I think I have one more me-garment in me before the baby. After that, I don’t think it’ll be terribly time-effective to keep making things that I’ll wear for just a couple of days really. So between planning for after-baby clothes, there will probably be more baby-themed posts for the next while here.
Like this. I made up a few items for a friend at church who is due with a little boy in February. A couple of blankets (the construction flannel had a flaw/hole in it that I covered with a simple monogram applique)–not terribly interesting, but oversized like the hospital ones, so they’re entirely practical.
One of the ladies at my school made us some bibs like these (I traced hers for these ones) when I was pregnant with Noah, and wow, if there was something we’ve gotten more use out of than anything it would be them. They are flannel on one side, and terry cloth on the other (I repurposed a couple of microfiber kitchen towels that I’ve never really used). They are super absorbent and wash up perfectly. Clare had turned the body of the bib like a pillowcase and bound the neck only, but I chose to bind the entire bib with bias tape because I hate dealing with thick terrycloth. I think I chose wisely. I also got a chance to use my Snap Setter, a tool that has been sitting unused on an extra table for *months*. Snap Setter, I apologize for letting you languish in the sewing room for so long. I don’t know what I’ve been doing to set snaps before, but seriously, this is a GOOD tool–simple in design, inexpensive, and it works perfectly.

The last thing I made is another Unforgettable Elephant from S.E.W. by Diana Rupp. I really love making stuffies because I can store obscene amounts of knit scraps all rotary-cut up into shreds as stuffing. When they yield actually cute, cuddly creatures, all the better.
The title of the post is because I ran into something that I have not run into before. I’m sensitive to the smells of dyes in fabrics in general (why I hate mall shopping), but this flannel from JoAnn stunk. I didn’t prewash as I normally would since I wanted crisp corners on the blankets and didn’t want to fuss when I was cutting it. Honestly, it was kind of like being in a nail salon. The smell went away after I washed everything, but for real, is it me, or has anyone else noticed their brightly colored flannel smelling rather chemical, and should I be sufficiently creeped out?
Hey, you can still enter the giveaway for the Onion pattern.

Comment on this post, and I’ll choose a winner on Sunday night.






































