When I found out that I was pregnant, I couldn’t wait to begin sewing for my baby. I had grand plans for the nursery and looked forward to making the itty, bitty clothes.
Decorating the Nursery
You can save money by making your own bedding and other nursery accessories, but more importantly, you can personalize your baby’s room and make it just the way you want.
I knew from shopping for friends and relatives with babies that the bedding, especially the designer stuff, was expensive. I don’t know about you, but I have trouble paying money for something that I know I can make myself. And, while the items I was seeing were nice, there were certain elements I liked or disliked about each set that I was unable to find all together in one place. One set might have too many ruffles on the crib skirt or the fabric in another might be a little scratchy. I liked the style of the crib bumpers in one set, but not the curtains. Why yes, I *am* fun to shop with; why do you ask? In addition, I knew that my mom and I would be making a quilt for the baby so in order to be able to coordinate the other bedding items with the quilt, I was going to have to make the accessory pieces the way I wanted them.
A typical bedding set includes a coverlet/quilt, crib bumper, bed skirt, and fitted sheet. Additional accessories include a diaper stacker, window treatments, and other small organizers (such as hanging pockets for miscellaneous items to hang on a wall or the changing table).
The Big Three (Simplicity, Butterick and McCalls) offer several different sewing patterns for infant bedding and accessories. So that you can see the available styles, I have displayed images of the pattern covers below with links to the pattern websites if you are interested in more information. Don’t be afraid to mix and match items. I think I ended up putting together components from three different patterns. It is a good idea to have an idea what your theme or preferred colors might be before you select your sewing patterns because you will need to determine how to mix and match the prints depending on the style of the pattern you select. For example, some patterns will use three prints, others will use more or less. So, if you know that you have four fabrics that you want to use and the pattern style you like only utilizes two different prints, either look for a pattern that uses more prints, or consider piecing fabric together for a patchwork look.
Please be sure to scroll to the bottom of page two for a link to important safety information about infant bedding.
Recommended Reading:
Kwik Sew's Sewing for BabyThis Kwik-Sew book is full of patterns for baby items including nursery items (bumper pads, comforters, crib sheets, receiving blankets, bath towels with hoods and wall hangings) and clothing.
Amy Butler's Little StitchesAmy Butler brings sophistication to baby gear and apparel in this collection of 20 contemporary projects.
