When the lovely Stacey from Boy Oh Boy Oh Boy asked me to participate in her Typography Series, I couldn’t resist. I’m a real typography buff, and a big fan of Stacey’s blog too!
My original plan was to make a simple bag with some text on it, but I actually don’t really need more bags. What I do need, however, are some extra bibs. I think I have around 20 of them, but as my youngest daughter Ava eats like a pig – an uncivilized and clumsy pig, to be more precise – the bib drawer always gets empty in no time. Could also have to do with the fact that I like sewing more than I like doing the laundry, of course. And aren’t pigs like, the cutest animals on earth?
Enter the plan to make a quick bib with some text on it. Soon, however, my creativity started running wild a bit, and so I ended up with a free pattern, tutorial and 6 printables. And with an even bigger pile of laundry.
I thought it would be funny to make bibs with food-related idioms on them. The English language is full of these lovely idioms, so it wasn’t hard to find a few. In line with this, and because the bibs are really easy to make, I decided to name the pattern the Piece of Cake Bib. Ain’t I hilarious.
The bibs sew up in no time, as they do not have bias binding all the way around (only at the neck line). I also made sure that they are very practical:
– they are nice and large (we want our kids’ garments to stay clean below the chest too, don’t we?)
– but I also included a smaller version (in case you have smaller left-overs in your fabric stash)
– they have adjustable straps, so that you can fit them nicely along baby’s neck (kamsnap bibs never seem to cover the neck line well, and the neck lines of the clothes always get dirty).
These bibs are a nice last-minute baby shower gift, and a great project for all your fabric left-overs. They are also reversible.
The fabrics I used are Kobayashi double gauze cottons from Miss Matatabi. They’re supersoft and they wash up well – perfect for bibs! You can find them here in many different colors. I also made the bias for the straps from these fabrics. For the back I used organic terrycloth.
The pattern
The bib pattern consists of 2 pdf pages which you need to print (on A4 or Letter Size sheets) and assemble. Make sure to print at 100% (check the 1 inch / 3 cm test square).
The printables
I used 6 different food idioms with illustrations which you can transfer to the bibs. They are included in the same pdf file as the pattern. I put two texts and illustrations per sheet (to save you transfer paper) and they have already been mirrorred (as you always have to print the mirror image on transfer paper). This is what they look like:
The tutorial
Supplies
– Tall bib: One piece of fabric for the front of at least [12.25″ x 10.25]” or [31 x 26 cm] (height x width)
Small bib: One piece of fabric for the front of at least [10″ x 9″] or [25 x 23 cm] (height x width)
– One piece of fabric for the back with these same dimensions (you can use regular cotton fabric, but you could also try terry cloth, or maybe water-resistant fabric)
– A piece of bias binding of around 30″ or 75 cm
– Iron-on transfer paper
Instructions
1. Take your assembled bib pattern, and cut one from the front fabric, and one from the back fabric.
2. Print out the printables on iron-on transfer paper, cut them out, and press them onto the front piece. Follow the instructions which come with your transfer paper carefully.
3. Put front and back piece with right sides together, and stitch all around the bib’s edge with a 3/8″ (1 cm) seam allowance – only keep the neck line open.
4. Reduce the seam allowance, turn right side out, and press. Depending on your preferences, you can also topstitch the edges.
5. Next, pin the middle of the opened bias tape onto the middle of the neck line. Make sure to pin the right side of the bias onto the wrong side of the neck line,. Sew along the fold.
6. Fold the bias over to the right side of the bib’s neck line, and secure with a few pins. The edge of the bias should cover the original row of stitches by about 1/8″ (3 mm).
7. Take one end of your bias tape, at cut off the tip as illustrated in the picture below. Open the bias, and make a little cut down the middle fold. Next, fold down the tip, and press (or pin). Repeat these steps for the other end of the bias.
8. Continue topstitching all the way from the left to the right end, including the neck line. You’re done!
The give-aways
#1. Everyday this series runs, Stacey is giving away a great typography-related prize. Make sure to head over to her blog to enter and win some gorgeous fabrics!
#2. I now have a new hobby: turning my collection of fabric left-overs into a collection of bibs 🙂
Number one is a bib in one of my favorite Nani Iro fabrics ever (Fuwari Fuwari in ink blue):
However, I have many more beautiful fabric left-overs than I could ever turn into bibs, so I decided to give away a pack of 9 pieces (more than big enough to make the large bib). Simply use the Rafflecopter widget below to give Stacey and me some social media love. Good luck!
