Making a toddler backpack - pattern review

There is a  pattern, generously offered free, for a toddler backpack / rucksack, by Indietutes, which has been around for a while. But I still think it holds up, and has the advatange of being a really simple make. This is my pattern review and contains the link to the pattern.

Child's handbag and small doll

I wanted to make a child's handbag to give a birthday present, and after a bit of research, I decided that this little pleated purse (here in my version) was just the free tutorial I needed. 

Normally if I give a purse or a bag as a gift, I try to stuff it, to hold its shape. However, I thought 4 year old Rose might get excited by some screwed up tissue paper and then suffer a disappointment to realise there was not anything inside the paper. So I decided to make a little doll to put inside, which would match the bag.

To find out how I made these, read on!

Sewn toys and play things for babies and toddlers

Over the last few years, I've collected many ideas for toys you can sew for babies and toddlers, almost all are free. Many I have used! Now, I thought it was time I shared them on the blog. First, here are some links to other articles on the blog that have ideas and some 'How to's.

A Sounds bag, or Sensory bag - particularly useful for a child just learning to talk:

Ideas for a baby gym, including a crinkly snake:

Ideas for baby shower presents, including some toys and play things:

There are lots of other toy ideas and tutorials on my blog if you do a search. In particular, there are several articles on Quiet Books / Play Books, Dolls' Clothes, and Finger Puppets.

Below the jump, I will share links that I have found while doing my own research.
Note Craftsy / Bluprint links may now be defunct - I will try and find other links.

Baby girls' crossover jumper / apron

When Jane was a baby, I made her a reversible crossover apron (which can be worn as a dress, as in this picture). I used the free PDF pattern from Smashed Peas and Carrots. (More about this later.)

Here, she was just over 7 months old, but it fitted her for some time after that - till at least a year or 18 months.

The apron is still, in fact, going strong, 4 years on, and Jane's baby sister Ada is now using it mainly as a coverall bib. It still looks fine, but I thought I'd make Ada her own. And while I was at it, I would make I also made one for my husband's great niece for Christmas. We will be seeing his niece's baby twins then, his great-niece and great nephew, for the first time, thousands of miles away from their home and ours. They will be almost 9 months old, but, like one of my grandchildren, were 10 weeks premature, so a little smaller than the average 9 month old babies. An apron and matching frilly knickers (a nappy / diaper cover) for the little girl, and I've yet to decide what to make for her brother. But probably not frilly knickers. 

To see the latest versions of the apron, and how to adjust the pattern for a larger size,  read on.

Witch cape (and any costume cape)

Hallowe'en always seem to be the time for costumes. My daughter wanted a very quick witch costume for my grand-daughter. She had the hat, and a broomstick, so it was just a cloak.

This was one of the easiest things I ever made for my grand-daughter. It was made of a spare bit of black lining material. I used the same approach to cutting the cape part as for the Wonder Woman costume, i.e. a semi circle, with a small semi-circle cut out at the centre top for the neckline. The Wonder Woman costume post may give you more ideas.

I made a very simple hood, which was just a rectangle meauring roughly the same as the 'neckline' shown as x - x above. This was folded in half and stitched along the top seam into a pointed hood shape, then I got rid of the extreme point by just stitching across the point a couple of inches down. (You may be able to see the idea here.)

Then I attached the hood to the cape and finished all the edges, and added a couple of strings to where the hood joined the neckline at the front. 

The measurements were not very precise, and we never intended her to wear the hood 

(though she could have done) because she had a witchy hat.

And here's the finished cape being modelled by Leppie the leopard. This stuffed toy is almost the same size as a four-year-old child.

Superheroes coin purse and pencil case

The most recent sewing request on behalf on the grandchildren was not for a new skirt, or trousers, but for a coin purse for school. Two of them have just started school this month, and one has to take a few coins in with her for lunch and the breakfast club. Her mother thought a little coin purse of her own would be useful. Maybe something with superheroes on? Especially girl superheroes? So I asked my other daughter - would the other school starter like a coin purse, too? No, she doesn't have to take any money - but perhaps a pencil case? And she is perhaps even keener than her cousin on superheroes, especially Spiderman, so no problem there in using the same fabric.

