The Small Human Being Sew-Along: Sewing Stuff for Babies and Parents. Join Us!

It can be hard enough to find the inspiration and carve out the time to sew in daily life in between work, family, stuff, whatever... never mind when you haven't slept more than two hours at a stretch in three months and a certain very small human being in your life refuses to nap except while being danced across the floor in a sling as you loudly hum a lullaby in a very specific way. Which is why Cindy (of Cation Designs), Clio (of Clio & Phineas) and I decided to team up to encourage and inspire each other to sew for our new small human beings (and ourselves) during the month of April.

Won't you join us? You don't have to be a sleep-deprived, milk-spattered new parent to participate — you can make stuff for ANY baby or new parent in your life (your own, family, friends) or for donating to charities that ask for baby items.

Cindy has written up the official rules on her blog and Clio has her kickoff post up as well, but the basic gist is (grabbed from Cindy's blog, because I am trying to type while nursing and it is a struggle) ...

• Human babies only, not fur babies (sorry fur babies!).
• Items should be for babies or parents of babies ages 0-12 months old (It's OK if the baby isn’t born yet!).
• They can be for any baby -- your own, a friend’s, a niece/nephew/grandchild/whatever, or you can make baby items to donate to charity (we will be posting about a few charities that accept baby-related donations if you would like to do this).
• Sewing only (no knitting or needle felting or other crafts). Hand-sewing, serging and sewing machine are all acceptable construction options.
• The sewn item can be as simple or as complex as you like -- if all you sleep-deprived parents have time to do is sew a simple cotton knit baby hat or serge a pair of reusable nursing pads, that’s cool.

Timeline: We'll sew during the month of April, and then at the end of the month we'll do a round-up of our favorite pieces and choose winners for some prizes!

Categories: Sew as many items as you would like to enter into three categories: 1) Baby Clothing, 2) Baby Accessories and Other Items, such as quilts, toys, burp cloths, bibs, etc., and 3) For Parents -- because you can still do somewhat selfish sewing! -- things like maternity clothes, nursing tops/covers/pads, diaper bags, and baby carriers.

Prizes: We will choose a winner for each category to receive a year's subscription to Ottobre kids' sewing pattern magazine, and randomly select a couple of winners to receive a copy of the Oliver & S Lullaby Layette pdf pattern.

To join the sew-along, just leave a comment here or on Cindy or Clio's blog, and feel free to join us and share your in-progress photos in the Small Human Being Sew-Along Flickr group. We'll be posting inspiration and pattern ideas for the sew-along on our blogs, and chatting about the sew-along on Twitter and Instagram with the hashtag #SHBsewalong.

Oh, and I made some badges! Here's the badge and code in two different sizes...

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<div class="small-human-being-sewalong-button" style="width: 200px; margin: 0 auto;"> <a href="http://www.polkadotoverload.com/2015/03/small-human-being-sew-along.html" rel="nofollow"> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEfbsTzDVAi808ZptYgplBbCWxfyUuMwcneaQx9iWwUa41I7j2Flen6jIiqM9K2a1UCY05MBENyX91PxnjvJCo2VjvuSCvZR-kFP_xNW50uVmTKFPj3FQOOBc444rllrMtUfcnVIq2e81B/s1600/SHBsewalongbadge1.png" alt="Small Human Being Sew-Along" width="200" height="200" /> </a> </div>

<div class="small-human-being-sewalong-button" style="width: 300px; margin: 0 auto;"> <a href="http://www.polkadotoverload.com/2015/03/small-human-being-sew-along.html" rel="nofollow"> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitKyMzCjgu39mEBGOs_BJ9qk0pBS2o3qo_Zqx32kzebG1tE2z5Dr8GF-wbCUumpIkV2vaYSNIYwk5Eduq6p9ftZ9gfDyU1BAVvmXeXbugfoNGN-NQ-FmSHJtHANsBuXql-g1uebWF12Kv6/s1600/SHBsewalongbadge2.png" alt="Small Human Being Sew-Along" width="300" height="300" /> </a> </div>

<div class="small-human-being-sewalong-button" style="width: 200px; margin: 0 auto;"> <a href="http://www.polkadotoverload.com/2015/03/small-human-being-sew-along.html" rel="nofollow"> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitKyMzCjgu39mEBGOs_BJ9qk0pBS2o3qo_Zqx32kzebG1tE2z5Dr8GF-wbCUumpIkV2vaYSNIYwk5Eduq6p9ftZ9gfDyU1BAVvmXeXbugfoNGN-NQ-FmSHJtHANsBuXql-g1uebWF12Kv6/s1600/SHBsewalongbadge2.png" alt="Small Human Being Sew-Along" width="200" height="200" /> </a> </div>

So what am I determined to find the time to sew? Well, at minimum I am hoping to make one item from each category — a summer outfit for baby, a baby bib, and a nursing top for me. If I REALLY get my sew-jo going, I'm also hoping to sew a ring sling, a baby quilt and some reusable wool nursing pads. WHO KNOWS?

The second badge was based on one of my favorite quick little things I sewed for my first small human being: A Basquiat onesie from one of husband's old T-shirts, with foldover elastic binding.

So, will you join us? WHO NEEDS SLEEP WHEN THERE ARE CUTE BABIES TO SEW FOR? (I write in the dark with tired eyes as I listen for sounds of baby waking to eat).