baby gifts

My friend Nancy just had a baby boy (okay, he was born September 3rd) and he's just too cute! I sent Nancy and Ruffin a package recently and wanted to show you what I made...

I crocheted trim around fleece and added a monkey motif. It's a pretty small blanket, meant to be used in a carseat or stroller.

I made another changing pad using the Bernina pattern. This one was fun because I used my free motion presser foot for the very first time to quilt it! It was pretty cool to be able to make all kinds of wavy lines.

I picked this lovey up at Target to continue the monkey theme of the gift. I read somewhere that if Mom sleeps with the lovey and then gives it to her child, it will hold her scent and comfort Baby. Interesting concept.

No present is complete without something for the new mom! I sent Nancy one of my zippered pouches and a crocheted headband.

I put together a cute little card to tie it all together.

Congratulations on the birth of your beautiful baby boy, Nancy! I hope you liked your package. :)

headbands

Since headbands have become so popular the last few years, I jumped on the bandwagon and crocheted a headband modeled after my daisy chain scarf pattern. I love regular headbands, but they squeeze my  head in all the wrong places and give me a giant headache. This one is nice because it doesn't make me feel like my head is in a vise. (This one is Nancy's, but mine looks the same. Don't worry, Nancy, I didn't send you a used headband, lol!)

When I wore it to work, a friend saw it and asked me to make some for her two elementary school daughters. This is what I came up with...

I decided to get a little fancier than my original headband. The simple one works well for me but I figured the girls needed a little more pizzazz than that.

Sorry about the bad second photo. I still suck at photographing purple.

knuffle bunny

Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, by Mo Willems, has long been one of my favorite picture books for kids. My favorite part is when Trixie is trying to tell her dad that Knuffle Bunny is missing, and she says "Aggle flaggle klabble! Blaggle plabble! Wumby flappy?! Snurp.". So sweet!

When I saw this pattern for a Knuffle Bunny on emilie handmade, I knew I had to make one! One of my very dear friends is having a baby early next year, and since she's also a teacher I thought it would make a nice Christmas gift for her.

Knuffle Bunny will be accompanied by a copy of the original book. There is also a Knuffle Bunny Too and a Knuffle Bunny Free! Mo Willems is a great writer. Have you ever seen Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus?

I do have one question that I'd like to pose to you: Is it bad to give my pregnant friend a baby gift for Christmas? I'm also giving her a baby quilt closer to when the baby is born, but I really wanted to do this for her. Is it considered bad etiquette? Discuss. :)

homeless shelter hat

Every Tuesday night I go to a knit/crochet group  at a local yarn store. A bunch of ladies from all ages and walks of life gather together for a couple of hours to knit, crochet, and talk. I started going in August, right before school started, and I really enjoy it!

One of the women who knits was watching a movie with her boyfriend and he caught sight of a crocheted hat in blue and white... she thinks it's terribly ugly and dubbed it the "homeless shelter hat" but he LOVED it. She wanted to make it for him for Christmas but doesn't crochet.

We decided to do a swap... I'd make the hat and she'll make me a knitted cowl. She decided on blue and gray, and here is the finished hat!

I actually like how it turned out. The color changes on every row meant lots of ends to weave in, but the end resut was worth it.