Here's the result:

You can find out more about how to make these simple zipper cases by reading on.

Hats for babies and small people - free PDFs

There are several delightful patterns for children's and babies' hats, available as free PDFs on the internet. Usually these have full instructions. I must admit to my favourites, made over and over again because they work so well for my four grand-daughters. But in this post I will also try and provide links and reviews to many of those I've found which have promise. At the time of writing all of these are free. Some require you to register, but there is usually no charge for this.

The above two are from patterns I have made multiple times, especially the one on the right. But for my full review of free Hat PDFs for children and babies, read on!

Child mittens - review of free PDF pattern

Bringing my grand-daughter home from nursery one winter's day, I realised she had left her gloves at home. I thought I'd try and make her a quick spare pair, which could stay attached to her coat. That way, they'd stay with her!

I found this free pattern on the internet from Fleece Fun. It comes in 3 child sizes, as well as two women's and two men's sizes. The smallest sizes is supposed to fit ages 4-6, so I thought it would be perfect. 

To find out how I got on, read on.

Baby sleeping bags foir hot summer nights

This has been such a hot and dry June and July in my part of England. And stifling hot at night, too. So when I delivered a little romper for my youngest grand-daughter, my daughter asked if there was any chance I could make a thin sleeping bag for her as well. She's just turned a year old, and settles much better in a sleeping bag than not. But all her sleeping bags are warm and cosy, so she's been sleeping (or not) just in a nappy.

I wanted to be able make it quickly, as the weather was still very hot - not point in waiting till it gets cooler again. So I looked out the pattern I'd used to make sleeping bags for her older sister, and decided it would be just the right size, at 6-14 months. This was the free PDF generously offered by Small Dream Factory. (There are other sizes, available to buy.) There is a very good tutorial, too. I made two versions, one thin and one ultra-thin.

To find out how I modified the pattern to make thin hot weather sleeping bags, read on.

New beach cover-ups

Two years ago, I made the three older girls beach cover-ups, poncho style. For the detailed methods of making these, you can read about them here and here. These are all now outgrown. (Maybe one or more might work for the new baby next year.) So, three more needed before our family holiday.

Here are examples of what I ended up with.

To find out how to make them, read on. 

Super-quick child's quilt for the weekend

This isn't the first time I've made children's bedding in a hurry, and it may not be the last. The previous time, I threw together two quilts by two different methods.

This time, I had about an hour and a half's notice that I was going to need one extra junior quilt, for a grand-child who would be sleeping on a cot bed mattress on the floor. Last year's quilt was much too small for her and was to be 'demoted' to the smaller cot mattress for her sister. It had been agreed that their other grandfather would be staying over at ours, as well as the rest of the gang, which meant everyone needed to move round a bed - musical beds. I did actually know about this, but in all the rush to get ready for having a houseful, it had slipped my mind, and it was only my daughter's timely reminder that saved the day.

To find out how I made a really fast quilt, read on.

Quilts for boy and girl twins

It's a while since I made baby quilts - almost a year! I've written about how to make baby quilts a number of times - here, here and here. I've also written about methods of making super quick quilts in a hurry, here. So I won't spend more time here repeating the tutorials. But I did want to make sure I put my latest efforts on the blog. It's become easier with practice!

Now, I had two to make. My husband's niece the other side of the world had twins recently, a boy and a girl.  A bit earlier than expected, so I had to get a move on - espeically as they would take a while to arrive in the post.

Here's the boy's finished quilt.

For a little more information, read on.

Replacement Padded Covers for Baby Car Seat or Buggy Straps

When my daughter found to her delight that she was pregnant again for the second time, it was time to get Jane's old car seat out of storage. Oh dear! One of the covers that should wrap round the shoulder strap to protect the baby from the strap chafing had gone missing.

It wasn't actually this model car seat, but you can see the padded covers for the straps clearly on this picture as they should be. Two of them. 

So the next sewing request was for a new set of strap covers. (A set, because, of course, you want them to match.) To find out how I made these (easy as pie), read on.

