would need to register for a pad cover. (Thank you, pregnant brain!) So, instead of ordering or purchasing one, I decided to look into making one. I had a bit of fabric left over from the blanket project, but there wasn't enough of either one to make a solid cover. I decided to stitch the two pieces of fabric together to make one larger piece of fabric that was half and half. I jumped onto my handy-dandy Pinterest account, and I found this tutorial from A Load of Craft on How to Make a Contoured Changing Pad Cover. I followed her instructions to a T, and the cover turned out really cute. I have found that I will probably need to add more elastic to the bottom than the original pattern called for, but for now, it works! I had a bit more minky than bedding fabric, so I used it to create the pieces for both ends of the changing pad. It was probably the most complicated thing I have sewed to date as it had turns and curves and required some maneuvering around the ends, but I was very happy (and relieved) with how it turned out! I think I could make another one someday, but my belly is currently preventing me from very successfully using my sewing machine. ;)

 

That's the DIYs of Baby Muller's nursery! I hope that you can find some inspiration or some helpful tutorials here to use in your own little bundle of joy's nursery preparation, and please feel free to leave comments or questions if you would like more information. Have a terrific Tuesday, cyber-friends!

Be a Blessing,
Brittney

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Baby Muller's Nursery

Hello, Blogosphere friends!

 

I am super psyched to make these nursery posts. The countdown to Baby Muller's arrival is within a week and half away (AT MOST), and the preparation for his or her arrival has been so much fun! Designing a gender neutral nursery was a little bit challenging, but it was a labor of love. I am so pleased with how it turned out. It's funny how even the little things with a baby, like preparing a nursery, can remind us of God's grace and goodness. As we have worked, we have been reminded of Jesus's promise that He "goes to prepare a place for you." What a wonderful promise! We have tried to think of all of the ways we can provide for our little one's needs and make him or her comfortable and happy...how much more the Creator will prepare a place for us with Him and with the Father in Heaven. Amazing!

 

So, below are the pictures of how our little one's nursery turned out! Like I said, we are really happy with it. It is cozy and warm; it is gender neutral but still chic and NOT a plethora of yellow or green (not that there is anything wrong with that if it is what you are into). Without further ado...here is a tour of our sweet blessing's nursery. I hope it inspires and helps you as you prepare for your little ones, too. :)

 

Here is the first view of the room, pretty much from the door. The linens for the crib bedding, baby blanket, changing pad, and curtains all came from Carousel Designs. I made a post a few months ago about working with their website here. I was so pleased with their selection of gender neutral fabrics and prints. The fabric was the first thing we picked to go into the room, and everything else fell into place around that. Prince Charming chose the paint color of the room. I wasn't planning on painting, but I came in one day and PC had samples on the walls of the room. (I think he is nesting as much as or more than I am.) I let him choose, and he went with this slightly bluish gray called Pebble Beach. (No reference to golf or anything...;) The lamp is from Target and has a foot switch instead of a hand switch. I think this will come in super handy when my arms are full of sweet baby, and I need to operate the light. The large frame on the wall is from Hobby Lobby. I filled it with a piece of chevron fabric and put a Beatles lyric decal over the top of the glass that I found at Amazon. The dresser is from Babies R Us, and I created the changing pad from the fabric I ordered from Carousel Designs to make the baby blanket on the glider.

The rug was chosen by Prince Charming as well, and we went through quite a process finding and selecting a final rug. We tried four different rugs in the room. The other three had prints on them, and each of them seemed to compete too much with the print in the crib bedding. The shadow box on the wall will eventually house Baby Muller's little hospital pieces: hat, bracelet, footprints, etc. The diaper bin on top of the dresser has the middle of the night diapers in it that our friends wrote really funny, sweet, encouraging messages on at our Bunco Diaper Derby. The bin is from TJ Maxx.

 

The crib corner has turned into a really sweet spot. The leaning, ladder style shelf is our newest addition to the nursery, and it is going to house our AngelCare Monitor, our humidifier, and our baby's sound machine bear. The canvases on the wall were inspired by a print I saw on Pinterest, and I free-hand drew and painted those myself.  The crib is from Babies R Us.

