Make Christmas special for the kids in your life by making them a handmade DIY Christmas gift! Here are 10 fun Christmas gifts to sew for kids of all ages. Most of my all-time favorite sewing projects are for my kids. In fact, most of my best DIY ideas, in general, are for my kids. …
Here’s an easy and free baby bib sewing pattern with a few clever twists for drooly babies who are teething. First, it’s lined with waterproof PUL fabric, the same stuff that you can use to make DIY baby diapers. I put orange PUL fabric on the back to reduce teething wetness on his clothes and …
DIY kids play kitchens don’t have to take up a lot of space. Make this flat felt portable DIY kids play kitchen that you can play with anywhere — on the rug, on a coffee table, wherever. Then just roll it up to store away until the next time that the ‘restaurant’ is open. This …
Wanna know how to sew bias tape with mitered corners? This tutorial will show you how to sew bias tape corners like a pro. I finally got my head around out the best way to sew double fold bias tape with mitered corners. Yay! I’m talking pretty, perfect mitered corners like this… Keep reading for …
Make a cheerful headboard slipcover to quickly and easily change up a bedroom. Because the slipcover is removable, it’s a super cute and inexpensive way to decorate a kid’s room and keep changing it up as they grow. And seriously, how sweetly adorable is this pleated pocket storage pocket? The storage pocket is just the …
Whether you want to hide a dated headboard or just freshen your bedroom, making a DIY headboard slipcover transforms your bedroom without the commitment and cost. I made this ‘how to make a headboard slipcover’ tutorial for DIY Network. I wanted to make a plaid flannel headboard slipcover to temporarily make our city bedroom feel …
I’ve gotten a couple emails lately asking me about my sewing machine and what sewing machine I recommend, so here’s some advice for beginning sewers. The quick answer? You don’t have to spend a lot, and honestly you really shouldn’t!
Even though I like to dabble in lots of crafts like paper and decoupage and painting, sewing is still my first love. That’s why I’m so proud to be included as a contributor in the new book “Little One-Yard Wonders – Irresistible Clothes, Toys, and Accessories You Can Make For Babies and Kids.” It’s the …
This free sandwich bag sewing pattern and tutorial is so easy you’ll be able to replace your old plastic snack bags in no time. I designed these free fabric sandwich bag and snack bag sewing patterns to have extra large flaps. The flaps act like teeny little place mats, which helps avoid germ fests like …
Recycling sweaters into winter hats is an oldie but a goodie because it’s cheap and useful and makes a great DIY gift. Check out this cute recycled sweater hat that Elise and I made from a recycled sweater! Making a hat out of a recycled wool sweater is such a quick project! I think this …
Here’s a spooky DIY Halloween trick or treat bag free pattern with ‘sticky’ spiderwebs and creepy spiders that can move and crawl around. Eek! The sticky spiderwebs on the DIY Halloween trick-or-treat bag are actually thin strips that I cut from VELCRO® Brand fasteners… …and the spiders have a bit of VELCRO® Brand Sticky Back …
This free pattern for DIY wipeable baby placemat attaches to clip-on highchairs (and restaurant high chairs too!). It covers the table …and unlike baby plates, your little darling can’t throw it onto the floor. I actually came up with this baby placemat pattern a few years back for my daughter, Elise, who is now three. …
Warm your sweetie’s heart with this clever tea & cookies combo: Handsewn teabags tied to yummy cookies that anchor the teabag as it steeps. I came up with the idea while making tea with my plain old loose teabags. No surprise my sweet tooth was craving cookies …and thought that maybe they could weigh down …
This longer baby bib free sewing pattern with pocket is for all the messy toddlers out there and their moms (AKA me) who are tired of doing their laundry. All of Elise’s baby bibs were much too short …not only were her bibs not keeping food off of her clothes but they also were looking …
Make a DIY baby tag blanket for snuggly newborns to cuddle and learn and play! This baby tag blanket with ribbon loops and super-soft minky fabric is a DIY baby gift for my friend Cristin‘s crazy cute newborn daughter, Margot. My DIY baby tag blanket free sewing pattern is a simplified, pocket-less, and slightly-larger version …
The Huffington Post Home contacted me about their Sew for Sandy initiative and I’m happy to pass it along. “As an initiative to collect as many warm blankets, clothing and gear for those in need, we are asking our readers to ‘Sew For Sandy’ and put their crafty skills to the test by making simple …
Make a DIY pillow from a pile of leftover sofa fabric swatches. It takes just an hour or so to put together this pillow with a quilted look that actually doesn’t require any quilting. It was really quick and easy to make and I’ll even show you how to put in a pillow zipper. Oh …
Cold tiny hands no more! Elise loves stick popsicles and frozen yogurt tubes. Truly, she’s a junkie. But she doesn’t like it when her hands get cold, which means I don’t like it when she sets the sticky treats on the table (or ick, on the floor) to take a temperature break. My short-term fix …
This curved baby burp cloth free sewing pattern is reversible, recycled, and super easy to make — you’ll be able to knock out this DIY burp cloth pattern in no time flat. During my nesting frenzy before our son Liam was born, I rummaged through all our towels (among other things) and set aside the …
I’m back with another DIY or Buy, this time featuring pin cushion thread catcher patterns. Trust me, if you like to sew, this guy is going to become your new best friend. Thread catchers act as little trashcans for your stray threads and empty spools and you can set them wherever you happen to be …
