The Waiting Game

As I mentioned in my new year post, though my due date was March 30, I didn't expect our baby to show up until April.  Here it is, April 3, and we're showing no real signs of his ever wanting to leave.  So, I've been using my off-work time to whip together a few necessities.

First, I made this diaper bag:

Josh picked out the fabric so it would be something he was willing to carry.  The plaid is canvas and the brown (which is also the interior) is plain cotton.

It has handles, a shoulder strap, and pockets on all sides.  It didn't occur to me until I was sewing the last side closed that the pattern didn't include any inside pockets.  Since you quilt the outer and liner fabrics together before cutting out the pieces, I don't know when you'd attach pockets to the inside without the seams showing on the outside or quilting over what you've added inside.  I would have to figure that one out.  Instead, I'll just make a little loose pouch that I can put smaller things in to find easily.  

Also, due to the piecing-the-interior-and-exterior-simultaneously construction method, you end up with open edges inside your bag.  I anticipated that, though, and serged the edges of each piece before I put the bag together.  So the edges look nice, won't fray inside the bag, and will stand up to washing.

Then I made a nursing cover.  Instead of just doing a rolled hem, I wanted to have a contrasting fabric around the edges, so I bound it quilt-style.  I've been wanting to use those cherries on something for a long time!

As with most nursing covers, the neck straps fasten together with D rings.  A friend recommended that I use a twist tie or something to fasten the two rings together before sewing them into the end of the strap.  This keeps them snug enough that your fabric won't slip out, extending your strap and revealing more than you intended while feeding.  It was a good tip - easy to execute and I can see the difference it made!

I also checked another quilt top off my list!  Assuming this baby keeps hanging in there, maybe I'll even get it quilted this week.