 

 

The other wall next to the crib has a couple of frames given to me by the baby's Bella at a shower, and they each house some really cute prints featuring lyrics from Beatles songs, "Here Comes the Sun" and "Good Night, Sleep Tight." I love the Beatles; I had to start the baby off right. :)

 

Our glider was gifted to us from the baby's great-grandmother, SugarPie, and it is where I keep the baby blanket I created for the bambino(a) darling with the bedding and minky fabric I ordered from Carousel Designs. It is so comfortable, and it reclines all the way back, which will be amazing if I decide to ever crash in the baby's room. What's super cool about it: the handle to operate the reclining function is in between the cushion and the arm. Two reasons this is super cool: it allows me to keep my hands/arms close when operating it without leaning over or having to let go of baby totally, and it keeps the chair looking compact and sleek without a clunky arm on the side. I love this piece in the room!

 

Here is a closer look at the crib bedding. It was all custom designed using Carousel Design's online design tool, and I was able to pick every detail of how it was made. I think it turned out really sweet!

 

 

One thing about the bedding you can't see: I actually have two waterproof pads and two sheets layered on the mattress. I figure this will come in very handy if mischka has any accidental messes in the middle of the night. A quick strip, and a new sheet will be ready to go without me having to fumble in the dark to make the bedding work. The bumpers are beautiful, and I think once baby can roll around enough to get into them, they will be temporarily removed and replaced by mesh bumpers, but for now, I love them.

 

 

Final bit of wall in the room has turned into really cute storage, and quite unexpectedly so. We got the cute little chest from Babies R Us, and it houses extra bedding and blankets for our little one. I decided to use this area to display the really cute, sweet stuffed animals we received for the baby.

 

This shelf was a random find when we were visiting my sister in Mississippi. It was something she had laying around and was about to send it to a garage sale when I spotted it and asked for it. I love the distressed finish, and the scale was perfect for this spot on the wall. I love having the little hooks to hang baby's current bath towel and baby blankets. One of the Sophie's we received sits up here and this amazing frame with Baby Muller's sonogram in it. Hopefully, we will be good at filling up the 1st year frame with plenty of baby pics...we will see how that goes! :)

So that is everything (I think) for Baby Muller's nursery. I hope you like it as much as we love it! Please feel free to leave comments or questions if you want to know more about any of the pieces you have seen, and I will be making a post about my DIYs with links to their tutorials very soon. I hope you have a beautiful day!

Be a blessing!
Brittney

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The Floors Are In!!!

Hello, my Blogosphere friends!

 

I am super excited about being able to finally put up the post that the flooring in our three bedrooms has officially been changed! This is something that Prince Charming and I have talked about for a couple of years now. We knew in our heads what we wanted to do, but we never really could find the time to set aside to get it done. With baby still well on the way (rockin' 28 weeks now, woohoo!) we finally found the motivation to get to it.

 

I have a really sensitive allergy to dust and dustmites, so we have known for quite some time that we would eventually change out the carpet in our house. Don't get me wrong, our carpet was great; it was a fantastic, affordable option when we were remodeling our house back in 2009. However, we knew from the first day it went in that it wasn't a permanent installment for our home.

 

Over the past few years, I have been in love with the idea of procelain tiles that look like wood floors. Who wouldn't want the beauty of a wood floor with the easy upkeep of tile? No worries about not cleaning it with the right stuff...no worries about damaging its finish...no worries about scratching it everytime a piece of furniture moves. Heavenly! Unfortunately, when we first started thinking about this option, the wood tile market was slim and the options weren't very appealing. Fast forward to now, and we found a great tile that truly looked like planks of hard wood. So, without further ado...let's check out some pics!

 

These are the "BEFORE" pictures:

 

This is the room that will be the nursery. Notice the lovely dark stains. Thanks to dogs, Max and Molly! (I swear they were cleaned...the spots just wouldn't come up!)

 

This image gives a truer version of the colors of everything, and you get to see Prince Charming's lovely legs. ;)

 

This is our guest room, minus carpet.

 

 Here is the nursery minus carpet.

 

 

And here is our master bedroom with the carpet removed.

