Saturday, November 8, 2008

Ok...Confession

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I'm stuck on making diapers. There are a few reasons why. The first and main reason is that my youngest needs diapers. So, I'm making them. Fair enough, right? Secondly, it is that I'm sick of them not turning out perfect. So, I make more to try to get them better. Third, and dumbest reason ever, is that I'm too intimidated to try other things yet. Hush. I just started sewing a couple weeks ago (unless you count from the time I made the burp cloths, in which case it was *gulp* almost a year ago).

So...I made another diaper. And this is my favorite one I've made so far. Cotton outer. It is kind of stiff, but I'm hoping it'll get softer as the little one uses it and I wash it. I got it for $8/yard at IKEA. They do have some other fabric that is softer and more like quilting fabric, but not much.

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This is from the heiny view. Of course, it will be covered up with an ugly cover... *sigh*

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That is a turquoise-ish blue suedecloth (Alova Suede for $2.95/yard at Wal-Mart) on the inside. It is really soft.

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And the whole diaper laid out. See the snaps? Those are courtesy of my new snap press from Oh Snap USA. I definitely recommend their snap presses and snaps. It is the kam snap press, but it is much less than anywhere else I've found.

Things I did poorly... I dunno what was going on with my bobbin, but I have some weird loopy things. Also, I accidentally did a zig-zag on my top stitch rather than straight stitch. Not the biggest mistake, but again, my bobbin did funky stuff. And, of course the back elastic. I just can't quite figure that stuff out. I have a hard time getting it where it needs to be... Oh, and I need to work on my snap placement.

Overall, I'm happy with it.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Yet Another Diaper


Ok, ok... I am on a diaper jag. I am really enjoying doing these. Note: I didn't say I'm really skilled at doing these, I just said I'm enjoying it. Last Sunday, my girls and I went to visit my mom. I was silly and thought that if I took my machine, I could get some good pointers and maybe hammer out a diaper or two. Or maybe a dress. I wasn't sure what I would've made, just thought I might make something. Only, I failed to consider that it was just my mother, my girls and me. And my girls don't make it easy for me to take the time to work on stuff.

So, I didn't make anything. And I was really ok with not making anything. Especially since we all went to dinner together (still thinking about that combination cheese chimichanga..mmm) and then to Wal-Mart. My generous mom let me sneak a fabric and some thread in her cart. And then my wonderful child reached out and grabbed a bolt of fabric and exclaimed, "Grandma! Grandma! This one!" So, we grabbed a yard of that one.

Had I been thinking about it, I would've made a dress or something for my older daughter, since she requested the fabric. But I wasn't thinking about it. So, I made a diaper for my younger daughter, instead. Sorry, sweetie. You got hosed.

Last night, I laid my pre-washed, dried and ironed fabric out and cut cotton pieces for eight diapers. I did this while simultaneously talking to my friend Cathy on Yahoo! Messenger. I should really not try to multitask while trying to learn this craft.

Today, I cut some alova suede (same as the suedecloth that a popular, genius-y diaper company uses) that I got from Wal-Mart for $2.50/yard and made the above diaper. I only made one because I ran out of loop for my hook and loop.

Here's another look at that diaper. This look is more true to the color. It is light purple with blue flowers, not that odd color above. Hey, I'm learning to sew, not do photography.


Things I messed up:
Stitch placement. Again. I did much better, but there were still some places.
The top elastic. Again. I did a little better, I think. But I still need work figuring out how to secure it while also figuring out how to have room to top stitch it closed.
The leg elastic. I didn't take it high enough up on the leg and I ended up not cinching the elastic tightly enough. It looks tighter than it is on the right-hand side of the photo. It's barely cinched at all.

Things I like:
The print.
The overall fit.

Things I intend to do differently:
Snaps. I'm for sure going to get a snap press. Anybody who knows me knows that I get bored with my diapers pretty quickly and want new ones. The way I figure it is that I can either spend $30-35 per nice, cushy diaper or I can make my own. Not counting the cost of the snap press ($125 with shipping from here), I can make a diaper for about $5. So, I figure that I only need to make 5 diapers with snaps and I've paid for the snap press. If I make 6 diapers, then...hey, I'm MAKIN' money! My diapers won't be anywhere near as cushy and nice as those I linked to, but they'll be much cheaper and much less likely to elicit eye-rolls from my husband. (For the record, I have one of each of those diapers and they are fantastic. I love them! And if anybody happens to be reading this, I'd love the skull one from the "nice" link...hint, hint.)

And I'll leave you with a photo of the fabric I'll be using next. The teal that the print is sitting on is the suedecloth I'll be using with these.


Pretty, huh? Thanks, again, Mom. I really do appreciate it!