NEW Bow tie Onesies

What can I say...

I love a man in a bow tie.

Your little man will be the center of attention

whether it be a play date or a wedding

in our NEW bow tie onesies.

The perfect mix of

elegance,

funk,

and of course comfort.

Looks super cute with some jeans and a blazer

or a pair of funky baby legs

and oh what a unique and fun baby shower gift it would be!

And so the girls aren't left out on all the bow tie fun

I made a girly version too.

Check them all out in the shop!

Shaving Cream

Who knew shaving cream

on a cookie sheet

could be so much fun!

Just add a couple squirts of shaving cream to a tin foil covered cookie sheet for

instant fun!

Bit of Whimsy Dolls Giveaway!

If your little one loves her dollies as much as mine

this giveaway is just for you!

I'd like to introduce you to

Sarah of

Bit of Whimsy Dolls.

"I've been sewing since I was 5 years old and made a lot of my own clothes from middle school up until my oldest son was born. Once he came into my life, my focus became baby clothes, baby quilts and bibs. When my daughter was born, I wanted to find her the perfect "first doll" before anyone else did! I couldn't find anything I really, really liked so I settled for a pink velour standard issue baby doll.

I continued to sew and even sold a variety of items on eBay for a few years. I started making patterns for a few of my creations, mainly sweet primitive dolls. A friend of mine told me about Etsy and I listed one of my patterns. I sold 4 patterns in 8 months! I had the idea to start making play dolls instead of display raggedy dolls because I could never find the style of pattern I was looking for when I wanted to sew for my kids. I made Millie Monkey, released the pattern and decided to really work on my Etsy shop. A week or so later, I finally made my daughter the doll I wanted to find her when she was born and Doodle Girl was born. Since then, my daughter has been my main inspiration. She tells me what she wants and I do my best to make it!"

How a.d.o.r.a.b.l.e. are these girls!
I love the glasses!

Check out these bunnies.
Perfect for Easter!

I think every little girl needs one of these

seriously. crazy. cute.

And who said boys can't have dolls!
Here is a cute manly version for your little dude.
Check out that eye patch!

Now for the exciting part...

Sarah is generously giving away 3

yes, THREE!

of her adorable patterns (of your choice)!

That means there will be t.h.r.e.e. separate winners!

I know...SO exciting!

I'm not going to lie...

I secretly wanted to keep one of the patterns for myself.

I think I might just have to purchase one to make for Mackenzie.

I know she would LOVE it!

The hard part will be deciding which one.

They are all so cute!

Don't sew?
Sarah also has a ton of cute animals and dolls that she has made for sale.

How can you win?

(Please leave a separate comment for each entry)

1. Visit Bit of Whimsy Dolls shop.

Come back here and tell us what your favorite item is.

2. Buy something from her shop.

3. Blog about this giveaway.

Make sure to let me know the blog address where you linked from in your comment.

4. Become a "follower" of my blog "Lu Bird Baby".

It's easy, just click on the link to the right.

5. Follow Sarah on Twitter.

6. Follow me on Twitter.

5. Leave a comment telling us your favorite Easter tradition.

Giveaway will end at midnight

Thursday, April 8th.

Winner will be announced the following day.

Little Birdie Bib

Welcoming the NEW

Little Birdie bib to my shop.

pretty and purple

ric rac and polka dots.

birdie goodness.

Head over to the shop and check it out

Open for business

My baby (A.K.A. sewing machine) is back

and my shop is reopened!

Felt Cross Tutorial

With all the yummy Easter candy floating around,

the scary man in an Easter bunny suit at the mall

and the million Easter egg hunts we are going to

I really wanted to emphasize to Mackenzie and Wesley

the true meaning of Easter.

That Jesus died on the cross for our sins

and rose again to give us new life.

Since Mackenzie is only 2

and has the attention span of an ant

I wanted to make something tangible for her to play with

and for us to use as we teach her about the cross.

So I made...

A felt cross

with nails, a crown of thorns and a heart

all with velcro on the back

so you or your kids can put them on the cross as you tell

the story of Easter.

