the big reveal ...is for baby Chloe

Yesterday I showed you a picture of the patchwork project I have been working on. 

And last night I finally finished it!

Before I show it to you, I need to back up a bit. 

I tend to hoard craft books. I seek them out at the nearby thrift store, I drool over them at Chapters and the library, and I bring far too many of them home with me. This one by Anna Maria Horner came home with me a few months ago:

Handmade Beginnings 

24 Sewing Projects to Welcome Baby 
by Anna Maria Horner

Inside this book, you'll find beautiful images of Ms Horner's original and unique sewing creations. She has a fresh contemporary style that I cannot resist. She uses such vibrant and fun designer fabrics in her projects for babies, kids and moms to be. This book is a must have for anyone who sews and is expecting, or wants to give a truly unique gift for baby. AND it even comes with patterns to trace and cut!

So, this book is where the inspiration for my latest project came from. A friend of mine is due to give birth to a baby girl any day now. And while I'm not a super girly-girl myself, I have a real weakness for making little girl clothes. I think maybe it stems from a need for femininity in my life these days. After all, I'm the only girl at me house - seriously, even our cat is a boy!

So here it is. The 'Patchwork Sleeping Sack':

I consider myself a fairly beginner sewer and this was a great project for me because it involved many of the techniques I've learned over the past year. I've experimented with various fabrics, I've made a couple of small patchwork quilts, a couple of simple dresses and totes, and I've practiced sewing with bias tape. So in making this bunting bag I got to practice these skills as well as challenge myself a bit further. This time, I made my own bias tape! I had never attempted this before and feared the worst. 

I bought one of those metal thing-a-ma-bobs to make your own tape, cut my strips along the bias and went to it. Ironing the tape was a bit finicky at first - until I got the hang of it. In the end, it was so gratifying to make my very own binding that I may never go back to buying bias tape again!

Once the tape was made, I loved working with it and actually found it easier to pin and sew than the store bought ones. I'm really pleased with the result, and may have to seek out more projects with bias binding (rather than avoid them like in the past)!

I hope baby Chloe and her mom love it!