My Dining Chair Harness

Home-made baby sitting harness (for sitting at table)

In an earlier post, I wrote about some ideas for making home made harnesses. I also mentioned that none of them were 100% right for my needs, and that I had made my own based mainly on the Canadian Living example, but with some modifications. This is what I came up with.

Here's how I went about it, including the adaptations, and a link to my pattern.

Quick Quilts

I needed to knock up a couple of extra child size quilts for the visiting grand-children, with limited time available. I came up with two quick solutions. For the real thing, (i.e. proper home made quilts) see my posts on children's quilts here and here. But for a quick make, how about these two ideas?

This has to be one of the fastest quilts I've ever made. It's super lightweight, more of a blanket, really, but May and June were exceptionally hot here. 

You can read about how to make this, and another simple quilt, below.

Free Pattern for Baby Dining Harness

Assuming you have come to this page from my other pages on dining harnesses, go ahead and click on THIS LINK to see the pattern, and download to your computer. If not, please go to THIS PAGE for the tutorial, and THIS PAGE for more information on Baby dining harnesses generally.

Now read on for how to use the pattern.

Child's Apron

I've previously posted about baby bibs and aprons, and aprons for toddlers, but I realised the other day there is still a need for aprons for the girls now they are older. The occasion was a teatime snack for Jane. We'd found some huge, delicious ripe cherries on sale at a price that did not require us to take out a fresh mortgage, so of course we bought lots. And Jane was offered some for her snack. As soon as I started splitting them to take the stones out, I could see a problem looming.  These were really juicy black cherries. Jane (aged 3) refused to take off her pretty dress (too cold) and initially refused to wear any of the aprons I found in her Mum's drawer. One was her sister's, one was too small, one was Mummy's - well, eventually I got her to wear Mummy's, having checked Mummy didn't mind. (Of course she didn't.) But it WAS far too big for her.

So the next day, I looked out the instructions and pattern measurements that I'd used before, free from John Lewis. See the earlier post. And in my stash I found this sturdy cotton fabric, with a great jungle animals print, which had just been waiting for the right project. 

Great, isn't it? To find out how I made it into an apron, read on.

Carry cot for doll

When Jane's baby sister was imminent, she started taking more interest in her doll again, wanting to put it to bed like the new baby would be. So, for her birthday, I made her a carry cot, which enabled her to do that. 

I couldn't find quite the pattern I needed on the internet (at least, not for free, and that's what my blog is all about). So I had to design my own. You can find out how I made it by reading on. There was a bit of trial and error involved, so you are getting the nitty gritty here!

A Larger Toddler Sleeping Bag

This is just a brief post to update another earlier post - well, two posts, actually. I wrote a good eighteen months ago ago about a diamond pattern quilted sleeping bag that I'd made for Jane. You can find the details about how to make it here.

I also wrote more recently about my quilts for the girls, which were actually made a while ago as well. And one of the things I said in that post was that there were quilting squares left over for another project.

And here's the result!

To find out how to make a sleeping bag like this, read on.

Quilts for Growing Children

I've called this 'Quilts for growing children'. When the babies were all in cribs and small cots, I made each of them a quilt. You can see them here and here. Now, as two out of three had graduated to toddler beds, they needed bigger sizes, and the next one will soon graduate as well.  Fleur loved her first quilt, which helped her transition from cot to bed. It was made with 10 by 7  quilting squares of 4", with a wide border, so allowing for seams, its total measurements were probably c 42"  by 31 1/2". For Christmas, the plan was for her to have a new quilt. An obvious way to increase the size of the quilts is to use 6" (15cm) squares rather than the 4" (10cm) ones I used before.  I didn't find ready-cut quilting packs that I liked though, so it was down to buying fabric and cutting my own. Here's the end result.

Although all our grandchildren to date are girls, both they and their parents are less than keen on the girly pink floral style, especially now they are no longer babies. Most of the ready cut quilt pieces I found come in pink florals or possibly blue - but often the blues are floral as well. So I started searching for more 'unisex' fabrics - which I realised I would have to cut.

Read more about making quilts for children after the jump.