I have two little projects to share with you. These were both gifted at Christmas and I thought I would wait to post until after they had been given to their intended owners. First is a small, fabric book that I made for my soon-to-be-born grand daughter.
I have several of these panels, in two different flavors, that I purchased when a local fabric store was closing out, maybe four or five years ago? I thought it would be good to have them on hand as a fun gift to give. Then somehow I lost track of them or they went to the bottom of the pile in that closet of mine. After some digging, I found them.
I think it is a sweet way to introduce baby to books. The pages are thick and easily grasped, bright colors and not a whole lot in the way of a plot. Plus it is washable which might come in handy.  😉
If you haven’t made one of these before, it is basically a panel of rectangles. Once you cut them out, the panels are paired up to be sewn in a certain order so the pages are in the correct order. (This is crucial when the plot is as deep as these are!) The instructions said to fuse a mid-weight interfacing to one page of each pair. I chose to use fusible batting instead. It makes the book a bit softer. Each pair of pages is sewn, right sides together and then turned right side out. Press and sew up the little opening that was left to turn the book right sides out. Stack the pages and sew down the center to hold them together. Ta da! Your book is complete.
I didn’t put her name on the book because it hasn’t been shared yet. (Actually, I am not certain they have truly decided on one yet.)
The other gift I made is a scrappy Christmas pillow. I had cut lots of rectangles from a bag of Christmas scraps and decided to use a few of them. I stitched the rows and then when I sewed the rows together I offset the seams. It makes things a little bit more interesting. I love some of the vintage Christmas scraps in this pillow (especially the candy cane fabric).
It looked too busy with the patchwork rows right next to each other so I took a solid khaki color scrap and cut some strips that were 1.5″ finished. At first I quilted the scrappy rows with my walking foot and a variegated Mettler thread in Christmas colors of red and green. That looked boring. I added the big stitch quilting on the solid rows and liked the way that was looking. (You may have seen some of this on Instagram – I shared a few pictures there along the way.
After doing the straight lines of big stitches (using Perle cotton thread) I added the phrasing. I think that finished it off nicely. A simple envelope backing and it was complete.
I didn’t give as many handmade gifts as I sometimes do. Time doesn’t always allow for these things! But these were very simple and fun to make.
I have been reading lots of great posts about everyone’s plans for the new year. I am hoping to get to that soon. I didn’t get it done ahead of time and now we are in the middle of lots of family time. Maybe next week when things settle down again. I do have some fun ideas for 2017 and am excited to share them. Stay tuned!
Happy New Year everyone! Wishing you all the best in 2017.
Linking to my usuals – find the links at the top of the page, under Link Ups. Additionally, I linked to Frontier Dream’s linky party, Keep Calm and Craft On.
Absolutely love both your projects. Do you have a link for the instructions for the booklet? I think it is exceptional and would love to add it to my list for my granddaughter. And the pillow! So cute!
Like you I have not yet made a list of my hopes for 2017, but my bookmarks and saved photos of potential projects grows every day – lol! I am trying to finish a baby quilt before the end of the year – I’ve quilted about 1/2 of it – wish me luck!
Hi Linda, I saw the picture on IG of the quilt and it looks like it is coming along nicely – great colors too.
For the book (which takes an hour or so to put together) there are some available at fabric.com
https://www.fabric.com/buy/0438446/huggable-loveable-i-love-you-honey-bunny-soft-book-panel-
They have several to choose from. You just cut the panel up, add some fusible and stitch back together. Your grand baby is the perfect age for something like this.
Thanks!! I see now the instructions are on the fabric (or I think that’s what it is.) I just ordered some from Amazon with free shipping – woo hoo!
While I didn’t make it one of my grandson’s first baby books was fabric and he loved it and chewed on it all the time 🙂
The second favorite one was one of those books with cutouts, mirrors, fuzzy animals, etc that I’d gotten at Target. It was around 16.00 but worth every penny. That child loved that book to pieces!
I hope this grand baby likes the book just as well.
Yes, the books with lots to manipulate and play with on the pages are always a hit.
Happy New Year Deb!
They both look fabulous finishes 🙂 and you’re not alone on the not having made any plans yet – I’m nowhere near ready to greet a new year!
Very fun finishes! I really like that Christmas pillow. The stitching is a very nice detail. Have a very happy New Year.
Thank you Kate! Same to you — all the best in the New Year. 🙂
Lovely finishes! Those little books are quiet so they are perfect for taking with baby to church. The pillow is very nice and I’m sure the recipient loves it. The fabrics are lovely and your embroidery is sweet. Fabulous handmade gifts.
Thank you Mary. I do love making gifts. This year didn’t seem to allow for very many but these were cute ones.
I hope you enjoyed your holidays with family and friends. Happy New Year!
I had forgotten all about those fabric books!! They are so fun!
Yes, they are. It will be so much fun to finally meet this sweet girl in the springtime. She is due to arrive at the beginning of March. Can’t wait!!
It’s a lovely little book Bernie, and you get to look forward to reading it to your new to be grandchild too. One thing I notice about you is your attention to detail and the pillow is a prime example, lovely.
Oh Kate, that is something to look forward to, isn’t it? Can’t wait to read to this little girl. Thanks a bunch and all the best in the new year. 🙂