Easy Nursery Crafts with Flannel

I'm 41 weeks pregnant so I decided to work on some easy crafts for the baby's nursery to pass the time while I wait for labor to start. I completed these projects in one afternoon using flannel prints (purchased on sale at $2.99/yard).

 

 

First up, I made a fitted sheet for the Pack N' Play with this fun "imaginary friends" print. Then I made a matching burp cloth out of the leftover scrapts (plus strips of a coordinating flannel).

 

To make a fitted sheet, all you need to do is cut out a rectangle, leaving a decent amount of edge around the outside (a few inches). Pinch the corners and mark where the corner should be, then fold and sew the corners, cutting away the extra square of material out of each corner (I used a serger which made this really easy). Lastly, trim the edges (or serge all four edges) and then turn over the edge, sewing elastic underneath, pulling the elastic tight as you sew it to the fabric using a zigzag stitch.

The other project I completed was a fitted cover for the diaper changing pad. The process for making this was basically the same as the fitted sheet. Again, I pieced together leftover scraps to make a little coordinating wash cloth/burp cloth.

Both of these projects were quick, easy, and cost-effective. Considering that fitted sheets are usually $20 and up, I made these at less than 25% of what it would cost to just buy one.

Materials:
Flannel (pre-washed) at $2.99/yard
Thread (white)
Elastic (1/8" wide)

None of these crafts require a pattern.

Fantasy Forest Theme Nursery

Baby Obi's room is all ready for her arrival.

Come on in!

Custom Slip-covered Graham Glider by West Elm
Tree & Bird Curtains from IKEA

Refinished heirloom dresser.
Paint color: Blue Whisper

Crib from Target
Wall decals from Etsy

Painted nightstand dresser - Craiglist $25 + paint supplies
Commissioned artwork

On right: "Lagoon Love" by Illustrator Brittney Lee @britsketch

Wall hanger rack with Owls from IKEA

Baby Obi's closet! #somanydresses

Baby Obi has her own en suite!
(It's literally two steps from the diaper changing station... can't get more convenient than this in a poo disaster, right?)

Slipcovered Glider Chair

 

 

This chair is the Graham Glider by West Elm, which is gorgeous and comfy, but I am afraid of getting baby goo all over the nice grey velvet. I really want this chair to last for years to come.

 

Graham Glider by West Elm





So I decided to make a slip-cover for the chair (and matching bolster pillow). Going with my fantasy forest theme, I found this fabulous fabric at JoAnn's. Using coupons, I purchased the fabric for more than 50% off; the original price was $9.99/yard. It is a sturdy cotton and easy to pull off and throw in the wash if I need to.

 



 

 

Clearly I didn't have a sewing pattern, and I didn't want to fully reupholster the chair, just make a slip-cover, so I decided the best method to make this slipcover would be draping.

 

I draped fabric over the chair wrong-side out, and pinned it to the chair one piece at a time, starting from the back. At the seams I pinned two piece of fabric together, then pulled it off, sewed the seam and put it back on the chair to add another piece. I worked symmetrically, doing two seams on opposite sides at once. But I still ran back and forth between the nursery and sewing machine a lot.

 

When I finished the slipcover the way I wanted it, I serged all of the seams to reduce the selvages. I love how it turned out!

Fantasy Forest Nursery Design

I'm expecting a baby this summer! So my latest project is working on putting together a nursery for my baby girl.

I decided to go gender-neutral with the overall design and all the major purchases because this is our first child, and who knows, there may be a boy using the same nursery in the future. I am calling this design "Fantasy Forest".

• Graham Glider by West Elm
• (DIY) Handmade slipcover, fabric from JoAnn's, 45" home decor cotton
• IKEA EXPEDIT bookshelf, white
• IKEA EIVOR curtains
• IKEA hanging toy storage
• Simmons Kids Slumber Time Elite Crib
• (DIY) Refinished French Provincial Dresser, purchased off of Craiglist
• (DIY) Refinished White Dresser
• Valspar wall paint, "Blue Whisper"

I already had a few items I wanted to work into the design: the crib, my white dresser (for a changing table), the yellow night stand, and the white tree curtains.

The "BEFORE" picture of the mostly-empty bedroom, from several angles.

My design and color inspiration began with these Mary Blair pictures, and I decided I wanted to go for a fantasy-style forest, not something "realistic":

I came up with this design concept for painting the walls...

Then at Emerald City Comicon I found this amazing illustration by Brittney Lee and had to buy a print for the nursery. It coordinates perfectly!


"Lagoon Love" by Brittney Lee @britsketch

To solidify my color palette, I found a picture of a nursery that used the green, blue, yellow, and turquoise colors very effectively in a gender-neutral design.

I love how the yellows and pinks pop against the light blue wall. Who says light blue has to be a boy color? So I ran with it. Isn't it pretty? The room is so much brighter now.

The room is painted!
My dad did most of the work because he knows what he is doing. I helped!

The room is still a work in progress, I've got three months to go!



Finally, I can move in some furniture...

Want to know my entire design process in a nutshell (sort of)? Here you go...

Ava's Advice on How to Go About Designing a Nursery:

1. Create a "Nursery" board on Pinterest. Do a search for "nursery" and start pinning everything you like. Eventually you will be able to spot trends on themes and colors that really speak to you. Create 1-3 new boards for the themes that most appeal to you and move those pins to those new boards. The two themes that spoke to me were woodland/forest and Star Wars (and other nerdy nurseries).
2. Add inspiration images to your themed nursery boards (keep generic "nursery" pins in your "Nursery" board). These inspiration images could be color palettes, scenic photography, artwork, or merchandise, anything that fits your theme and potential colors.
3. Decide on general theme and color palette. Expect that your theme and colors may get more refined as you purchase items, so this may need to be flexible.
4. Purchase/pick out the big items (crib, changing table/dresser, glider/rocker chair). An unexpected sale on an amazing crib may throw your color palette off, so if you can get the big items early, this will help you tweak your design as needed. Don't know where to start? Create a "Nursery Furniture" board on Pinterest and start pinning pictures (including the price and linking back to the item). When you find one you like or plan to purchase, move that pin to your themed board to see the image alongside your inspiration images.
5. Copy images of your furniture and decor items from your Pinterest board to Microsoft OneNote* and organize your furniture around the room layout. If you have a picture of your room, add it to help you visualize the space. Use the Online Room Planner by Urban Barn to figure out your furniture layout (don't forget to copy a picture of your layout into OneNote as well).
   * OneNote is great for organizing text and images all in one place. You can copy and paste from your browser, and can resize and drag things around easily. I created several OneNote pages, including design images copied from Pinterest (to help solidify the color scheme), a visual layout (above), color scheme details with paint color names, and even a list of furniture items with measurements.
6. Pick out your paint color and paint the room! This color should be influenced by your inspiration images and should coordinate with the furniture and decor you have picked out already.
7. Lastly, move your furniture in, set up the crib, and pick out the rest of your decorations. Curtains, crib sheets, storage baskets, a pouf, toys, and other small coordinating items can be added to your Baby Registry.

You can find my Pinterest Board here: Fantasy Forest