Easy FAST Baby Gifts

Yesterday was the baby shower I held for my sister, and boy was it a doozy!
It started at 2pm, and get this, the last guests left after 9pm! How is that for a long baby shower? I thought it would last a couple of hours at most. Little did I know how wild a baby shower could be!

Ok, it wasn't so wild. Before you get any ideas I served rasberry punch (remind me to share the recipe one day) and iced tea, but it was a really good time.

I thought I would share some of the hand made things I made for my sister and her new baby. So super easy you could whip any one of these up in under an hour!

 I couldn't not make my new baby nephew some Itty Bitty PJ Pants! When I drafted this pattern I didn't have a newborn to try these on so I was really excited to check the fit. The verdict..... they fit my little 8lb nephew perfectly with a little growing room. I made a shirt to match but you could easily pair with a store bought T.

Burp cloths! Now, I embroidered these with my machine, but you don't need an embroidery machine to make cute personalized Burp cloths. These are so easy, really no tutorial is required. Grab a pack of Gerber prefold diapers (sold in the baby section of most big box stores). Sew a strip of fabric or wide ribbon to the bottom to embelish (tuck in the raw edges).
To personalize without using an embroidery machine, add an applique. Use THIS tutorial if using woven fabrics, or THIS tutorial if using knit fabrics.
These sew up in no time and are so handy for new moms!

A cozy blanket is always a really appreciated gift. All you need is two different fabrics (one for the outside and one for the lining). For my blanket I used a print flannel for the outside and a soft white minky for the lining. Cut both fabrics the same size (30 X 40) is a nice size. Sew both fabrics right sides together leaving a small opening. Turn to the right side and topstitch (this will also close the opening). If you choose to add embroidery or an applique do this before sewing up your blanket.
How simple is that?

 Put a blanket and a couple of coordinating burp cloths together with a ribbon (you'll have to imagine the ribbon) and you have a soft and cozy perfect gift.

A nursing cover! And, not just any nursing cover, add a little boning to the top and mom can easily see baby as she is nursing. I was going to write up a tutorial for this one, but after a quick search, realized there was about a million of them already on the internet and they are all virtually the same. There was another new mom at the shower with a store bought cover like this, and she had paid $45 for it! This literally took me 30 mins to make.

Here are some links to some great tutorials to make one of these
Southern Institcute of Domestic Arts and Crafts
Made by The Mama Monster
Freshly Picked

I'm not sure if all of these tutorials add pockets to the inside, but I added one in each corner for breast pads.

If you want a really fast project consider adding hand made touches to store bought items. just like the burp cloths, these are store bought hooded towels and I personalized them (there were 2 other new babies at the shower). Again I used my embroidery machine, but you could just as easily applique an initial to the hood. To be honest it is often times faster for me to applique by hand than to use my embroidery function.
Onesies are also another really great store bought item you can embelish.

Remember the diaper cake? After I made the base that day I put it away. You know that saying "out of sight, out of mind"...
I completely forgot about it until the morning of the party when I went to get something out of the hall closet and saw it sitting there. I ran to the toy store, found some wood blocks, added a ducky and called it a day.
I'm sure I could have decorated this more creatively, but it worked!

So, there you go, several easy baby gifts when you need to make something in a hurry! :)