Closet Divider Tutorial

For each closet divider you will need:

Two 4 3/4" x 6" pieces of fabric
One 3 1/2" x 5" piece of firm/extra-firm interfacing
One curtain ring clip (large enough to fit around closet rod)
One 1/2" wide strip of fabric (length depends on size of curtain ring clip)

Other supplies:

Fabric turner
scissors
Embroidery floss
Embroidery needle
Embroidery hoop
Carbon paper
Iron
Fabric glue
Thread
Marking pen

I created 8 closet dividers in the following sizes: Newborn, 0-3 m, 3-6 m, 6-9 m, 9-12 m, 18 m, 24 m, and 2t. The finished size of each divider is 3 1/2" x 5".

You can freehand the sizes onto your fabric with a marking pen before embroidering. I chose to print the sizes on a piece of paper first so I could trace them. Pin the paper template onto the right side of your fabric. I positioned mine about 3/4" in from the sides and top. Slip a piece of carbon paper in between the paper and fabric, and using a retracted mechanical pencil or pen, trace the template onto your fabric. Hand embroider- I used a backstitch.

Once you have embroidered the sizes onto the fabric you're ready to start sewing. Pin your two pieces of fabric right sides together and sew 1/2" in from the edge, leaving the bottom edge open. Clip the corners and trim excess fabric from the edges. Turn right side out and press.

Fold the interfacing slightly and insert into the opening at the bottom of your fabric. Make sure it is neatly tucked inside, then topstitch 1/4" around all four edges.

To make the curtain ring clips, simply wrap your 1/2" wide strip of fabric around the ring, overlapping the fabric slightly each time you go around. Secure with fabric glue at the start and end of the strip.

Attach your curtain ring clip to the top of your divider and it's ready to hang!

I'm going to need more hangers!

Felted Soap

Felted soap is easy and affordable to make, and makes your bar soap last longer. It's like having a washcloth and soap in one! Wool also has the added benefits of being hypoallergenic and naturally antimicrobial.

There are a ton of tutorials out there on how to make felted soap. Basically, you take a bar of soap, wrap it tightly in wool roving, dunk it in hot water and start rubbing. To begin with, you can place it inside a piece of panty hose and tie off the ends, which helps hold the wool around the soap as you felt it. The whole process takes about 25 minutes. I used lavender scented bar soap, but you could use any type of soap. I did find it a little difficult to get good coverage on the corners. After I felted my bar for a few minutes, I added more wool to the corners and continued felting.

Gum Drop Ottoman

Two nursery projects down, two more to go!

• Curtains
• Ottoman
• Crib skirt
• Changing table

I made a 24" ottoman for the nursery using Amy Butler's Gum Drop Pillow pattern. I'll have to post another picture of it next to the chair for scale, it's actually quite large. I found the pattern to be simple and straightforward. There are only two pattern pieces, the side panel and top panel. 

The fabric I used is Zig Zag Village Green/Natural by Premier Prints.

Similar ottomans sell for around $100 on etsy, but if you're willing and able to make your own you could do it for around $40, depending on the cost of your fabric. This thing requires a ton of polyfil, which adds up. I was skeptical that I would need all 120 oz of polyfil recommended in the pattern, but you really do need that much. I found the best price at Walmart, where you can get a 50 oz bag for under $9.

I closed the ottoman up with a slip stitch but you could add a zipper if you wanted the cover to be removable.  I plan to use this as a footrest while nursing, but it will also make a great floor cushion when baby girl gets older.

Lined Curtain Panels and Tie-Back Tutorial

I've been working hard to check things off the nursery to-do list, and started with what I consider one of the more important projects, the curtain panels. Black-out lined curtain panels...to encourage nice loooonnng naps.

For four curtain panels, I ordered 12 yards of Sweet William Teal cotton duck fabric from Tonic Living.

Note: I did not pre-wash my fabric. The fabric manufacturer recommended dry clean only. Plus, I would be adding black-out fabric to the back. I decided that if the curtains ever needed a good cleaning, I would take them to the dry cleaners.

I had an idea of how I wanted to sew them, but did a little internet browsing to get some ideas. The tutorial I liked best was by House of Hepworths, but I made a few changes.

I started by raising the curtain rods nearly to the ceiling, just 3 inches down the wall. Our ceilings are standard height, 8 feet, and I wanted to give the illusion of height to the room. Also, I had plenty of fabric to make the panels nice and long.

I wanted my curtains to hang about 93" from rod to floor, so I cut each panel 101" long, allowing for 4" on both the top and the bottom for the hems. When cutting out my fabric, I made sure that the pattern would line up from panel to panel, so I cut the top edge of each panel at the same place in the pattern (I used the brown flowers as my guide).

