Tag: gift

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Kids Pillowcase Project

Many years ago I came across a project that has stuck with me since I was about 12 years old. It’s a project I’ve made many times, for my own use as well as gifts, and I’m excited to share this one.

If your child has a special friend or famliy member that they want to do something kind for, this really is sure to be a hit! This project is entirely customizable and takes about an hour to do.

Here are the materials you will need for this project:

  • White pillowcase (100% cotton)
  • Black Sharpie (permanent)
  • Crayola crayons (not the washable variety)
  • Wax paper
  • Iron
  • Cardboard
  • Coloring sheet
  • Tape

To begin, the child can pick out a coloring page if they wish. You can quite easily print free coloring pages from the internet, or perhaps they already have a coloring book to select an image from. If they prefer to free-hand, that works too. For lettering I suggest using block letters as they can be colored in.

I start by ironing the pillowcase to get all the wrinkles out. Next you need a piece of cardboard that will fit inside the pillowcase, and the cardboard must be at least as large as the coloring page (or the drawing area). You need the cardboard to prevent the ink from running through to the opposite side of the pillowcase. And hey, if your kiddo enjoys this project they just might want to decorate both sides!

The next step is optional but I do find it very helpful. I tape the coloring sheet to the cardboard. This prevents the page from shifting as the image is traced.

The next step may require adult supervision, depending on the child and their age. You will tuck the cardboard (with coloring sheet attached) inside the pillowcase. You should be able to see the outline of the image through the pillowcase.

Next you will take the black Sharpie and trace the outline onto the pillowcase. Try not to press too hard as it can lead to “bleeding” ink. If this happens, you can certainly color over it with the crayons.

With the image traced out, it’s time to color! I recommend leaving the cardboard inside the pillowcase for this step.

I finished coloring and added a couple of words (freehand, as you can probably tell!) to fill in the pillowcase a bit more. Once all coloring is completed, it’s time to iron!

You want to ensure you are placing the wax paper with wax side down (facing the image). As you iron, the wax from the wax paper will transfer onto the pillowcase and help seal in the crayon. If you aren’t certain which side of the wax paper is waxed, scratch your fingernail on each side. The side that shows up white after it’s been scratched is the wax side.

For extra protection, you can repeat that last step and use a second sheet of wax paper. I like to iron slowly and make sure the iron has had time to really seal in the crayon. Do not use the steam setting.

Voila!

This pillowcase should be washable now, though the color will naturally fade over time. The Sharpie won’t, so if you do experience fading you can always break out the crayons and try again!

Thanks for checking out my post today! Happy coloring!

– Heather

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Baby Blankets

My most frequent sewing project is, without a doubt, baby blankets. All different shapes, colors, themes, sizes. It’s my favorite gift to give at a baby shower, and you can pretty much rest assured the receiver won’t get a duplicate.

Whether you’re doing tummy time, reading books on the couch or heading outside for a picnic, baby blankets are sure to get used.

Recently I’ve had the pleasure of making a bunch of blankets, so tonight I will walk you through my process. There are plenty of standard sizes for blankets, but you can absolutely use your imagination when planning out your blanket.

The first blanket was made for a new baby in my very extended family, I will say. A beautiful little girl named Isabelle. I actually used fabric from my stash (still working away at it…….) and I was really happy with it.

Previously I had used these exact fabrics to make Big Sis and Little Sis blankets for a good friend of mine. I made a mini version of that quilt for Isabelle.

I started by drawing out a pattern. I cut 10 6X6″ blocks for the top and bottom of the quilt. I cut 2 30X4″ pieces for the long rectangular sections. Then I cut 4 15X8 pieces for the center. I knew that once I joined the pieces I could trim the uneven edges caused by the seam allowances. Sometimes I am more precise, but this time I didn’t feel the need to be.

I used a 1/4″ seam allowance and joined the blocks across each row. Once each row was formed, I joined them horizontally to form the blanket.

It came together quite quickly as there weren’t that many pieces. This is a photo of the quilt top once I appliqued the elephant and her name.

I gave the fabric a good press with a hot iron here to flatten out the seams.

I picked out cotton batting for the centre of the quilt and a soft minky for the backside. Once I put the quilt together with right sides facing out and the batting in the middle, I started pinning the 3 pieces together. Lots and lots and lots of pins. The next step is to quit down the fabric. This essentially means you will sew all 3 pieces together in some pattern, which will help the blanket keep its shape over time as it gets washed more and more.

I quilted down along each seam on the quilt, both sides of the seam in fact. So I essentially made railroad tracks right on top of each seam. This part takes a bit of time but really does add to the blanket.

Once the quilting down was complete, I made the binding for the edge of the quilt. I cut 2.5″ wide strips of cotton and used this technique to join it to the quilt.

Some people hand sew the binding in place but I don’t typically do that. I actually don’t enjoy hand sewing, and the time commitment is significant.

Voila! A personalized gift that will get used over and over and over and over…..

The next blanket was quite simple and was made for a customer. She gave me permission to share this project with you.

The customer had seen fabric by Amy Butler called Bliss Bouquet (in Teal) and fell in love. She wanted a baby blanket made for her soon-to-be-arriving baby girl. She wanted a basic blanket with minky on the back.

This fabric is very difficult to get, but I was fortunate enough to find it at The Fabric Merchant here in St. John’s, NL. Don’t even get me started on how much I love this store…

I picked up a slightly cream colored minky fabric and got sewing. She wanted a blanket that was 28X33″.

I started by ironing the cotton Amy Butler fabric. I cut out a rectangle that was 32X37, to ensure I had plenty for a nice folded edge over the minky.

I cut the minky and the cotton batting to 28X33.

I laid out the pieces on my floor and smoothed out any wrinkles.

Next I went around the edge of the blanket, folding down the printed cotton twice, and pinning in place in preparation for sewing.

I zig zag stitched around the blanket and it was done!

This blanket is so soft and pretty, and took about an hour to make.

There are many variations of baby blankets and they really do make wonderful gifts. You can get really creative and mix colors and prints, and you never have to do the same blanket twice.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this post. Thanks for stopping by today!

Heather

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DIY Seashell Photo Frame

My husband makes fun of me (playfully, of course) for collecting seashells and rocks from pretty much anywhere we visit. I bring them home thinking, “I will do something crafty with them some day!” and sometimes I actually do….

Well recently we took our first family vacation to Florida and we were able to collect a bunch of beautiful shells from a day spent at the beach.

For Father’s Day I decided to put those shells to use.

Materials needed for this project:

  • Wooden frame
  • Glue gun
  • Glue sticks
  • Shells (cleaned)
  • Photo

I picked up a sweet little 4X6 frame from Michael’s. I cleaned the frame to make sure it was free of dust and debris, so the hot glue would stick properly.

Heated up my glue gun and got started right away. This project took 15 minutes in total.

I laid out shells on the frame to see where I felt each one should go. Then I kept adding shells until I was satisfied with the result. I found it helpful to lay out the larger shells first and then fill in empty spaces with small shells.

On our trip we kept taking note of how many shells had little round holes in them, so I knew I wanted to use a few of those for sure.

To glue, I simply filled the underside of each shell with hot glue, and placed on the frame. Work quickly, though, as hot glue does tend to dry/harden faster than regular glue.

The frame came with the writing on it, however (if you’re really adventurous) you could totally wood burn some text into it as well.

I stuck a cute picture (of him with the baby) from our trip into the frame, and it made a perfect Father’s Day gift.

This would be an excellent gift for a birthday or Christmas as well.

Thanks for checking out my post.

Heather