Jolie's Quiet Book

My niece just turned 1 this past August, so this summer I took on the project of making her a quiet book. I have seen so many cute patterns online, and my sister-in-law mentioned that she wanted one for her kids, so that's what I did! I had lots of fun picking out templates and making it, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. It took me so long to make though! I used my sewing machine for most of the pieces, but I had to change the thread every time I needed a new colour, which took a while. I also had to cut out the pattern pieces, two pieces of felt, and one piece of interfacing for each removable piece, which was also time-consuming. Jolie loves it though, so it's all worth it!

If you don't know what a quiet book is, it is an activity book made out of felt for young children. They are often used to keep kids occupied during church or in the car. There are pages just to look at, play with, and many of them have educational components such as colours, matching, numbers, and practice fine motor skills (buttons, snaps, zippers).

I decided to make 10 page spreads, so I printed the templates and did all the cutting at once, then all the sewing at once. When I finished and began to put everything together, the pile of pages was quite big, so I decided to split it into two books. The books have binder rings that hold the pages together which open, so the pages can be removed or placed all into one book. All of my pages were made of felt, which also contributed to the bulk of the book.

Below I have a picture of each page, links to the templates, and a few comments. I hope you enjoy my work! For more inspiration, see my quiet book Pinterest board. Most of my templates are from Imagine Our Life, which I highly recommend!

Cover

For the cover, I used a light corduroy material from Hobby Lobby, with white broadcloth on the inside. There are handles, and a velcro strap to keep it closed. As mentioned above, there are binder rings that hold the pieces together and also allow you to remove the pages (see the next picture too). I loosely followed this tutorial, but basically I sewed a big rectangle for the cover, two handles, a velcro strap, and two small straps inside to hold the binder rings (see next picture). 

Name Page

This is the only page in the book that I did not use a template for. I cut out the letters for Jolie's name, and attached snaps to the pieces and to the page. I hand embroidered "my name is" with embroidery floss, and sewed three sides for a pocket to hold the letters. I think using velcro rather than snaps would have made it easier to attach.

Ice Cream Sundae Page

I got this template from this link. For this page, you just play with the different ice cream scoops and toppings. One of my favourites because it is so cute!

Bathroom Page

I chose to make this page because Jolie has a book with a mirror at the end that she loves. I got lucky and found some shiny bristol board at Michael's that I used for the mirror. The brush, toothbrush, and toothpaste can go in the mug. The template I used (here) is for one page, but I spread it onto two.

Cookie Page

This page (tutorial here) involves matching the shapes and colours of the cookies. You also practice buttoning the pieces to the page. Super cute!

Mail Page

This page (from this link) is super cute! The envelopes all velcro open and have a letter inside. I sewed ribbon with writing on it on the outside of the envelopes and the inside letter pages. The letters go in the mailbox, and the red handle can go up.

Cupcake Page

This page has wrapper pockets that I hand-embroidered the numbers onto. Each of the cupcakes has the same number of sprinkles (beads) sewn on, so it can be a matching activity. I used the cupcake template here to cut out the shapes, but modeled it after this page.

Farm Page
This page has animal finger puppets that go in the barn, which has doors that open. The template for this page (link) had apples that snap onto the tree, but I thought those pieces were too small, so I made an owl that is under the tree leaves instead. I also sewed taggie-style ribbons under the sun.

Sock Page

In this page (template here) the socks each have a snap on the back and they match onto the right hand page. You can put them in the dryer as well (hilarious!). For the dryer door, I got a clear folder from the dollar store that I cut for the dryer door.

Dress Up Page 

For this page, there is a plain figure on the right hand page, with velcro as her underwear and bra. I sewed yarn on for her hair, and hand-embroidered her face. The suitcase has a zipper on it to store the clothes, which all have velcro on them to stick to the doll. I didn't follow a specific template, but you can find another example here.

Flower Page

This page (template here) just has flowers that you can practice buttoning on and off of the stems.

