Nursing pillow cover

We have been pretty disciplined in what we've bought in readiness for the new arrival, as it is so easy to get carried away, especially with a first baby. One of the things that we did invest in, though, was a nursing pillow, which came highly recommended by many experienced mums. 

Having met a few babies, I know that I'm gonna need more than one cover for this hopefully very useful pillow. What a nice little project for my maternity leave :D

The nursing pillow that I purchased was a Cuddles Collection one, which is nice and firm (and seems to be a popular choice in the UK), and it came a white polycotton cover with tiny grey stars. For my spare cover, I had a metre of a cotton swallow print in my stash which was perfect for this project. 

It has a zip closure on the reverse across the widest part, enabling easy changing; the zip is then covered by a flap, which ensures comfort in use.

I liked this design, and decided to replicate it exactly for my spare cover: 

• I folded the original cover, traced out the shape on tissue paper and added seam allowance for the front piece; 
• For the back pieces, I slashed the front pattern across the top, mirroring where the zip is in the original cover, and added 6cm and 1.5cm to the top and bottom pieces respectively ( in addition to the seam allowances).  

It was quite straightforward to make by studying the original cover, but please shout if you would find a tutorial helpful for this. Most of the tutorials that I've seen online use an invisible zip across the top. 

And here it is! If I may say so myself... the fit was perfect, and I couldn't have been happier with the result. 

A close-up of the zip (I used a 26-inch one, which was just right for the job): 

  

What's next? I'm still a bit behind in blogging about my maternity makes (and know that I need to crack on before the bump shrinks), as  I'm about to start making some nursing clothes, too, assuming that the baby gives me a few more days to play with my sewing machine still. So watch this space! 

Baby swaddle wraps - Lotta Jansdotter's Snuggler

Greetings from maternity leave! I'm officially in the zwischen period, where my baby is basically fully cooked but is still sitting comfortably in my belly. Ask me again in a couple of weeks, but at the moment I'm loving every minute of it! Don't get me wrong, I am very excited to meet the new arrival, but I also know that this "in-between" time is precious: soon enough I won't be able have all day to myself, and to be able to nap, sew, bake, have a pedicure, and binge watch box sets to my heart's content without worrying about another little human's every need. 

One of the things that I wanted to make before the baby arrives is a swaddle wrap, or two! Apparently a lot of newborn babies love being swaddled to sleep, as it recreates a womb like cosiness, and prevents the startle reflex. Although I've learned how to make a "baby burrito" with a blanket, I figured that a velcro fastened swaddle wrap would be more fool- (and sleep deprived-) proof!

I used the free Baby Snuggler pattern by Lotta Jansdotter, and it worked a treat. I enjoyed making it so much that I made another one straight away!

The first version I made was using a super cute brushed cotton, from Moda's Corner of 5th & Fun collection. It's so soft and cosy! For my second make, I used a lovely giraffe batik from my stash, bought from Dewi Mas in Denpasar a couple of years ago. Both versions were lined with a plain white brushed cotton, due to my aversion to fleece, and not wanting to make the wraps too warm.

Having read a few reviews, I've picked up the following tips from the blogsphere:

1. Taping together the pattern was not the easiest. Zaaberry made this much easier though by showing us how it all fits together.
2. Similarly, for Velcro placement, Jedi Craft Girl provided a great guide on her blog.
3. I used Wondertape to secure the Velcro, and sewed the Velcro onto the outer and lining layers first, i.e. before step C in the instructions, rather than adding Velcro at the very end. This was my first time working with Velcro, and I have to say that it was pretty straightforward.
4. When sewing the outer and lining layers together in step C, I went slowly, and started from one corner of the foot pouch.
5. For step D, instead of slip stitching the opening, I topstitched the whole thing as I prefer the finish.

And there you have it - my two baby swaddle wraps, ready for the new arrival. They look so cute and cosy, and I'm very happy with how they've both turned out! I'm sure the baby will be able to help me model them soon enough ;) 

How about you? Did you ever engage in any baby sewing? I'd love to hear about any tips, or any fun/useful project ideas from you!