Little Baby Bib

          I know I have been slacking when it’s come to the tutorials/projects lately, but I’m about to throw all of what I’ve been doing lately out there at once.  Not to make excuses… actually, to make an excuse, we’ve been busy moving.  I slowed down on the amount of crafts I’ve been making, but there are quite a few wonderful creations for you to check out and maybe make for yourself.  Just stay tuned to see the products of my creativity.

           My niece just turned 1 year old a couple of weeks ago.  Wanting to give her something hand-crafted, I set out on a nearly impossible journey. What in the world do you make a one year old for their birthday?  Matt’s mom gave me the most wonderful book to flip through.  There were lots of great appliqué projects.  I wanted to try a few just to learn how to do appliqué.  After all, the sewing machine Matt got me for Christmas has some really awesome stitches, making it great for appliqué.  I decided upon a bib and Matt chose the lion we placed on it.  In a hurry to complete the project, I failed to get a final- product picture, but I’ll show you the process anyway.

Step 1:  Gather your gear.  You will need a washcloth or some terry-cloth, small scraps of fabric, tear-away embroidery stabilizer, coordinating thread, a fabric marker, and Velcro.

Step 2:  Choose your project.  I chose the bib project from Quilts, Bibs, Blankies… Oh My! by Kim Schaefer. 

Step 3:  Cut out your fabric.  Using the template provided within the book, cut out the bib shape first.  I folded the washcloth in half and taped the template to the cloth, then cut around it.  

Follow this same process with each appliqué piece until all are cut out.

Step 4:  Assemble.  Assemble your fabric to make sure everything is cut out in the proper size.

Step 5:  Begin the appliqué process.  Layer a square of embroidery stabilizer under your appliqué pieces.  I also did one with a frog on it.

Place the first piece of the design down and silk-stitch around the edges, being sure to turn the fabric when necessary.

Step 6:  Applique.  Layer each piece until all pieces are compiled.

Now, tear away the embroidery stabilizer.

Step 7:  Use your fabric marker.  Draw on features too small to appliqué.  I had to draw on whiskers, eyes and eyebrows to my adorable little lion.

Step 8:  Attach a cute backing.  I had some left-over flannel, so I added an extra layer on the back of the bib to be ultra-comfy for Audri. 

Step 9:  Bind it.  Sew your binding around the edges to finish off the bib.

Step 10:  Add the Velcro.  I added the Velcro to the top edge of the bib and the edge of the binding in order to make the bib adjustable. 

The finished product was so cute, I just loved it!  I can’t wait to make more projects from this amazing book.