Babushkuptastic

These cups are ADORABLE. I want them. Add Babushkups (even the name is cute) by Fred and Friends to the ever growing list of things I love and want and need (but don't really need at all).

For the Make-up Fiend in your World

I love finding tutorials for pretty bits that I know will make a perfect gift for a specific someone.

image from Chickpea Sewing Studio

This awesome cosmetic brush case was created by Juliette over at Chickpea Sewing Studio. The best part of all? She created a tutorial for Sewing Republic and you can find it and make use of it for free right HERE.

This is being added to my Christmas creation list for a certain make-up addict in my world.

Too Many Blogs

Ages ago I combined Jabbering Jaime with Gingham Skies because two blogs was too many... now I've got our baby blog, Just a Smidge, on the go and Gingham Skies too and I just don't think it's going to be feasible to keep both going once the wee man arrives. What to do, what to do. I think I'm going to combine the two blogs... I won't delete Just a Smidge but I'll likely stop posting there once the little nut makes an appearance (just 8 weeks to go). I'm going to import all of the posts from there over to here so if you're following both blogs you'll be seeing repeat posts for the next little while. Once the baby arrives I'll focus on posting here at Gingham Skies only and will be sure to label my baby posts accordingly so that if certain someones just want to keep up on my baby ramblings they can click on the OUR BABY link found in the header and TA DA baby only material.

I've found that I've stopped blogging about my personal life here at Gingham Skies because I post pregnancy updates at Just a Smidge and don't want to waste my time typing everything a second time. Of course there has been more than pregnancy going on in my world but it's the most important thing and really the one thing I think about 99.9 percent of the day so it can be tough to come up with other things to talk about. Yes it is true, I have become one of those annoying parents who can talk about little other than their baby and this scares me because I haven't even seen the little squirt yet. How annoying will I be after he arrives?! Parents will likely reply: you can't talk too much about your child! While my non-parent friends are groaning thinking: it's going to get worse? Yep, I am pretty sure it is. Sorry guys!

Fab Pick of Last Week

I usually feature Indie/Etsy finds here but I am so in love with Bath & Body Works Coconut Vanille Tapuru body butter that I had to share! I've been a Body Shop cocoa butter girl up until a week ago when I ran out and replaced my supply with this freaking amazing cream by Bath & Body Works. Not only does it smell good enough to eat, it leaves my skin feeling silky smooth and a teeny tiny bit shimmery too. I apply it all over my expanding belly and the rest of my body in the morning and I still feel soft and smooth in the evening when I crawl into bed. I can't say enough about this fabulous cream: try it out and let me know what you think!

30 weeks!!

The countdown is on now!! 10 weeks until the estimate date of arrival: YIPPEEEE!!!

It's official: I can't see my feet. Or maybe it has been official for awhile but I've just finally noticed.

I've had this belly ramp effect happening since the beginning and thought it would round out as time went on... apparently I thought wrong. It's kind of like I have an extra bump. I also thought I would gain a booty during pregnancy and that has yet to happen. I'm not complaining, just commenting!


We started our prenatal class this week and watched our first birth video - thankfully it wasn't as horrible as I imagined it would be and Mike said the same thing. Some people seem really surprised when I say I haven't seen a birthing video and I say WHY THE HELL WOULD I WANT TO WATCH A BIRTHING VIDEO JUST FOR KICKS?! Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

There are just two other couples in our class; both are total hippies and seem very sweet. Awkward moment: my lack of ability to hide my true feelings shone through when one of the girls decided to share with us how her friend who lives in the States BBQed part of her placenta "like a steak", made a smoothie out of a chunk of it and then buried the rest under a tree. What the hell?! Needless to say my mouth dropped open, I said something along the lines of "OH MY GOD" (I think it was out loud but it might have been a scream in my head) and then stared at her in utter horror. The second couple kept glancing at each other and smiling and I'm not sure whether they were trying not to laugh at my look of disgust or the story. The girl telling the story then assured us that she was NOT planning on BBQing her placenta. I managed to shut my mouth and stared at the instructor until I regained my composure - I was afraid to look at Mike for fear of bursting into uncontrollable giggles which would have been a) RUDE and b) very immature which of course I am not. hehe. When the baby arrives one of my rules is no dropping in without calling first so if you break the rule and show up without calling I'm liable to insist you stay for lunch... and guess what, I'll be BBQing something special.

I've been spending loads of time researching cloth diapers and I'm excited to have made a decision on how we're going to start this crazy adventure. There are SO many cloth diaper options available and it's all a little overwhelming; we really want to give this a go and I know things are going to be INSANE for the first couple months so we're going to use disposable for the first week or two and then we'll go with Bear Bottoms (a cloth diaper service in our area) for a month (thanks to a gift from my Mom & Dad - THANKS MOM AND DAD). While we're using the diaper service (they use fitted cloth diapers) we'll try out a few other styles/brands and figure out what is going to work best for us.

My hope is that Indian Prefolds from Green Mountain Diapers will work for us but of course we won't know until we try. Indian Prefolds are similar to the old skool cloth diapers but they are quilted to absorb more liquid and come in different sizes so you don't end up with a lot bulk. I've read loads of good reviews about these prefolds so fingers crossed!! I'll place an order for these in a couple weeks.

