The blue shirt needs a button added below the last one from the man’s shirt, and I need to get some western snaps for the zoo shirt.

I don’t know when they’ll fit Gid, but it will probably be soon, given his current growth rate. We’re going to have to take out a third mortgage to keep this kid in onesies.

month in blogland. Since my little toughie is all boy, I’m joining in. I’ve already cut out two shirts, one using an old shirt of my grandfather’s. I’m also working on Gideon’s room this month, per my room-a-monthalong.

Speaking of the room-a-monthalong, did I finish my January goal? Hehehehe. Heh. Heh. No. But I worked on it! I rearranged the furniture and worked on getting my craft stuff into order. I failed. But there is always tomorrow. Or the next day. Or the next. Hmmm. I may have discovered my problem.

But this month I’m celebrating the boy!

I used Lion Brand Cotton-Ease, because it’s machine washable, but any worsted-weight yarn would do. These booties would look great in real gansey wool, for a rustic look, or in a soft cashmere blend for a special gift.

Gansey Booties

Sizes: Newborn (Medium 3-6 months, Large 6-9 months)
Materials: less than 50 grams worsted-weight yarn (I used Lion Brand Cotton-Ease)
Needle: size 6 or size needed to obtain gauge
Gauge: 18 st/ 4 inches in moss st.

Notes: These booties may be made with DPNs or one long circular using the magic loop method.

Sole
CO 7(9,11) st.
Row 1: K1fb, work in seed st across to last stitch, k1fb.
Row 2: Work in seed st across.
Repeat rows 1 and 2 once. 11(13,15) st on needle.
Work 20(24, 26) rows in seed st.
BO 1 st at beginning of next 4 rows. 7(9,11) st on needle.

Pick up stitches:
Wk 1 row in seed st. Pick up stitches around sole, picking up one stitch for every two rows along side of foot, one stitch for each cast-on stitch, and one stitch for every two rows along other side of foot. 42(50,56) st on needle. Place marker to indicate the beginning of the round.

Instep
Row 1: purl around
Row 2: knit around
Row 3: purl around
Row 4: knit around
Row 5: purl around
Row 6: k7(7,9), ssk, turn.
Row 7: s1, p5, p2tog., turn.
Row 8: s1, k6, ssk, turn.
Row 9: s1, p7, p2tog, turn.
Row 10: s1, k8, ssk, turn.
Row 11: s1, p9, p2tog, turn.

Medium and Large sizes only:
Row 12: s1, k10, ssk, turn.
Row 13: s1, p11, p2tog, turn.

Large size only:
Row 14: s1, k12, ssk, turn.
Row 15: s1, p13, p2tog, turn.

All sizes:
Next row: s1, k9(11,13), ssk, turn.
Next row: s1, p9(11,13), p2tog, turn.
Repeat these rows once more.

Next row: s1, p9(11,13), ssk, turn.
Next row: s1, p9(11,13), p2tog, turn.
Repeat these rows twice more.

Next row: s1, k9(11,13), ssk, turn.
Next row: s1, p9(11,13), p2tog, turn.

Next row:  s1, k around. 24(30,34)  st.

Cuff
Work cuff around in k1, p1 rib for 2″, BO in rib loosely.

Finishing
Weave in ends, fold cuff over.

1. Cut fabric to appropriate measurements.

2. Round corners for elastic.

3. Fold over 1/4″ of the raw edge to the underside and zigzag around, catching the raw edge as you go. You could roll it twice for extra durability, or serge it for an even more professional finish, but who am I kidding? Zigzag is good enough for me.

4. The tricky bit: sew stretched elastic around the top and bottom thirds of the sheet. Because a cradle is such a small thing, I didn’t just add elastic to the corners, but sewed it all the way around the top to provide extra tension. Sewing elastic on with a machine takes both hands and a little practice. If you’ve never done it before, try it on some scraps before you tackle the real thing. First, tack down the elastic with a secure, medium-width zigzag. Then, pulling the elastic taut on top of the fabric with your dominant hand, use your non-dominant hand to guide the fabric through the foot of the machine as you sew.

