Sunday, November 2, 2014

The Perfect Baby Gift

I've been making baby gift travel pouches forever (or at least for the last 4 years since I've been sewing!) and they never fail as a great gift for a new baby.




My friends have slowed down in the baby department so it's been a while since I've stitched one of these pouches up but my mother in law asked me to make one for her to give to one of the ladies at her church who is due any day. The brief was simple - unisex colours because the gender of the baby is not known yet.

These baby travel pouches began as something I needed. I always hated lugging around those ugly big nappy bags, so I used my regular handbag and had a travel pouch that I had made especially to fit 3-4 nappies, baby wipes, some nappy disposal bags and a small bottle of hand sanitiser. I got lots of positive comments from people about it so I started making more and giving them as gifts.


I chose this gorgeous Echino hexagon / bee print which is a linen blend that I bought earlier this year at my LQS. The linen adds a nice texture and I think the colour combination on this fabric is a good unisex option. The lining is a grey polka dot quilting cotton which compliments the grey hexies on the exterior, and finished with a lilac zipper, just because that's what I had in my stash!


If you've been around a while, you may remember that I used to sell these on Etsy. They sold quite well and sometimes I would stock them with the nappies, wipes etc and send them as a complete gift for customers who requested it. It was fun but I found other aspects of selling online quite draining - the shipping, the etsy fees, the product photography, so I decided to shut it down. I also found that while the majority of customers were wonderful, a couple of negative experiences with demanding people really got me down.


I still use the original pouch I made for my babies - these days the nappies have been replaced with spare knickers and socks, and the baby wipes are for sticky fingers rather than dirty bottoms (hooray!) but it's nice to have such longevity and usefulness out of something so simple to make.

I hope my MIL and the new mama receiving it likes the bees and the colours and that it's as useful to her as it's been for me!

14 comments:

  1. This is such a great idea! I have a friend who just had a baby, its their number 6!! And of course they have all the baby stuff they will need so I had no idea what to get them. Can I ask you what the dimensions are on your lovely pouch?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! The template I use to cut my fabric is 11" x 8". With all the seam allowances (usually 1/4" on all sides, but sometimes a bit more depending on my inaccuracies!) the finished pouch is around 10" x 7".

      Delete
  2. It looks great and is a really good idea. I know you didn't like online selling, but do you ever do markets?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have tried a couple with varying success but you have to have a very professional set up these days for Melbourne markets and the stall fees can be pretty high. You also have to invest a fair bit into fabric and time for sewing your stock, so if you don't sell much it can be very disheartening. Small scale things are ok but the regular market scene is not for me!

      Delete
  3. So good to find baby presents that are quicker than making a whole quilt! I have tried patchwork baby balls recently and just made a drawstring playmat, but I love this idea too.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Looks amazing, just the kind of thing that is find useful for my daughter right now! Have you got a tutorial for this?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Zoe, I don't have a tutorial for this one, but if you follow my tutorial for the Baby Gift Zipper Pouch which I did a few years ago (you'll find it on my tutorials page, it has the blue whale fabric) and make a few small changes - cut the exterior and lining fabric and some batting 11" x 8" and make a small wristlet strap from the exterior fabric as well. Use the batting with the exterior pieces to make it more sturdy. Follow that tutorial but leave out the part when I box the corners. That's it :)

      Delete
  5. Love this - zip pouches are so handy!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Its gorgeous!! What a great gift.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Such a lovely, practical gift, Ros, so you know it'll be used well. Great fabric choice. I do like the idea of not using baby fabrics.

    ReplyDelete
  8. You always pick such gorgeous fabrics Ros, I bet they love it. I think I need a big one for swimming lessons.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This is so cute! This would be a perfect gift for the birthday of my sister.


    Sarah Dixon
    http://backseatmirror.net/

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for your comments - I adore hearing from you! I love to reply personally via email so if your email isn't visible in your profile feel free to leave it in your message so I can get in touch!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...