Sew An Easy Baby Sleeper!

Ever love that oh so cute baby sleepers with the elastic on the bottom?  I sure do, in fact I miss them now that my little one is getting older!  However, I have many showers to go to and it is a great gift!  The slip on sleeper with the elastic on the bottom is great for babies because you can easily change the babies diaper without fussing with all the buttons, snaps, or zippers.  It also keeps the baby warm and comfortable; not to mention how cute he or she will look!

IMG_2318First off, you need the pattern.  For this one, I used a neighboring sewing blog’s pattern since there are so many out there:

Stitched Together Pattern

So print your pattern making sure you unclick the fit to page (you want it letter size).

What you need:
*Fabric of chose
*Thread
*Elastic 1/4inch or
1/8inch
*Optional: bias tape (can
also make or just hem)

Below is the link to the Youtube video tutorial.  Below that is written instructions with pictures…enjoy!

  1. Print your pattern.  Cut your fabric as instructed on pattern

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You should now have one front and one
back piece, and two sleeves.

2. Next, you use your bias tape. If you don’t have bias tape you can hem the ends instead or you can make your own bias tape. Here is directions to make your own bias tape

IMG_22643. Fold your bias tape on the ends of the sleeves, pin on
and sew straight on both sleeves.  Do this also to the neckline of the front and back piece.

4.  Next, You want to overlap your front and back gown pieces by either looking at the mark you made from the pattern or you can measure 4 inches of overlap from the top down.  So you want to pin and sew the overlapping sides (the 4 inches)

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5. Find the middle of the overlap and the middle of the sleeves. This can be done by measuring 2 inches in for the overlap or folding.  The sleeve can be folded as well if you didn’t mark it. Line up the middle of the sleeve and middle of the overlap place pattern on pattern and pin and sew.

IMG_2265Snapshot 2 (9-8-2015 1-51 PM)Snapshot 1 (9-8-2015 1-51 PM)

You have to bunch it and pin it for it to stay.

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6. Turn your sleeper inside out and pin from the bias tape bottom all the way down to the bottom of the sleep.  Then sew!

Snapshot 3 (9-8-2015 1-57 PM)

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Almost there!

7.  Turn inside out and make elastic casing by folding up the bottom 1/4 inch for 1/8elastic or 1/2inch for 1/4elastic. Iron or pin the area to make it easier to
sew.  Don’t forget to leave a 1-2 inch opening to put the elastic through!
Remember to back stitch!

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8. To get your elastic through use a safety pin on the end and put in the opening
and pull through by bunching the fabric and then pulling the safety pin.

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9. Choose the tightness you need for your little one on the bottom and then sew your two pieces of elastic together.  Then sew the opening closed!

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That’s it!  Congrats you have finished!  Great job.  Any suggestions questions please let me know.  Look for the next post to be the matching slippers!

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Creating A Photo Pillow

Looking for that perfect gift for someone?  Maybe for a holiday or special occasion?  Possibly a housewarming gift? Or maybe just an I’m thinking of you gift, the photo pillow is a perfect easy sewing project!  The pillow below always gives my little one a smile when she picks it up on the couch!  I know my husband enjoys it too because sometimes I find drool on it :op

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Follow the You-tube tutorial here:

You can also follow along here:

pillowFor this tutorial you will need:

  • Freezer paper the size of a piece of printer paper (8.5×11″)
  • Computer and printer (choose your photos or photos)
  • Fabric (sizes vary on size of the pillow you would like)
  • Sewing machine and accessories
  • Poly-fill
  • Iron

1. Start by cutting a piece of freezer paper to the size of a piece of a paper (8.5×11′).  Also cut the piece of fabric you are going to print the photo on to that size.  Remember you most likely want to print on a light thin colored fabric so the picture stands out.freezerpaper2. Next, take your fabric you want the photo printed on and put it on your ironing surface with the side you want the photo printed on down.  Then put your freezer paper shiny side down against the fabric.  Have your iron on medium high and iron on top of the freezer paper.  You can also turn it over and iron the fabric with the freezer paper on the bottom.  Do not leave it on one spot too long or the fabric will develop a burn mark.  Make sure the corners are well ironed and the sheet should stick to the fabric.

3. Take the fabric and freezer paper that are now one to your printer.  Place it in the paper tray and print your photo.  Make sure there aren’t any loose strings hanging on the side of your fabric, this could catch in your printer.  Also make sure you put your paper in the way your printer will print on the fabric and not the freezer paper.  If you are unsure, take a piece of regular printer paper and mark one side. Put it in the tray and check and see which side it prints on.

4. Once you have your photo printed, you can easily peel off the freezer paper.  You can save the freezer paper to use one or two more times; quite economical if I should say so myself!  Then, if you are planning on putting the photo fabric on a larger piece of fabric to have a bigger pillow, you want to fold a hem around the edges of your fabric and pin and sew it onto the larger piece of fabric.  Below is an example.

  pillow

However, if you would like to make a small decorative pillow (the size of a piece of paper), you would skip this step.

5. Next take your photo fabric or front of the pillow and place it facing side up.  Take the back fabric for your pillow and place it on top facing in.  So now the fabric pieces you want to be on the outside of the pillow are now facing the inside.  Pin them together.  Then you want to stitch all the way around the outside except for a three inch opening.  So make sure you back-stitch when you start and end.  I suggest you do not do this on the corner because it will be harder to hand sew at the end.  This opening will be used to turn the pillow right side out and then stuff with poly-fill.

6. After sewing, turn it right side out.  Stuff it with poly-fill to your desired fullness.

7. Now you will have to decide what stitch you want to use to close it.  You can close it on the machine however it will be noticeable.  You can do the regular loop stitch which is easiest.  Another option which is used in my video is the blind stitch.  The blind stitch is used for hems and closures that you want “blind.

8. And Viola!  You are finished, congrats and enjoy!

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