Need a Quick & Inexpensive Baby Gift? {My Taggie Blanket Tutorial}

There are so many babies being born around me right now!  So exciting, but that means LOTS of gifts to give and that can get expensive.  

My solution? 

I love giving handmade gifts and one of my favorite gifts to give is Taggie Blankets.

These are so easy to make!

Items Needed:

Scissors

Ribbon

Fabric

Pins

Thread

Sewing Machine

Plastic Bag or other krinkly material

Step 1:  Cut two squares of fabric the same size.  I usually make mine about 8--10" square.  This will be the front and back of your blanket.  I like to use terry cloth or flannel because it is soft for babies.  In this tutorial, I am using terry cloth.

Step 2: Cut ribbon in lengths of about 2-3".  I use a variety of ribbon so it is interesting for baby to touch and see.  

Step 3:  Fold ribbon lengths in half and pin to one square of fabric with the loop end of the folded ribbon facing inward.  (Be sure to pin with ends of pins facing the outer part of the square so they can easily be removed.  In this picture, I accidently pinned a few facing inward.  It can still work, but it is more difficult to remove the pins.)

Step 4:  Place the other square of fabric on top of the pinned ribbons and pin down.

Step 5:  Sew around the square leaving a 2" hole for turning right side out.  If this hole interferes with one of your ribbons, just remove that ribbon and insert during step 8. Remove all pins.

Step 6:  Turn right side out.  

Step 7:  Cut plastic bags in squares the same size as you cut your fabric and insert the pieces into the square. 

Step 8:  Turn edges of hole towards the inside and sew closed.  (If you had to remove a ribbon for the hold in step 5, stick in in and sew it closed.

Step 6:  Press edges for a cleaner finish and top stitch about a 1/4" inside the square.  You're done!

Pair this with an appliqued onesie and 

you have a perfect gift made with love!

Linking to these parties:

Appliqued T-shirt Tutorial

This is it! My first tutorial!!! For my first one, I wanted to make sure it was really exciting! Who doesn't love those adorable initial t-shirts you see everywhere? Well, now you can do it yourself!

Here's what you need:

sewing machine

thread to match your project

t-shirt

fabric scrap for your letter

computer

printer

heat n' bond lite

stabilizer

scissors
pen
pins

Step One:

Open a word document. Go to View - Toolbars - Drawing. A toolbar will pop up. Click Word Art "A". Choose the first box (top left) - select ok. A test box will appear. Type in the letter you want to applique. Next choose your font. Click ok. Click on letter once. Another word art tool bar will open. Select Text wrapping. Choose "in front of text". Now you can drag your letter to the size that you want it. Next, you will want to flip it so it will print out backward. To do this, you will click "draw". This should be on your word art toolbar. Next choose "rotate or flip horizontally". Now you are ready to print!

Step Two:

Lay your printed paper with the letter facing up. When you look at it, it will be backwards. Lay a piece of Heat n Bond, paper side up, on top of your printed paper. Trace. Cut out your letter.

Step Three:

Place bumpy side up on your fabric. Make sure your fabric is wrong side up! Rub your iron over this for 2-3 seconds. Cut out the letter.

Step Four:

Now you should have a fabric letter with the heat n bond paper on the back. Now, peel the paper off. The back of your fabric letter should have a glossy finish on the backside. Place the letter on the t-shirt in the position you would like it. Rub your hot iron over it for about 10 seconds.

Step Five:

Cut out a piece of stabilizer. I use Stitch and Tear. Place stabilizer on the inside of your t-shirt and pin it to the front of the t-shirt.

Step Six:

Time to sew! Choose a zig zag stitch that you would like to use. You may want to get a scrap piece of fabric out to test the stitch length, width, and thread tension. I always do a test strip just to remind myself where the stitch begins so I will know where to line up my t-shirt when I begin.

Once you feel confident in your stitch, place your t-shirt under the needle and go! Oh, and be sure you don't stitch the front and back of the t-shirt together!

That's it! You're done!

Have you heard of this?

I recently found a wonderful website called You Can Make This.  It is a wonderful resource for all skill levels.  One amazing benefit to signing up for their newsletter is a free bundle package ($75 value) just for signing up!!!  This package has free downloadable e-books!  I LOVE FREE!  Especially when it comes to crafting!  On the right hand side of my blog, there is a direct link to the site.  Just click on it, join the community, then sign up for the newsletter to receive your free package.  Or, click on the link below. It's that easy!  Head over there right now! 
YouCanMakeThis.com
Download Today - Make It Today!

One of my favorite things I've come across after I joined was a video tutorial on letter appliques.  This is something I've been doing for a while.... sure do wish I had come accross this first!  Speaking of appliques, come back tomorrow, I'll have my own tutorial on letter appliques. 
Check it out and let me know what you think!