Baby Bow Headband (Crochet)

I recently hosted a girl's night where we knitted and crocheted together, wore track pants, and ate junk food (i.e. the perfect Friday night in my books). My friend decided to make a headband for her cousin's baby and it turned out so cute that I decided to make my own! This is one of those projects that I feel kind of silly writing a pattern for because it really is so simple and easy to modify, but I know that many beginners benefit from having something to follow, and everyone benefits from some inspiration.

This pattern can be crocheted, and is a great beginner project. It is really simple, and doesn't take that long to complete. If you don't follow the pattern exactly, that is OK too. If you have slightly bigger/smaller crochet hooks, make it a bit bigger or smaller, then that is fine. Be creative with colours! Just be aware that if you use thicker yarn then you will need to make it a bit shorter. Enjoy!

Crocheted Baby Bow Headband

Materials:
Baby yarn in two colours (size 3/light yarn)
Size G/6 (4.25 mm) crochet hook
Scissors, needle

Headband:
With the colour you want for the headband, LOOSELY chain 50 stitches (*note: if you do it too tight then it won't be stretchy).

Turn, and single crochet in second chain from hook, and to the end.

**Chain one, turn, single crochet in second chain from hook, and to the end.**

Repeat from ** to ** until it is the desired width (approx. 1.5", or 6 rows)

Sew the ends together to form a headband, and weave in the yarn ends.

Bow:
With the colour you want for the bow, chain 15 stitches.

Turn, and single crochet in second chain from hook, and to the end.

**Chain one, turn, single crochet in second chain from hook, and to the end.**

Repeat from ** to ** until it is the desired width (approx. 2.5", or 10 rows)

Sew the yarn ends in.

To Assemble:
With the bow colour, sew in and out of the middle of the bow and tie the two ends together to scrunch it up. With the long end (that is attached to the ball), wrap it around the middle a bunch of times. Cut the yarn with a 6" tail, and tie the two ends together. Sew in the shorter end. With the longer end, sew the bow to the headband on top of the seam. Weave in the end to hide it. And done!

Crochet Hat Round-Up

As I mentioned in previous posts, I have been busy the past couple of months getting ready to sell my crafts at a Mom to Mom sale in Beamsville, ON. The majority of what I have made has been hats that look like things for babies and kids. I came across this pattern, and used it for the majority of the ones that I made! It is a basic pattern, but there are plenty of things that you can do with just using different colours and embellishments. I am not posting individual patterns for the embellishments for each of these hats, but hopefully the pictures will provide some inspiration! Thank you to Micah Makes for the pattern! If you don't crochet, but knit, you could use the basic pattern from my Knitted Baby Bow Hat and use different colours and embellishments, and add stitches in multiples of 4 to make it bigger.

Football Hat- Brown yarn, embroider white stripes

Minion Hat (from Despicable Me)- Yellow, with black stripe, follow the first few rounds of the hat with black and white to make the eye, and embroider the mouth, and add some tassles on top

Angry Birds Hat- Red hat, I made up how to do the eyes and nose (circles and semi-circles for eyes, triangle for nose, rectangle for eyebrows)

Bear hat- brown yarn, crocheted semi-circles for ears

Owl Hat- Light brown on top, dark brown on the bottom, follow the first few rounds in black and white for the eyes to make circles, I just crocheted triangles for the ears and beak

Mickey Mouse Hat- Black on top, red on bottom, follow first few rounds of hat to make ears, sew on yellow buttons. I also made a minnie mouse one with a bow, but forgot to take a picture!

Flower Hat- I followed the pattern without the earflaps and sewed on a crocheted flower

 

Knitted Flower Hat- I used the pattern from my baby bow hat, and sewed on a crocheted flower

Cabled Headband and Cabling Tutorial

I have a friend who is starting to knit and the only skill left for her to learn is to cable. I told her, as I am telling you, that cable knitting is way easier than it looks! I was afraid for a while until my mom showed me how, and I am hooked! I also put together a mini cabling tutorial at the bottom if you don't know how. I made up this pattern with a simple cable for her to learn, and I am sharing it with you! Around the university, these headbands are really popular, and are great for when your hair is in a ponytail. If you try this pattern, let me know how it went in the comments!