5. Voila, the finished cradle sheet.

So yeah, I made a mattress and sheets, but I’m not sure if I can call this a tutorial, because I’m not sure that somebody who doesn’t know what they’re doing would be able to take these directions and use them to make anything worthwhile.  Well, anyway, here goes.

Materials for the Mattress
2″ thick firm foam, cut to the measurements of your cradle, in this case 18.5″ x 36.5″
Upholstery lining fabric (Any sturdy fabric will do)
Waterproof fabric (I used vinyl tablecloth fabric from Joann)
Thread, needles, pins, etc.

1. Cut the necessary fabrics to size. Since my cradle measures 18.5″ x 36.5″, I cut the foam to that size using sharp scissors, and cut the waterproof fabric and lining fabric to measure 21″ x 39″. The formula I used was surface measurement+ 1/2 height measurement+1/4″ seam allowance. Since this is 2″ foam, that resulted in 21″ x 39″.

2. Right sides together, pin waterproof fabric to lining fabric and sew fabric into a pocket, leaving most of one short side unsewn. Make sure to sew around all four corners, though, so that you can box them in the next step.

3. Box the corners. This blog shows you how I did it. Isn’t the internet wonderful?

4. Turn the pocket right-side out and stuff in the foam, being careful to fit the corners neatly into the corners of the casing. Hand-stitch the remaining opening. Voila.

Tomorrow I’ll show you how I made the sheets. They’re cute. They have dogs and monkeys.

This website has instructions for nearly every kind of do-it-yourself carrier, but I still wasn’t satisfied. My specifications were fairly exacting–I wanted something simple, without complicated straps, buckles, or long, involved winding. It had to be machine washable, so no big metal rings to clang around the washing machine, and no fine silks. It had to be man-friendly, so that Tim would be happy to wear it. Finally, it had to be reasonably ergonomic and comfortable to wear.  I’d seen one carrier in particular that appealed to me, but I couldn’t find a pattern or tutorial anywhere. I decided it was up to me to reverse-engineer the design. So here we have the great X-back baby carrier tutorial.

Notes
This carrier is constructed from four pieces–two large loops attached with a small connector, and one detached wrap that is only used for some carrying positions.

Materials
2.25 yards 56″ 100% cotton jersey knit
Matching Thread
Measuring tape or ruler

Step-by-Step Directions

1. Wash and dry your fabric to preshrink it.

2. Measure yourself from one shoulder to the opposite hip. If you’re pregnant like me, try to avoid the bump, since this is for after the baby is born. Multiply this measurement by 2, since it will be going around you like a loop, and subtract 5-10% to compensate for the stretch of the knitted fabric. You will be sewing this measurement into a loop, and you want the lowest point of the loop to fall somewhat above your navel. Thankfully, my husband and I aren’t that different in size, but if that were the case, we’d need two different carriers with different measurements. My final number was 52″.

3. Cut your fabric to your measurement lengthwise, then cut it in thirds widthwise.
I ended up with three rectangles measuring 52″ x 18″. Set two of the rectangles aside, and cut 4″ off the end of the third. This will become the connector for the back of the carrier.  The remainder of this rectangle will become the detached wrap. Trim the small piece to measure 4″ x 8″.

4. All of the weight-bearing seams in this carrier are overlapped and sewn with three rows of zig-zag. For the connector, overlap the two ends, sew the triple seam, then fold the edges over and zig-zag over the raw edge. You will have a piece that looks like this:
5. Take the two long pieces of fabric and thread them through the connector, then repeat the procedure of seaming and hemming, creating two independent loops that are joined by the connector. You’ll have to pull the fabric loops through the connector as you hem them. Here’s a close-up of the connector, seam, and hem on one of the big loops:

In the end, you’ll have an assembly that looks like this:
6. Trim the remaining large piece of fabric into a long tie with tapered ends:

Hem the edges:

And that’s it! I’ll put a post up after the baby is born, showing it in use, but it’s fairly simple. It can be worn as an X to cradle the baby in the front, both loops can be put over one shoulder for a sling-style carry, or an older baby can be carried in chest-to-chest, outward-facing, or hip-slung positions. The wrap is used anytime the baby isn’t completely secured by the two attached loops. This website has instructions for wearing the similarly-styled carrier that was my inspiration for this one.