You see, I've been hoarding things. For the past year or two I've been buying the occasional thing for the day when we have a baby of our own. Also, if I've made any baby items for preggo friends, I probably made two and kept one for myself. That's not weird, is it? (Sidenote: maybe I'll go through my stash to highlight all my goodies here someday!)
Anyhoo, I picked up some laminated cotton fabric from JoAnn's while it was on clearance once, with the thought that I'd make something for a baby one day. Well, yesterday was the day.
This is the project I made, a portable changing pad. Although I didn't follow the instructions because I just used what I had on hand. Meaning my changing pad is longer than hers with no pocket, and I didn't use any stabilizer. I used scrap fabric for the back (the polka dots), so I just cut the largest rectangle I could get out of my scrap. Then, I used batting for the middle to give it a bit of cush instead of stabilizer because I misplaced my stabilizer stash. Yes I have a stash of that. No judging!
I just made a sandwich with my batting on the bottom, cotton facing up, and then laminated cotton facing down. It slid right through my machine, no problem. I didn't even use a new needle like every tutorial told me to. Though I have heard quite a few people have trouble with this stuff sticking and pulling. The most ingenious and cheap solution I saw was to add a layer of tissue paper which you rip off after sewing.
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| (here you can also see the sheen of the laminated cotton fabric, which is definitely wipe-able, waterproof, and still impressively soft) |
Well I just used a 1/4ish seam allowance all the way around my rectangle, turned it inside out, and sewed right up close to the edge to finish it off. I LOVE the tiny finishing seams, they make me feel like a professional. According to the tutorial, I was supposed to add a button with a loop for fastening it closed and fold and sew a short section to create a "pocket" for things like wipes and diapers, but once it was finished I didn't think it would be long enough for a whole child (especially once they are a bit older) with that section folded (I would lose about 13 inches of length to put baby on). So I just left it flat. Also, I just now realized that if I wanted it to actually hold a diaper and wipes, I would have to unfold it at home and put in a diaper and wipes container which, lets face it, I would never do in advance. I'll be carrying the diaper bag around anyway.
I successfully completed this in 1 hour 15 minutes. Meaning I failed my attempt to get it all done in an hour. But I did run out of bobbin thread and have to wind it mid-project. And find my supplies buried in the basement. If you have a dedicated sewing space, I'd say you can easily make it in an hour.
Much less than the the time dedicated to making this bambino in my belly for whom I have to keep using the bathroom. Every 45 minutes.
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