 

Special shout out to my friend Ashley from Our Happily Ever Afters for the art on the wall. It was a wedding gift, and I love it! (I also have to say how much I love our bedroom color. If you are ever looking for a dramatic, dark gray, this color is from Benjamin Moore and is called Sparrow.) With the rooms cleared, we were ready for the new floors to arrive!

 

 

I had to add a picture of our makeshift bedroom. All of the furniture from those three emptied rooms was moved into the dining room and den. While not the most awesome thing to look at all the time, I kind of liked camping out with Prince Charming in the living room for a few nights. It felt like we had a huge master bedroom! But I was ready for the floors to be done. After just a couple of days of laying and grouting, a couple of days of cutting and nailing shoe molding, and a good day of cleaning, they were in and stunning!

 

Here are the AFTER pics:

The guest room.

 

The nursery. (Special shout out to my Father-in-Law laying shoe molding.)

 

Our master bedroom

 As excited as I had been, I was certainly worried about that moment after feeling of "it is good but not all I thought it would be," but that moment never came. I was truly thrilled with how they turned out. Even Prince Charming said he couldn't believe just how much they truly looked like hardwood floors. I will post some pics of the rooms all put back together soon, but I couldn't wait to share the result of a week's worth of hard work with you guys. I hope y'all like it as much as I do, and feel free to ask any questions you may have about the products or process. :) Until then, be a blessing!

 

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?

Brittney

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Nursery Craft 1 - Wall Art

Greetings, Blogosphere!

 

I am so excited to share this post with you! I have completed my first craft for the bambino darling's nursery! (Anyone else ever seen or loved Rock-A-Bye Baby starring Jerry Lewis? If not, go watch it as soon as possible! It is amazing!) Before I was even pregnant, I saw a print on Pinterest that I loved of six giraffes. It was yellow and gray in color, and all of them were on one image. I pinned it right away knowing that I would want to use it as nursery art. It sold really fast, but I knew it was something I could recreate and make it more condusive to using as wall art.

 

Don't get me wrong, I am not doing a giraffe themed nursery. I didn't want there to be a single theme for the room as I wanted it to be as neutral as possible going forward. Prince Charming and I are hoping to have our kids close together, within a year or two of each other, so the room needs to be usable for multiple babies. Keeping it as neutral as possible, I feel, will allow me to change the little things: accessories, art, etc., to customize the space for future bambinos.

 

My intention for the giraffe art is that it will hang in a trio above the crib on the wall. This could change once we have furniture placed, but I knew that I wanted to do three canvases by breaking up the original print I saw on Pinterest into groups of two. I also knew that I wanted the center canvas to be larger than the other two canvases. I picked up a few canvases from Michael's, and I took with me to the store the fabric sample I have from Carousel Designs to choose the paint colors. I picked a few acrylic paints, grabbed a few brushes, and headed home to get to work. I did this project in one single day. I worked indoors to avoid the sweltering NOLA heat and humidity, and it worked out well due to the size of the canvases.

 

I started by freehand drawing the images I saw on the print from Pinterest in pencil on the canvases. Then, I filled in the outlines with solid colors and painted around them in white. I varied the shades of yellow by adding in bits of gray to the yellow paint so there would be some contrast in the design's color pallette. This is what the canvases looked like at the halfway point.

 

 

While I thought the giraffes were very cute solid, I wanted to stay as true to the concept of the original design as possible and add some shapes to the figures. Below are the final draft canvases.

I am truly so excited for how they turned out. I am sure that in a nesting frenzy, I may at some point go back and tweek the design here and there, but I am very pleased overall with how the nursery is coming together. (At least in my mind!) Below are the design elements we have picked out so far.

 

The floors, a porcelain tile that is made to look like wood, are being installed in the next couple of weeks. That should be fun! We have three bedrooms to empty of all furniture and items into our dining room, including ours, and the floors will be installed in around 4-6 days. We will probably go stay down the street at the in-laws to avoid sleeping on the floor, and I cannot wait to see how the rooms look with the new floors.

 

One craft down, and I am sure I have numerous crafts to go. We have ordered our crib, and we will be hunting for a dresser that will double as a changing table tomorrow. Please feel free to leave some feedback on the design or ask any questions you may have about anything regarding the products. I will look forward to seeing you back here soon. Have a fantastic Friday, friends!