Supplies:

1/4 yard of brown felt

small sheets of red, black and dark brown felt

glue gun

velcro

sewing machine

Step 1: The Cross

Cut two rectangles from your brown felt

Mine were:

19" x 5 1/2" and 14" x 5 1/4"

Step 2:

Take the largest rectangle and pin it to a slightly larger piece of brown felt.

Step 3:

Sew around the parameter and then trim the extra felt away.

Step 4:

Take the smallest rectangle and lay it horizontally across the rectangle you just sewed creating a cross. Lay a slightly larger piece of felt behind the largest rectangle and pin.

I feel like this is tricky to explain...just look at the picture :)

(The vertical rectangle should be sandwiched between the horizontal pieces of felt).

Step 5:

Sew around the parameter of the smallest (horizontal) rectangle catching the vertical rectangle as you go. Trim away the extra felt from the back piece.

Step 6: Heart

Cut a heart shape out of felt.

Pin the heart to another piece of red felt. Sew around the parameter and then trim away the extra felt.

(The reason we are making everything with two layers of felt is so that it's more durable).

Step 7: Nails

Cut 3 nail shapes out of black felt. Pin to a slightly larger piece of felt. Sew around the parameter and then trim away the extra felt so you have 3 double thick nail pieces.

Step 8: Crown of Thorns

Cut out 2 strips of felt that look similar to what I have above. It doesn't have to be perfect...just something that kind of looks like thorns on a stem or vine.

Sew the top of the two pieces together

and loosely twist the two pieces together.

Cut an oval out of brown felt (and go through the process to make it double thick). Lay the crown of thorns onto the oval and sew in a few spots to secure.

Step 9:

Glue squares of velcro to the back of each of your pieces and to the cross itself.

(I used the soft side of the velcro for the cross accessories and the scratchy side for the cross).

Step 10:

Glue a piece of ribbon to the top backside of the cross so you can hang your cross for all to see.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

John 3:16

Earflap beanie tutorial

Here it is...

the earflap beanie/bonnet/aviator hat

tutorial.

The same basic construction that can be made

girly

for your little girl

or manly

for your little boy.

Supplies:

-An old T-shirt or stretchy fabric of your choice

-Fabric pen

-Scissors

-Sewing Machine

Step 1:

Grab a beanie that fits your child well to use as a template. Place the beanie at the bottom hem of your t shirt and trace leaving extra room for seam allowance.

*Also if your t shirt material is not as stretchy as the beanie you are using for your template be sure to add a little extra room when you are tracing.

Step 2:

Pin and cut around the line you just drew.

Step 3:

Using a zig zag stitch, sew around the top of the beanie.

Step 4:

Flip right side out.

If your simply looking for a plain beanie

you are done!

Wasn't that easy?

Step 5:

Draw an earflap looking shape on a piece of scrap paper. Trace the earflap shape twice onto your folded t shirt.

Step 6:

Pin and cut. Please note that you should have 4 earflap pieces (2 earflaps each with a front and back piece).

Step 7:

Cut 3 strips from your folded t shirt. This should give you a total of 6 strips.

Step 8:

Stack 3 strips on top of each other and pin to hold in place. Sew across the top to secure. (You should have 2 stacks of 3 strips. These will be your ties).

Step 9:

For Wesley's hat I tied a knot at the bottom to make the ties.

For Mackenzie's hat I braided the 3 strips and then sewed across the bottom of the braid to secure.

Step 10:

Sandwich the top of the tie in between the two earflap pieces.

Using a zig zag stitch sew around the bottom of the earflap pieces, being sure the catch the ties as you go.

Step 11:

Pin the earflaps onto the beanie and sew across the top of the earflap piece to secure.

If you want to make a ruffly girly version this is the time to add your ruffle. Cut out a strip of fabric from your t shirt, ruffle (don't know how to make a ruffle?...check out this tutorial) and pin around the perimeter of the beanie.

Yay!

Your done with your earlfap beanie

bonnet

or aviator hat.

Try it on your little one and enjoy!

Feel free to contact me with questions!