Note: C4F means cable 4 stitches forward. Take the next 4 stitches and slip them onto your spare needle, and leave it at the front. Knit the next 4 stitches from your main needle. Put the 4 stitches from the spare needle back onto your main needle, and knit them. You just cabled! See pictures below for more detailed instructions.

Materials
1 ball worsted weight yarn (4; I used Red Heart Super Saver)
Size 8 (5 mm) needles
Extra needle for cabling

Instructions
Cast on 20 stitches

Row 1: K3 P3 K8 P3 K3
Row 2: K1 P2 K3 P8 K3 P2 K1

Row 3: K3 P3 K8 P3 K3
Row 4: K1 P2 K3 P8 K3 P2 K1


Row 5: K3 P3 K8 P3 K3
Row 6: K1 P2 K3 P8 K3 P2 K1

Row 7: K3 P3 C4F P3 K3
Row 8: K1 P2 K3 P8 K3 P2 K1

Repeat rows 1-8 until it reaches desired length. Sew the two ends together, and weave in the ends.

Mini Cabling Tutorial

Here is a mini tutorial, with pictures of how to cable for the purposes of this hat. It's really not that hard, but I hope that the instructions/pictures make sense! When I say "main needle" I mean the yellow ones, and the spare needle is the purple one.

1. Slip 4 stitches onto a spare needle.

2. Leave the needle with the spare stitches at the front of your work. Knit the next 4 stitches from your main needle.

3. Slip the stitches from your spare needle back onto your main needle.

4. Knit the 4 stitches that you just slipped back onto the main needle, and continue knitting to the end of the row as per the pattern directions.

All done! That wasn't too hard right?

Easy Crocheted Mug Cozy

This is the perfect pattern for a beginning crocheter! I made up this pattern, but it's one of the easiest things I've ever crocheted so I don't want to take much credit. It's perfect for using up scraps of yarn too! I had just a bit left of this colour and I wanted to make a headband, but I ran out of yarn so it became a mug cozy. That being said, you could easily make this long enough to fit your head and just sew the ends together.

Use worsted weight yarn and size I/5.5mm crochet hook.

Chain 16. Double crochet into 3rd chain. Double crochet across. Chain 3. Continue to double crochet until it reaches desired length (about 9-10"). Sew the top and bottom together and weave in ends.

So easy right? You could also embellish it with felt flowers, buttons, or whatever you'd like! Try different colours, stripes, or single crochet or half double crochet. I think that one of these on a mug filled with chocolate and wrapped in cellophane would make a great gift too! These things aren't just cute too, they keep you from burning your hands on the mug and keep your drink (slightly) warmer.

Valentine's Day Yarn Wreath

Since buying a house, I have to admit that one of my favourite things is having a front door that I can make various wreaths for. My goal is to have different wreaths for each season/most holidays. You may want to check out my Ornament Wreath Tutorial, or check out the pictures at the bottom of my Halloween wreath (no tutorial blogged for that one) and additional ornament wreaths I made this year. I got inspiration for this wreath from my friend Sarah over at The Divine Secrets of Ya-Ya's Kitchen. We took a trip to Hobby Lobby in the states before going to Olive Garden for our friend's birthday a few weeks ago and that's where I got the supplies for this project. Enjoy!

Materials:
-1 wreath form
-1 ball pink yarn (Supersaver)
-1 piece each of red and pink felt
-1 ball white yarn
-tacky glue

Instructions

1. (Optional) Wrap the yarn into a ball that fits in your hand easily. This step is optional, but I found it easier/faster to wrap the yarn this way than with the whole ball.

2. Tie the end of the yarn in a knot around the wreath form (I got this one from Hobby Lobby for $3.99, made of straw and covered in plastic wrap- leave the plastic wrap on).

3. Start wrapping! Wrap the yarn around the form (on top of the tail end), keeping it somewhat tight. Try to avoid having the yarn overlap- it's not a huge deal, but I think that it makes it look nicer. This will be inevitable at some points since it is not a straight line. If you run out of yarn, wrap a new ball, and tie the ends together, continue wrapping over the tail ends.