I spent hours this weekend researching diaper covers and have placed an order for three through Homestead Children's etsy shop; we'll need covers while using the diaper service so even if the prefolds don't work out for us and if we decide to go with All In Ones these covers will be put to good use and then we can sell them. I also found an AWESOME tutorial for cloth diaper covers with gussets that I'm going to try to work with in the not so distant future. If I can make my own covers that would be fabulous!

This post might have some of you yawning: sorry!! I could go on and on and on about cloth diapers because I've been reading about them FOREVER but I'll stop now because I have a baby ramming me in the ribs making it VERY difficult to type and it's time for bed anyways. Good night, everyone!

The nesting instinct is creeping in and when I'm not curled up in a ball on the couch I'm trying to get some things in order for our little guy. This weekend I finally made use of one of the bib patterns I've had bookmarked FOREVER. Chickpea Studio's pattern is perfect for tiny people and it's free so if you're looking for a pattern check it out.

Here are the bibs I whipped up for our guy, they were a SUPER easy and SUPER quick project.
The girlie bib is part of a shower gift.

The other little bit I made for Smidge is this change pad thanks to Homemade by Jill's easy to follow tutorial. I made some changes which I explain in more detail over at Gingham Skies if you're interested.

I'm looking forward to creating a few other things this weekend. Sewing for baby is the best kind of sewing.

Flicks Worth Watching

You might remember that I had a slightly humongous crush on Jim Sturgess after watching Across the Universe? The crush is alive and well so it was a treat to find that Jim was the star of Fifty Dead Men Walking. This is a stellar movie about an IRA informant that had both Mike and I glued to the screen.


Away We Go was recommended to me when I was on the hunt for a chick flick last month. The person who suggested it thought it would be especially fabulous for me to watch because I'm pregnant and so is one of the main characters (played by Maya Rudolph from Saturday Night Live). They were right, I LOVED this film and so did my friend Jessy. No this isn't a pregnant-viewers only film, guys would like too. It's a love story but it's also a quirky comedy.


Drew Barrymore directed the awesome movie Whip It starring Ellen Page (Juno). Drew Barrymore and Juliette Lewis are also in the film so of course it's fabulous! I'm going to the a local Roller Derby game this weekend thanks to this movie; if I was 14 years younger I think I'd be trying out for the derby after watching this. A feel good chick flick BUT not as predictable as you might think. Definitely check this one out!

Baby Bits from Fab Tutorials

I've been meaning to make some bibs for the baby and FINALLY got around to it on Saturday. I used Chickpea Sewing Studio's free pattern because I liked the size and shape. I would definitely recommend making bibs to beginner sewers, they're a super quick and easy project. These bibs are small so they'll be perfect starter bibs for our wee one.

I made a couple flannel front bibs with some sweet boy prints (backed with upcycled cotton from some of daddy's old plaid shirts so technically these are reversible).


And I made a few others with sweet cotton prints and backed them with a super soft furry fabric that will feel good against bare skin in the warmer months. The one on the right is not not for our little man, it's part of a shower gift. I made one of the bike print bibs for our man and one for his buddy Reid.

This is an easy project and a great way to use up some medium sized fabric scraps.

Tonight I finally got around to sewing one of Homemade by Jill's change pads which was featured during Made's Celebrate the Boy month. This was a fabulous tutorial and I have no doubt I'll make more of these change pads for shower gifts.

I made a few minor changes, some of which I'll stick with for future pads and some that I won't . I used 1/4 inch bias tape because that was what I had on hand and it was a bit tricky to deal with, next time I'll use the 1/2 inch tape that was recommended. If you're not sure how to work with bias tape Jill provides easy to follow directions in this tutorial.

I didn't use the suggested laminated cotton for the inside of the pad (part where baby lays), instead I used a soft vinyl which I will definitely use again. I like working with this vinyl and the texture isn't as grainy as laminate (I think it will feel better against baby's bare skin).

The tutorial suggested fusible fleece for some padding between the cotton exterior and the vinyl (laminate) layer but I improvised here and used what I had on hand (not sure what it's called but it's fairly plush and it worked well).

Excuse the crappy pictures, I wanted to post these tonight and the lighting was blech.


For creating the closure I didn't have proper belting so I used a couple pieces of white vinyl, I think I'll use belting in the future since it will hide the stitching around the velcro a little better but the vinyl worked okay.

I'm hoping to make a few more bibs this weekend and a few baby sleeper gowns too so hopefully I'll have some more goodies to share with you soon!

Gimme Gimme Gimme!!!

Ohhhhh I want, I want, I want, I WANT!! Thanks to decor8 for introducing me to a freaking fabulous UK shop called Cox & Cox.

I want all of the below, especially these:


Did you know I have a thing for office supplies. Sticky notes, paper clips, tape, pencil sharpeners: OH MY! This Mr. P Tape Dispenser is awesome and I want him.


And one other little bit from the site that I fell for: cookie cutters! Take note of the little cut out on the bottom of the butterfly: the perfect size to perch on the lip of a mug.


Pop over to Cox & Cox and check out all of the fab goods! Loads of great gift ideas.