Baby Crafts

I finished a few projects today, just in time for Christmas!  First was a set of cushion covers for my aunt.  They turned out beautiful, but I'm waiting until they arrive to show pictures.  This is mostly due to the fact that I didn't take any myself; instead I'm going to let my uncle do it.  He is an illustrious photographer with many talents, one of which is capturing action shots of furniture.  For now, feast your eyes on these cute packages!

The bows are fabric strips cut from the same material I used for the covers.  Look at that perfect bow.

Also completed today are some baby toys I for Nickolas-- the baby of my fiance's cousin.  No relation to me, right?  Oh well!  I have claimed this baby to love and spoil, nonetheless.  It will be handmade toys until he's old enough to read, and then I'll load him up on books.

I made this adorable puzzle ball [mostly] from the instructions in Joelle Hoverson's Last Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts.  I say mostly because that book is heavy on text and light on pictures.  I had to rely heavily on intuition, and even got help from the local quilt shop.

The ball itself is only about as big as a tape dispenser.  Excellent for little hands to grasp (and then shove directly into mouth).  This project only took about 5 hours to complete, though I didn't work on it all in one session.  It was very easy to piece-- I used the machine for most of it and finished by hand.  Oh, and for the record: you don't need a fancy stuffing fork.  A chopstick works just fine.

I also made Nickolas a cute little fabric ball with a rattle inside.  I stuffed the ball mostly with filling, and then inserted a cat toy similar to this one.  Then I finished stuffing and closed up the opening with a [very ugly] ladder stitch.

Now I have finished all my wrapping, including my fiance's stocking stuffers and the gifts he got for his secret santa.  I'm feeling pretty good about Christmas!  In fact, compared to many, I think I'm ahead of the game!