Do you do this? We had several friends who had babies recently. I’ve been wanting to make something special, but I haven’t had the time, so the result of my best intentions is that I have not given them anything at all yet. Boo!

Well, I finally got motivated, because Lucas’ teacher is expecting her first baby this fall. She has been absolutely amazing. We were lucky enough to have her in pre-kindergarten and then again in first grade. She has that perfect mix of wisdom, energy, and affection that wins over parents and children alike.

I’ve sewn bibs before, but I tried something new this time, by making them wipeable. This is also a great project for using up those scraps of fabric that are too small to make a project on their own, but look great mixed together.

Materials:

• fabric, including scraps
• Thermoweb Heat’n Bond Iron-On Vinyl
• Velcro

Instructions:

I created a bib template that is 17″ high (the width of the vinyl) and 11″ wide.

For the backs of the bibs, I used a single piece of plain fabric.

For the fronts of the bibs, I joined together two or three strips of coordinating fabrics into 11″x17″ rectangles and ironed on the Thermoweb Heat’n Bond Iron-On Vinyl according to the instructions.

I cut the template out of the joined and coated piece (pictured below)

Join together scraps of fun fabric to make 11″x17″ rectangles. Cut the bib template out from the joined piece.

I then sewed the fronts and backs together, right sides facing, with a half inch seam allowance and leaving about four inches open on the side to turn the bib right side out (pictured below).

With right sides facing sew the back and front pieces together, leaving a 4″ gap on one side to turn the piece.

To help create smooth curves, clip the seam allowances at all the curves, as shown below.

Clip the seam allowance around the curves, as shown.

To finish, turn the bib right side out and iron again,  Stitch all the way around close to the edge, and add the 1.5″ velcro strips to the top.

Here are the finished bibs.  I love the way the different fabrics work together!

To wrap it all up, I created another custom gift bag, like these bags I made for my nieces last year.

Congratulations to all the wonderful mamas and mamas-to-be in my life!

“Jewels”