DIY Gauze Swaddle And A New Sewing Machine!

Echo and her new swaddle blanket. Also wearing a top I sewed for her using my old machine. 

Last year I purchased a used sewing machine at a Goodwill and began the task of teaching myself to sew. Well I've been having a blast sewing things for Echo and re-teaching myself sewing basics that I learned as a child and had forgotten and this Spring I decided that I was ready for an upgrade. I really loved my vintage machine but it did one and only one thing, it sewed in a straight line. Since I love using stretch fabrics and would like a machine that can handle them I decided I really needed something that could at least handle a zig zag stitch. After much research I ended up with a Brother Project Runway CS5055PRW (I'll admit it, I am a huge Project Runway fan!).

My new machine!

 My old machine had also started making a screeching noise so I knew it was time to get it serviced or else get a new one. I'm still learning so I didn't need anything too heavy duty but so far and I am beyond thrilled with this machine. It's super quiet so i won't wake Echo by sewing while she naps and the computerized controls make it easy to do overcast stitches, decorative stitches and button holes. The manual is also really helpful and easy to understand, I am learning so much from it!

Look at all the fancy stitches it does!

 For my first project on the new machine I stuck to something simple, a new swaddle blanket for Echo. I've mentioned before that Echo will not sleep unless she's swaddled. I've tried several times to break her of this but I eventually get too tired and give up. She will go to sleep just fine but then will only stay down for a few hours and then refuses to go back to sleep. It's not worth the struggle so she quickly gets swaddled again. The problem with this is that I guess most 9 month olds don't like being swaddled and they don't make swaddle blankets large enough for a baby her age. I really loved my Aden and Anais swaddles because of the light weight breathable fabric but they are expensive and don't come in large enough sizes for us.

To make my swaddle I ordered this cotton gauze fabric from amazon for $5.74 per yard. I got two yards of it and it should be plenty big enough for Echo for quite some time. The fabric is light weight, breathable, and perfect for summer! Then all I had to do was roll the hem over and sew it all the way around (using one of my new decorative stitches naturally).

Detail of the decorative stitching

It was nice to get a feel for my new machine with something so simple, now I feel ready to move on to bigger and better projects! Echo loves her new swaddle and has been sleeping really well with it. I just cant get her to sit still long enough to pose for a decent picture with it ;-)