4. Once you have gone around the wreath once, go around again to cover up any holes. I found with the straw wreath form there were some parts that seemed to poke out. The second time you go around, don't worry about criss-crossing the yarn. Pull it nice and tight and you won't be able to tell the difference. I just went around to cover the spots that you could still see the straw underneath. Tie in the final end, and tuck it into the yarn.

5. Embellish it! To make it Valentine's Day-y, I cut out some hearts from felt (the red one is even sparkly!) and glued them on using tacky glue. Then I took a long piece of white yarn, started with the middle at the back of the wreath, and criss-crossed it around to get the argyle look, then tied the ends together at the back and tucked them in. You can also use different colours of yarn, make felt flowers, letters, etc. Be creative!
 

Valentine's Day Ornament Wreath

Halloween Wreath

Christmas Ornament Wreaths

Knitted Baby Bow Hat

I love Pinterest for getting craft ideas, recipes, and patterns, but one of the frustrating things about it is that some of the pictures lead to listings on Etsy or other places that don't have the pattern. But that won't stop this crafty girl! I semi-made-up this pattern by modifying a simple hat pattern I have in my stash and copying the picture. This pattern is fairly simple, and really cute! Perfect for using up scraps too :) I'm not great at knowing sizes, but I think it would fit a 0-3 month infant. To make it bigger, add stitches in multiples of 4 before casting on. You could also use the basic hat pattern and add stripes, flowers, or make it look like an animal. See my Crochet Hat Round-Up post for ideas. Be creative!

Knitted Baby Bow Hat

Materials:

2 colours worsted weight yarn (size 4)

6 mm (US 10) knitting needles

Hat:

Using main colour, cast on 44 stitches. Work knit 1 purl 1 ribbing for 1". Work 4 rows stocking stitch (knit one row, purl one row). Switch to accent colour and work 4 rows stocking stitch. Switch back to main colour and continue in stocking stitch until it measures approx. 5" from beginning.

Decrease:

Row 1: [Knit 2, knit 2 together] to end of row
Row 2: Purl
Row 3: [Knit 1, knit 2 together] to end of row
Row 4: Purl
Row 5: [Knit 2 together] to end of row
Row 6: [Purl 2 together] to end of row.

Cut yarn and pull through loops.

Bow:

Cast on 16 stitches (using accent colour yarn)
Knit in garter stitch (knit every row) until the bow measures approx. 1".
Cast off and sew in ends.

Finishing:

Sew the bow onto the coloured stripe by looping around it several times. Make sure that you sew through the bow piece at least once so it can't get pulled out. Sew in all loose ends, and sew the middle seam.

Notes:

You can easily modify this pattern to be bigger by adding stitches in multiples of 4 (i.e. add 4, 8, 12, etc. stitches), and making it a bit longer. If you want it to be stretchier, use bigger size needles. To make it tighter, you can use smaller needles for the ribbing at the bottom, and bigger needles for the main part.

If you want to make this pattern with baby weight yarn, cast on 64 stitches and use 4mm knitting needles.  

A black and white one, made a bit bigger by adding stitches

A turquoise and white one, made tighter by using smaller sized needles for the ribbing at the bottom

Christmas Crafts: Part 1 - Mini Knitted Sweaters

This Christmas, I've been so busy doing crafts and baking that I've hardly had any time to blog about it! There are a lot of pictures for these tutorials, so I've split it into 4 parts. First up is mini knitted sweaters. I found this pattern on knitting pattern central (great knitting website!). You can find the link to the pattern here (I followed #12, and made up my own colour combinations and patterns).

First I just used variegated yarn, and made a hanger out of wire to use this one as a Christmas tree ornament.

I

I had it sitting on my fridge for a while before we had the tree up, so you could even put a magnet on the back and it would be cute too.

I made a few more, and decided that it would be cute to put them all together to make a garland. I made 4 different ones (one for each person in my family), and just put a red ribbon through the arms of them, and tied bows at the end. I don't know about you, but I thought that it was super cute!!

Another note: the pattern said to knit it on two needles, but when I did the red and white ones I knit it on four needles so I didn't have to do so much sewing. Enjoy!