Monday, March 10, 2014

Pacifier Keeper - QUICK baby gift

Here's one of my favorite things to make for my friends who are having babies, a pacifier keeper.  They are useful, they save money because you (or your friends) won't have to keep replacing pacifiers that baby tosses away, are inexpensive to create, and as the title says, quick to make!
 
 
 You will need:
 -1 pack suspender/mitten clips (comes with two, shown a couple
     pictures below)
 -either 12 inch pieces of jelly roll strips or enough fabric to cut a
     2.5 inch by 12 inch piece
 -Velcro by the yard (you use less than 1 inch per keeper)
 
 This picture shows the length of a keeper fully laid out, they are closer to 9 inches when shut.  You can see I used two fabrics to make this one long enough to wrap around the pacifier ring and still be able to clip to the babies clothing.
 
Cutting my 2.5x12 inch piece of snuggle flannel.
 
I don't usually care for directional fabric, but it worked out well in this case.
 
Here's the clips I have been using.
 
First you want to fold the piece in half right sides together.
Then you'll want to make sure the strip will be able to fit through the clip.
 
And the openings on these clips are about 1 inch wide.
 
I also cut my Velcro a little less than one inch long.
 
I am sewing my strip a bit wider than 1/4 inch to be sure the finished size will be less than 1 inch across.
 
Then turn it inside out in whatever manner works best for you.
 
On this one I used one of my crochet hooks.  I was able to get the hook to grab onto the fabric I had turned under with my fingers, and pull it the rest of the way through lickety-split!
 
This particular hook is size "H".
 
Then press your fabric flat.
 
Next sew 1/8 inch away from each edge for a nice, finished look.
 
Like this!
 
Next you thread the end through the clip, and fold it over about 1/2 inch.  I only pinned at this point to take this picture :)
 
I chose not to turn the end under here, instead I just used a zig-zag stitch to hold it together and keep all the loose end threads from unraveling.  And just so you know, I personally went over this part 3 times, because I know how babies will pull on things and I don't want this to come apart.  You could also baste it in place first, and then run a zig-zag over the top.
 
Here is how that end looks when you're done.
 
On this other end you will first sew the end of the fabric closed, either by folding in under or just run a zig-zag over it.  Then cut the rough side of the Velcro shorter than the soft side to allow for a bit of adjustment around the pacifier ring.  Next sew the rough side all around the edges, placing it about 1/4 inch from the end of the fabric strip.
 
Now place your soft side about 4 inches from the edge of your rough side and sew all around the edges, feel free to back stitch on the sides for extra security.
 
Here you can see where I sewed around the Velcro.
 
And here is the finished product!  I hope you make someone's life easier with one or two of these, I've even got a couple that are holiday themed, just because!
 

1 comment:

Gmama Jane said...

This is the first tutorial for one of theses that I've seen!! I love them but it never occurred to me to make one for gifts. What a Great idea!!! So glad I scrolled thru your blog posts after coming to visit for the Flags on a Stick Blog Hop.
Blessings
Gmama Jane