 

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?

Brittney

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Nursery Inspiration Has Arrived...

I received a very exciting, awesome, amazing package in the mail yesterday! My fabric swatches came in from the nursery design site I have been using, and can I just say, I am quite in love with the inspiration for my nursery. When I found out I was pregnant, I was both thrilled with the news and slightly overwhelmed by the long list of to-dos a coming baby brings. When we decided not to find out the sex, I knew that I would be adding an extra layer of challenge to my list, but it is a challenge I happily accepted. Trying to keep a nursery gender neutral without dosing everything in tan or yellow can be hard; but I was determined to be creative and try to keep my style and taste in the design; and I think I am onto something really great!

The site I have decided to use for my nursery bedding needs is Carousel Designs. 

This site has some beautiful fabrics, amazing packages of bedding for cribs and toddler beds, and, my favorite feature, a custom nursery designer that allows you to build your own design using their vast collection of fabrics. You can also order the fabrics by the yard if you want to use it to sew your own creations or take them to the seamstress of your choice to have your bedding made. The site is very easy to use, and the choices are great in all collections: boy, girl, and (hallelujah!) surprise.

I played with the nursery designer for hours, creating one crib design after another. When I stumbled upon my final choice, it was as if a light bulb went off, and I couldn't wait to share it! Here is what my crib bedding design and matching drapes look like:

Isn't it soothing? Isn't it lovely? Isn't it...sigh? This is where I am starting my nursery design process. We are tearing up our carpet and putting down "wood floor" porcelain tile in its place. We were planning on doing this anyway as my allergies are not happy with dust or dust mites, which carpet tends to be a breeding ground for, but it will work great with our new need for design. We won't actually be purchasing the crib comforter. I mean, come on, I live in New Orleans, Louisiana. How cold is it really going to get? I will, however, be ordering a yard of the printed fabric and a matching neutral chenille to make a lighter baby blanket for the little one. The walls will be painted a light gray. It will be based on the same gray that makes up the piping on the bumper and the border on the skirt, but it will be mixed at maybe 50-60% to be a little lighter. The drapes will match the alternating panels from the inside of the bumper and have blackout liners built in them.

I am so excited about the design. I feel like the colors and print are calming and chic, and the fabrics will work for a boy or a girl. I registered for sheets in a gray to match the piping, an ivory, and a blue to match the flowers. Oh, did I not mention that you can build a registry on the site and include your custom designs on the registry, too? It is an awesome feature, and I linked this registry to my amazon.com registry. Once you choose your custom designs, you can have swatches of the fabric sent to you for free (one free set per account), and that was the package I so excitedly received yesterday.

So, here it is: my first post about creating a nursery for baby dumpling. I cannot wait to share the rest of this process with you! Check out the bedding site for your own needs and decorating ideas. You won't be disappointed!

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?
Brittney

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So...what are you having?

I find it to be true that with every major milestone in life, you get a bombardment of cliche questions. When you start dating someone seriously at a certain age, it's, "When are you getting engaged?" Once you and your beloved are engaged, the question becomes, "When are you getting married?" Once wed, the question evolves into, "When are you having kids?" Once you are a prego-egg-o, the question turns into, "Do you know what you are having?" I realize that these are the pressing questions that arise with any of these events, and you hear them so often because you cannot possibly answer any of these questions for everyone with a mind curious to it all at once. It doesn't change the fact, however, that it can become tiresome to have to repeat yourself over and over again and, in some circumstances, feel pressure to make a decision about something according to someone else's standards or wishes. Fortunately, when you find joy in these events, it helps ease some of the frustrations that could arise and makes the answering more bearable.

Prince Charming and I have decided, to some people's excitement and some people's chagrin (shout out little sis), that we will wait to be surprised by the baby's sex upon our bundle of joy's arrival. I will be the first to say, as I think is wise to disclaim, that this could change at a moment's notice depending on the progression of events between now and November. However, for the time being, we are very content with our decision. I love the idea of Jarrod being able to walk out of the delivery room to our friends and family and say, "It's a ____!!!"

