Super-Fast Firetruck Bed Set
One of my really good friends from way, way back in elementary school Facebook messaged me out of the blue a couple weeks ago about possibly making a bedroom set for her son's 2nd birthday (holy cow... I feel old).
Of course, I won't pass up an opportunity to make stuff on other people's dollars... so we met at JoAnn's after one of my Saturday morning 10Ks (I was dressed as a mummy for the Halloween-themed race; that's a strange impression to make after not seeing each other for several years!) and picked out some fabric. We decided to do wholecloth, since it's quick and simple; the little guy's new bed is in the shape of a big red fire truck, so mom didn't want anything too busy (a request which we may have accidentally ignored...). We chose a super cute "fast-looking" chevron print in primary colors for one side and a navy blue for the other. Reversible! I grabbed a few pieces of solid fabric in some matching colors to make a colorblocked edging, and we were good to go!
The blanket itself was pretty simple; I just laid out the backing, batting and top and pinned them together, avoiding the lines where I planned to quilt. We purchased a twin-sized batting for this crib-sized blanket and folded it in half for a bit more warmth and cushiness. It was on sale anyways!
Because of the extra thickness, I had to get out my walking foot and my good old Singer Curvy (no way am I paying $130 for the same attachment for my Husqvarna!). I had originally planned to use red thread for the quilting, but I didn't like how the red stitching stood out on the white background of the print fabric and made it even busier, so I went with white needle thread and red bobbin thread; in hopes that the quilting would be invisible on the print side and red on the navy blue side... and I tested it first to make sure. It worked!
To do the edging, I cut nice square pieces from my matching solids (a third of a yard is quite inconsistent at JoAnn's apparently...) and sewed them all together to make one big piece. I then cut the 3" binding strips from this big piece. Instant color pattern! I sewed 5 strips of this colorblocked fabric together, end to end (enough for the perimeter of the blanket plus a tad), then pressed the seams open and ironed it in half to create the binding. Ta da! Colorful and fun.
Because we had purchased the whole bolt of the chevron print, I knew I'd have enough for a pillowcase in addition to the window valance that was requested. The leftover colorblocked piece somehow ended up being the exact width for a pillowcase... so I cut a 10" wide piece, sewed the short ends together, then folded it in half to make the "cuff" of the pillowcase. The main case was cut from the chevron fabric. I did end up taking out ANOTHER sewing machine- my serger/interlocker this time- because I didn't want the inside edges to fray. Attach the "cuff" to the main pillowcase and poof! Super cute...
Lastly, a window valance. Such an easy way to add character to a bedroom! I remember growing up my mom always made "balloon valances" for every room and stuffed them with crumpled up newspaper; specifically the shiny ruby red ones she made for our tiny kitchen. Ha ha... we're just going simple here. No stuffing, just a little bit of a ruffle. I had to try it out... so I tested it on our stairway window (valance was already in place... just swap the fabric!). Perfect!
Essentially, you make a tube of fabric and add a little pocket for a curtain rod to go through. I had to piece some fabric together for this particular project, since the direction of the print is more pleasing pointing up or down rather than left or right, but with the chevrons running in stripes it was easy to match it up pretty seamlessly. Can you spot my seam? Look closely... :)
Yay! The whole project only took a couple days to finish, and I think we're going to have one happy little camper in his new big-boy bedroom!
Every time I park my lime green car by this storage unit next to the building I work in, I really want to take a picture because I love the colors blue and lime green together. Today, I used one of the blue doors as a backdrop for my finished product photos! It was cold, windy and snowing, but I grabbed a couple magnetic hooks off our file cabinet and braved the weather for a few pictures...
Of course, I won't pass up an opportunity to make stuff on other people's dollars... so we met at JoAnn's after one of my Saturday morning 10Ks (I was dressed as a mummy for the Halloween-themed race; that's a strange impression to make after not seeing each other for several years!) and picked out some fabric. We decided to do wholecloth, since it's quick and simple; the little guy's new bed is in the shape of a big red fire truck, so mom didn't want anything too busy (a request which we may have accidentally ignored...). We chose a super cute "fast-looking" chevron print in primary colors for one side and a navy blue for the other. Reversible! I grabbed a few pieces of solid fabric in some matching colors to make a colorblocked edging, and we were good to go!
The blanket itself was pretty simple; I just laid out the backing, batting and top and pinned them together, avoiding the lines where I planned to quilt. We purchased a twin-sized batting for this crib-sized blanket and folded it in half for a bit more warmth and cushiness. It was on sale anyways!
Because of the extra thickness, I had to get out my walking foot and my good old Singer Curvy (no way am I paying $130 for the same attachment for my Husqvarna!). I had originally planned to use red thread for the quilting, but I didn't like how the red stitching stood out on the white background of the print fabric and made it even busier, so I went with white needle thread and red bobbin thread; in hopes that the quilting would be invisible on the print side and red on the navy blue side... and I tested it first to make sure. It worked!
 |
| Invisible white... |
 |
| Contrasting red! |
To do the edging, I cut nice square pieces from my matching solids (a third of a yard is quite inconsistent at JoAnn's apparently...) and sewed them all together to make one big piece. I then cut the 3" binding strips from this big piece. Instant color pattern! I sewed 5 strips of this colorblocked fabric together, end to end (enough for the perimeter of the blanket plus a tad), then pressed the seams open and ironed it in half to create the binding. Ta da! Colorful and fun.
Because we had purchased the whole bolt of the chevron print, I knew I'd have enough for a pillowcase in addition to the window valance that was requested. The leftover colorblocked piece somehow ended up being the exact width for a pillowcase... so I cut a 10" wide piece, sewed the short ends together, then folded it in half to make the "cuff" of the pillowcase. The main case was cut from the chevron fabric. I did end up taking out ANOTHER sewing machine- my serger/interlocker this time- because I didn't want the inside edges to fray. Attach the "cuff" to the main pillowcase and poof! Super cute...
Lastly, a window valance. Such an easy way to add character to a bedroom! I remember growing up my mom always made "balloon valances" for every room and stuffed them with crumpled up newspaper; specifically the shiny ruby red ones she made for our tiny kitchen. Ha ha... we're just going simple here. No stuffing, just a little bit of a ruffle. I had to try it out... so I tested it on our stairway window (valance was already in place... just swap the fabric!). Perfect!
Essentially, you make a tube of fabric and add a little pocket for a curtain rod to go through. I had to piece some fabric together for this particular project, since the direction of the print is more pleasing pointing up or down rather than left or right, but with the chevrons running in stripes it was easy to match it up pretty seamlessly. Can you spot my seam? Look closely... :)
Yay! The whole project only took a couple days to finish, and I think we're going to have one happy little camper in his new big-boy bedroom!
Every time I park my lime green car by this storage unit next to the building I work in, I really want to take a picture because I love the colors blue and lime green together. Today, I used one of the blue doors as a backdrop for my finished product photos! It was cold, windy and snowing, but I grabbed a couple magnetic hooks off our file cabinet and braved the weather for a few pictures...
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