Curtain Panel Instructions

After cutting out your fabric, press the long sides over by 1" then again by 1". (House of Hepworths recommended using a 1/2" hem on the sides, but I found this a bit too narrow.)

Press side 1"

Press side again, 1"

Next, press the top edge of the fabric over by 1/2" then over again by 3".

Press top 1/2" then again 3"

I decided to make a pocket top panel, but also wanted the option to use curtain ring clips, so I added small tabs to the back of each panel.

For each panel, cut out 7 pieces of fabric, each 2.5" W by 3" L. Press each piece of fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together, then sew along the edges with a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving a small opening for turning. Clip the corners and turn right-side out, making sure to push out the corners with your fabric turner. Press, then top-stitch along the edge with the opening.

Measure and mark off the spacing at the top hem of each panel (I spaced my tabs 8 1/2" apart). Pin the tabs in place and sew the short ends onto the top hem of the curtain panel, lining them up at the bottom edge of the hem. Only sew through one layer of fabric so the stitching is not seen from the front.

The next step is to cut out the black-out lining. Line up the black-out fabric with your curtain panel and tuck it inside the top and left hems. Smooth out. Cut off any excess at the right side and bottom. Tuck into right side. Pin in place. Using a walking foot, sew the sides first, followed by the top, stitching as close to the edge as possible. The walking foot will help keep the fabric from bunching up as you sew.

Line up the black-out fabric with your curtain panel

Cut off excess black-out fabric at the right side

Tuck under and pin in place

Note: There are two sides to the black-out lining, one is light gray and has a rubbery feel to it and the other is white and has a more cloth-like feel. After reading several different opinions online, I went with personal preference and put the white side out, the gray facing in toward the panel.

The last step is to hem the bottom. Fold over 1/2" and press, then fold over another 3" and press, just like you did for the top. Sew along the edge.

A finished view of the back:

Here's how they look hung as pocket panels...

and here's how they look hung with curtain clips. You can see the rings barely stick out from the top because they're attached to the tabs instead of the top of the curtain.

Tie-Back Instructions

I used a tie-back from a set of curtains we already owned as my template. With my fabric folded in half, I lined up the straight edge of the tieback at the fold and traced it onto my fabric, adding about 1/4" for my seam allowance. Then I cut out and pressed, right sides together, lengthwise. My tie-back was curved on one side but you could also create a rectangular tie-back. To do so, you would cut out a 3.5" x 23" piece of fabric.

From bottom to top: tie-back from purchased curtains, tie-back loops, tie-back body, finished tie-back

Tie-back body, pressed lengthwise, right sides together

Next, cut out two pieces of fabric, each 2" W x 7" L. Press right sides together, lengthwise.These will become the loops for the end of the tie-backs.

Tie-back loops, pressed lengthwise, right sides together

A trick to turning narrow tubes of fabric is to lay a piece of ribbon or cord inside before sewing.

Sew around the edges with a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving the end open. Then pull on the ribbon to turn the fabric right-side out. It took a bit of wiggling to get it to turn. Once turned, I just cut off the ribbon since the ends would be hidden inside the main piece of the tie-back. Press with the seam at the side, and fold in half.

Pull on ribbon to turn fabric right side out

Press tie-back loop and fold in half

Tuck the loops into the ends of the tie-back, with about 1/2" of the raw ends sticking out, and pin in place. Make sure the seams in the loops and tie-back face the same direction. Sew around the edge of the tie-back, over the loops, with a 1/4" seam allowance, leaving a small opening for turning.

Clip any excess fabric from the end of the loops. Turn right side out and press. Top stitch 1/8" in from the edge, making sure to sew the opening closed.

Baby Bunny Slippers

My friend Bethany shared this ridiculously cute Baby Bunny Slipper pattern with me, and I couldn't resist making a pair for her little girl. One of the nice things about this pattern is that, made without the bunnies, the slippers are reversible.

Happy Easter!!!

Please Knock...Baby Sleeping

My friend Jenn gave me this sweet alphabet embroidery sampler pattern for Christmas:

I haven't attempted the full sampler yet, but used some of the designs to create an embroidered sign for the front door.

I sized the pattern down to 45% of the original size, for the word "knock." Since it was so much smaller than the original, I couldn't use all the recommended stitches, so I ended up using satin stitch for many of the letters. The rest of the words were done with back stitch.

Zach dug the frame out of a dumpster about 5 years ago, one of his favorite hobbies when we were still living in an apartment.

Forest Friends Mobile

I recently made a baby mobile for a friend, to go with her woodland themed nursery.

Source

The animals are made mostly of wool-blend felt, with a few hand embroidered details.

I also made a second owl, to hang from the car seat.