A is for Art

Vera's bedroom walls were looking a little bare so I made her a couple pieces of art.

Vera's silhouette at one-year-old. I completely copied this idea from my friend Bethany, who made one for her daughter. Canvas, paint, paper, and mod podge. Done. Super cute and super easy.

I also made her an alphabet painting.

I started by printing letters of different fonts and sizes onto label paper.

I used a piece of scrap plywood instead of a canvas because I wanted the wood grain to show through for some of the letters. I cut the letters out and stuck several of them to the plywood, then painted over the entire piece of plywood with pink paint. Then I stuck down several more letters and painted it with a coat of blue paint. I repeated this process with the remaining letters and paint colors. Once the paint was dry, I peeled off all the letters to expose the paint beneath. The paint bled a little bit around the edges of the letters, but I was ok with that since I was going for a slightly distressed look. I lightly sanded it to further distress some areas.

Crib Skirt

I just checked off the last big sewing project on my nursery to do list, with only a few weeks to spare!

No detailed tutorial for this project, but the concept is fairly simple. First, I started by measuring the metal frame that holds the crib mattress, which came out to 51" x 26". The mattress is at the highest position now, but I wanted the skirt to just skim the floor when the mattress was at the lowest setting, a distance of about 10".

I cut out four panels for the sides of the skirt and one large panel for the top, adding a couple extra inches to my original measurements for seam allowances:

Two 53" x 11.5" panels for the long sides

Two 28" x 11.5" panels for the short sides

One 52" x 27" panel for the top

I hemmed the sides and bottom edges of the side panels and serged them onto the top panel. Then I sewed pom pom trim onto the bottom of each side panel.

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.

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.