DIY Project: Bibs

I have been perusing Pinterest to get some ideas for more DIY baby projects (check out my baby mobile here), and let me tell you there are a ton of ideas on there, and that get's me excited!  What would I do without Pinterest?  I It's such a great place for inspiration, but let's be honest, I don't use it enough.

First up - bibs considering LB spits up ALOT, and if I was a good mother, I would change his clothes every time they got soaked with spit up, but if that were the case, LB would go through at least 5 outfits a day!  So instead of changing his clothes, I force him to wear a bib like an old person in order to protect his clothes from the massive amounts of milk that come pouring out of his mouth.  I'm making it sound a whole lot worse than it actually is, but a day doesn't go by that he doesn't soak the neck of his outfit with his beverage of choice.  And yes, he has grown, but he is still so small - so any and all bibs look gigantic on him.  I have found a few that are teeny tiny, but that just gives his spit up more room to cover his clothes.

So when my friend Rachel handed off this little bandana bib to me (that she made), I got all excited!  I mean they couldn't be that hard to make could they??  And it wouldn't cost that much to make them considering all you need is some fabric and a button/velcro, and yes, a sewing machine would be nice, but I did find a tutorial for no sew bibs. And making them would save me from having to buy more bibs for LB considering he goes through at least 2-3 bibs a day.  And it certainly wouldn't hurt to add a few more bibs to his collection.  However, I still don't have a sewing machine in my possession, so it gives me a good excuse to spend time with those who do.

And this bandana bib is so cute!  See LB modeling it below.  This series of photos just makes me laugh - I just imagine him saying..."Look at my new bib!...I love it.  I'll be so sad if you take it away from me.  (cue spit up all over the bib).  Mom, (while wailing) I said don't take it away from me!"  Can't wait till LB can actually TALK, but in the meantime, we are cherishing our wordless moments and filling in the blanks for him.

And some other bib ideas for inspiration that I gathered from pinterest!

via pinterest - don't even need a sewing machine!

via pinterest

via pinterest

So on Friday, I have a bib making date with Rachel and I promise to post photos of the finished products.  Happy DIYing!  What baby items have you made?  I would love to hear from you!

xoxo,

Malia

DIY Project: Baby Crib Paper Mobile.

I had been dying to make a mobile for Little Buddy's space but I just couldn't find the time or the energy to do it. Well, let's just say a little help from a friend goes a long way!!  I told my friend Mary about the mobile and sent her links (here and here and here) to what I was thinking and she offered to help.  Let's just say the mobile instructions required a sewing machine, and I don't own a sewing machine, nor do I really know how to use one, so thank goodness Mary was kind enough to do the sewing part for me!  I should probably add a sewing machine to my wish list of items I wish I had.

Items Needed

scrapbook paper - enough to make around 100 circles

circle cutter or a jar to trace around

ribbon - two rolls

embroidery hoop(s) - you can use one, but I used two to make my mobile more full

glue stick - to glue circles together

glue gun - to glue ribbon to hoop 

sewing machine - to sew through paper and ribbon

So first things first, Mary went out and bought a ton of fancy scrapbook paper that was yellow and grey to go with LB's little nursery colors (like I said she's a great friend!!), and I spent a few nights cutting out the necessary circles for the mobile.  And considering I made a mobile with two embroidery hoops, I needed even more circles - I think it was about 120 circles total.

And then Mary and I reconvened at her home, because like I said...I don't own a sewing machine.  

I first had to decide how many circles I wanted on each piece of ribbon.  And then we spent ages organizing all the circles according to the design, considering we didn't want the same design right next to each other which makes sense right?  However, when all was said and done, we realized it didn't really matter. 

And then I glued all the circles with matching designs together with the ribbon in between, and Mary then sewed through the paper and the ribbon to ensure they stayed in place.

 And if you look close enough, you can see the small stitch right down the middle of the circles.

And then I wrapped that same white ribbon around the embroidery hoop and used a glue gun to ensure the ribbon stayed in place.  And then we began hanging the strips of circles, and I used a glue gun once again to hold all of those in place.  And then we used ribbon to connect the two embroidery hoops and a glue gun once again.  The glue gun was a life saver!  I need to get myself one of those.

And here we have it...the finished product hanging up in Lb's little space.  And it was super easy.  Huge shout out to Mary for providing so many of the goods - the circle cutter, the paper, the glue gun, the skills, the sewing machine, the company, and the home!!  I truly couldn't have done it without you.  I absolutely love it!

 

Happy crafting!  Already thinking up my next project.  What are you working on??

love,

Malia

It's the Little Things.

This past weekend was simply delightful and guess what?  We didn't DO anything!  Well, I guess that's not entirely true, considering we did lead Sunday School and we went to church, but outside of that we had didn't have anything planned. And let me tell you..THAT IS RARE!!

And it was truly amazing!  I went for a run around the track on Friday and finished up my workout with way too many lunges, over 250 I think, and I am truly feeling the pain today.  I even signed up for a free subscription of Hulu plus, and I watched FAR Too many episodes of the TV show Once upon a Time.  And I signed up for a free month of Netflix and added loads of movies to my queue and watched the movie Snow flower and the Secret Fan.  I even repainted our bathroom with a teeny tiny paintbrush and touched up the paint in our kitchen.

I redesigned our garden window area - Thanks Sarah Tosti for the newest plant additions - the succulents.  LOVE those so much!  And I added the little candles.  Loving the DIY projects.

Flowers from the yard!  Aren't they pretty??

And this magazine just showed up in our mailbox!  I don't remember signing up for a subscription, but that didn't keep me from reading it.  Don't you just love the pretty pictures and the wonderful DIY ideas.  I love the twine covered bottle vases on the front cover - I think I should try this! 

See - aren't these just so cute??  I think they are super easy to make too!  A fancy use for all those empty beer bottles.  

(via pinterest)

Oh...all these little things just make me so happy!  It was so wonderful to have a weekend entirely free of obligations. It's the little things in life that truly make it beautiful!

xoxo,

Malia