A baby shower gift idea

Sorry I've been MIA for a while from blogging, I've been super busy in my craft room sewing up a ton of gifts for other people, mainly for Steph and my nephew on the way, Liam. Seriously I've been a sewing maniac! This month has been crazy busy and it looks like things wont slow down until August, but then again Liam will be here so I'll be living over at Steph and Aldos visiting a lot, so it looks like things will still be busy around here. Sigh.

So on to the baby shower gift idea. I know most, if not all my readers, are moms or moms-to-be (lets face it, the dudes could care less about my ramblings on baby/toddler stuff and crafts. Its ok, I understand. No hard feelings) so I thought I'd share my shower gift to my sister if any of you want to spoil someone YOU know. This was a pretty big hit at the shower Jac and I threw Steph this past Sunday, and I was pretty giddy to give it to her because we are a lot alike (ha!) and I knew I would totally want this! (Come on now, who doesn't LOVE unexpected thoughtful gifts?!) So I had been thinking about the weeks before, during, and after my labor with Eli so that I could help Steph get as prepared as possible for her birthing experience because I want it to be as amazing as it should be, and voila! In popped the idea, and I couldn't put it together fast enough!

I'm sure this isn't a new gift idea but I was encouraged that when I searched "baby shower gift" on Pinterest, a million of these didn't pop up! :P Thats how I gauge how unique my current sewing idea is. Dang you Pinterest! You are a curse and a blessing in equal proportions!**shaking fists in air** Here it is, a gift for mom:

So much space for all the necessities!

hospital bag with matching toiletry bag

I just realized I'm obsessed with making bags and want a new one every week. Ever since becoming a mom, I'm preoccupied with customizing a bag to meet every single one of my lug-around-a-bunch-of-junk needs. I can't help it. It's a compulsion and I probably need help.....ANYWAYS back to Steph's bag. I made this one with the idea that I wanted it to be big enough to fit all she would need for a 3 day stay, as well as stock it full of stuff she would need or not even think of. Jac and I joined brains and experiences and decided this is what was needed for Steph's personalized bag:

lightweight knit night gown (nursing accessible)

Lightweight knit robe (fits in the bag and good for the hot/cold flashes)

Slippers

Fuzzy socks

Greatest bras ever x3 

Water bottle

Toiletry bag (fits all this stuff, plus extra room for her makeup bag)

Contact solution

Contact case

Chapstick

Crossword puzzle book

Tooth paste

Tooth brush and cover

Dental floss

Mouth wash

Facial cleansing wipes

Body wash

Loofa

Shampoo

Conditioner

Hairspray

Brush

Pads & mesh panties

Breast pads

Kind snack bars x3

Gum

  Mocha Frappuccino x2       

**I forgot deoderant but I would recommend that :)      

      

Did we forget anything that YOU would recommend? I chose to make the bag because, again I can customize it to my specifications but there are a TON of large, super cute totes out there that you can buy fairly cheap and stuff full of goodies as well. It obviously doesn't have to be handmade, (heck if I didn't sew I would totally sell Thirty-one bags and use one of those!) or another option is to search ETSY for a bag you like and you will also support a small business owner :) I've made a bunch of lined bags before so I just used my prior experience to come up with this bag but if you are ambitious and want to make it yourself I can send you my dimensions or you can check out Pinterest for awesome tutorials and tweak it as you wish. Here's a pretty detailed one I found that would be perfect. Then I figure she can use this bag for travel in the future or convert it to a back up diaper bag (which is what I would do)

Do it! Make a new mom's day :)


Ok, happy packing ya'll!

-Linds

P.S I will be visiting my crafty cousin Beckie with www.infarrantlycreative.net next week and we plan to sew a bunch of stuff and do a few tutorials so if there is something I've done in the past that you want a tutorial on, please let me know and I'll be sure we do that one. (I've been toying with the idea of offering tutorials on this blog but it's a LOT of work so I haven't gone that route yet. So a BIG shout out to those bloggers who do! Muuuuah! I love you, I love you, I love you!) I plan to do one on the toddler backpack and the "busy bag" for car rides/travel so far:

Toddler backpack with "learning caddy"

**Update: Tutorial done! It can be found here

Travel toddler "busy" bag

**Update: Tutorial done! It can be found here
Other options could be the toddler training skivvies or diaper wipes clutch:

Toddler training skivies 

Diaper wipes clutch.

Let me know. Toodles!