This answer in and of itself leads to more questions. "What will you do about decorating the nursery? Make everything yellow?" "How will I know what clothes to buy for your shower?" "Well, you better be ready to have names picked out for boys and girls." (I realize the last one isn't a question, but it is a generic response to our decision nonetheless.) We have some ideas of answers to these things.

We are indeed comprising a list of both boys and girls names. It is sort of fun to try to delve into options for both. We are making a list of names we love from both of our family lines, Biblical names, music and literary figures we like, and pulling from baby name books. We, at this point, have no shortage of names to choose from, and we will hopefully be able to narrow it down by due date.

As for clothes, I simply reply that the baby will be even more ready for clothes the day after birth as he or she will be months before, so anyone who wishes can feel free to buy the baby an outfit after arrival time. On a side note, I recall a friend finding out she was having a girl, and the mom received very little from her registry of baby necessities because it is so hard to resist the itty-bitty, teeny-weeny cuteness that is baby clothes. Not that this is why we aren't finding out, but it adds another perk to being surprised. Additionally, another new mom I know of prepped everything for her little girl on the way...pink dream room, closet full of washed and ready girlie clothes...and upon delivery, she had a son!

Finally, as for nursery decor and all things neutral yellow, I feel that the idea of what is neutral has come a loooong way from the idea that boys should be blue, girls should be pink, and all unknowns should be yellow. I plan on utilizing shades of gray with white and some sort of accent of either navy blue, shades of green or blue, or maybe even...gasp...yellow!! As long as what comes together is cute, functional, and comfy, I will be happy with it! As for the baby's preference, when was the last time you heard one complain about his or her nursery when they were born? ;)

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?
Brittney

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Sew far, I have made...

Hey, blogger friends! I have been so excited about starting my blog and building up the things I want to focus on, but I know that beyond this week, maybe even this day, I won't be posting quite as much. Until then, excuse and (hopefully) enjoy the barrage of information! ;)

I wanted to go ahead and introduce my novice but ever growing sewing skills. I have made several things with my awesome Brother sewing machine I received for Christmas from my wonderful in-laws.

It is a Project Runway edition, and I find it easy enough to use with my limited knowledge. I am hoping to take a class this summer; until then, online tutorials are what I am using to learn.

The items I have made thus far have been very simple, but I was really excited with how they turned out nonetheless. For my friend Frances's baby shower, I made a baby blanket with matching burp cloths.

I used a soft minky material for the blanket, and a cotton jersey material for the printed fabric that tied it together with the cloths. I went with a chocolate brown terry on the burp cloths as they are bound to get stained in the process of babydom. I also added a hand cut minky appliqué on the printed side of the blanket that isn't pictured here, but it is just like the one below I made for a donation gift for a local new mom.

I have also made a couple of gifts for my hubby. He took a springtime mission trip to Haiti this past March, so I made him a travel toiletry towel and a couple of luggage tags. I learned along the way about each fabric from my work, like how terry cloth and upholstry fabrics tend to fray. It was difficult to get these to work with me as I don't have a surger, but I eventually won the tug-of-war.

If you want to try your hand at any of these projects, you can find the tutorials I used at the sites below. The towel toiletry case was only inspired by the image seen at the Etsy link below; I made the towel from scratch and then the case from the towel. I was really proud of that one!

Towel Toiletry Case- http://www.etsy.com/listing/86300220/terrycloth-toothbrush-and-paste-travel
Luggage Tag-  Make It-Love It ID Tags
Baby Blanket- Sew4Home Baby Blanket Tutorial
Burp Cloths- Prudent Baby Burp Cloth Tutorial
Partridge Applique Pattern- Modest Maven Partridge Ornament Tutorial

I found the baby blanket and burp cloth tutorials through a Pinterest pin to Blue Print Crafts for Baby Britton where she shared links to these and more baby gift tutorials. Thanks to these simple tutorials, I am now confident to make blankets and burp cloths without tutorials; and that will probably prove to be very beneficial with a little one on the way. :)

I can't wait to share my next sewing project with you. You can find me on Pinterest and follow my Sew Wonderful board to see what tutorials I have pinned, and feel free to leave suggestions of good sites and blogs to find helpful sewing information and patterns.

Y'all Come Back Now, Ya Hear?
Brittney

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