DIY - Baby leggings/pants made from adult socks

Here is my photo explanation:

I learned how to do it from this site:
http://sew4bub.com/2011/07/11/5-minute-baby-and-toddler-leggings/

It really does take about 5 minutes.  If you sew by hand, it took me about 30 minutes. I got the socks at Burlington Coat Factory in a packet with 3 pairs for 4 dollars plus tax.  Heck of a deal.

Girly stuff

I am always looking for natural ways of dealing with things and, even at my "advanced age", with this pregnancy, I've got some girly stuff issues coming up.

I've explained to my husband that, even though a woman's periods aren't an issue during pregnancy, they really don't stop--they are still there, just waiting waiting waiting and that there will likely be several weeks of it as a "new-parent-gift".  He made a face that said "horror" and then quickly recovered and said, well, it is all natural.  Yeah.  No matter how natural it is, I still am feeling the horror.

I have had some allergic reactions to some of the disposable paper products over the years.  (Tender bits are NOT where you want to develop a contact-reaction!!!) and have been restricted in what I could use because of that.  In a pinch, I have--like all women--used wads of toilet paper or old wash cloths or whatever was available.  (When I travel, I like to use NuvaRing that I piggy back each 3 weeks to prevent the issue entirely.)  I've also tried the Instead cup but I think that I might be a bit different anatomically because it didn't work for me at all (on ultrasound, it appears that I might have a retrograde uterus--perhaps that has something to do with it). 


I have been interested in making my own girly stuff pads for some time and have looked online at various options. While pregnant, I can't really test them for true practicality but I can test them for comfort.  Well, not entirely true--I have gone back to the puking again and I am always fearful that I will pee my pants from the force of it, so I might really get to test them. Hopefully not, though.

Here's the wetbag sewing vid: Sew a wetbag in 2 minutes   Use a polyester zipper--not cotton-it wicks.

 Here is my experience so that you can explore for yourself while learning from my

Common issues:

A.)  Jersey knit is the kind if underwear that I wear and I could not feel any difference whatsoever in having this on versus having only undies.  I have NEVER before not been aware of a pad until now.

B.)  The Eeeewwwww! Factor--If you get some blood on your regular underwear, do you freak out?  No.  You wash them.  No biggie.  Why is this any different?  Duh.  If you got a nosebleed all over a black sweater, would you trash that?  Nope--you'd wash it.  Why is this any different?  Duh.  If you got blood on your towel from a nasty shaving accident, would you trash that?  Nope--you'd wash it.  Why is this any different?  Duh!  Etc.  Grow up and get real.

C.)  Website:   Moldy tampon fresh out of the package
What can I say except:  Ewww.  Ewww. Ewwwww. EEEEEEWWWWWWWW!!!!!
If I ever buy any tampons again, I will be sure they are the O.B. brand that are not hidden inside an applicator that could prevent me from not using something like this.

Projects:

1.) Finally, I bit the bullet this past week with and attempt at making some that seemed logical, reasonable, and practical.
The site: http://empowerwomeninafrica.com/
The link to the tutorial:  https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B1V7eRClUEW4TzFGd2VTQ0wyV3M/edit

I was excited and thought this would be great to try out and then send some on to the charity.  I did not expect these to be horrible for me.  The idea is to have a base that is used to hold an easily washed/dried foldable insert.  The problem for me was that the insert did not stay in the base when I went to pee.  It would stick to ME!  And in my third trimester, I don't always have time to wait--I ended up peeing all over the damned thing and barely kept it from dropping in the commode.

I had already made up several and all went into the trash.  I would only offer these to someone I despise.

2.)  http://www.sleepingbaby.net/jan/Baby/PADS.html

The lower ones are what I made except that I didn't leave them foldable--I stitched them together. they are rectangles--two layers of old tank-top cut 9 inches square, slit in the middle of one layer, turned, folded to hide the turning-slit, stitched down, backed with PUL and tabbed.  I made two and it was hard going with my sewing machine--I will try these first two out this weekend and then either make more or make them like these--to fold up.  (The PUL is from JoAnn's in the three pack for making baby stuff--Normally the 3 cuts are 15$ but we used the 1/2 off coupon and this is the left over parts from cutting some diaper covers.  I turned the kiddie prints to the inside because, frankly, it is just weird for me to have little cowboys and robots on my girly stuff.)

 3.)  I made one that is foldable.  A square that was slit in the middle for turning, backed with PUL (covering the turning slit) with a couple of wings sewn under the PUL with a snap to fasten it.  This was a great idea but not cool whatsoever to wear.  It is just weird to have the layers open up when you are rushing to pee.  Then the wings held together but the thing was sliding backward towards my butt.  Not cool.  Not cool at all.  I went ahead and put a row of stitches across it at both ends to keep it together last night.  I am so glad I am only making one of each kind now and not stuck with a bunch of awful ones that SEEM like a good idea but don't work for me.

4.) An issue I am having is with the item sliding when I am trying pull my undies up or down.  The PUL doesn't give any resistance so perhaps I need to cover that.  I made one long rectangle that was 6 layers of jersey and 2 layers of terry  (one square sewn, turned, with 2 layers of old towel in the middle section, then folded into 3rds, backed with PUL) .  It is without any holder of any kind and is more comfortable than others.   It is also a bit longer.  That one so far is most comfy.  But still not what I am looking for.

The adventure continues....
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Update: January 7, 2014

I have almost no need for these items since our baby breastfeeds on demand.   Most of these that I made have ended up being used for doublers in the cloth diapers. 

Baby stuff-What we've got, what we need, what we think would be cool

Edit:  May 2, 2013
Edit: January 7, 2014  What I wish I knew when I made this list.  Baby is 7 months old.

All of this is still pretty overwhelming but we think we have begun to figure some practical things out.   The Toys-R-Us  online registry was recommended by a couple of folks but the website was sloppy and not particular user-friendly.  Plus we received a wedding gift that was purchased there--it was defective and just needed to be exchanged.  They refused. I never, ever intend to support this company ever again.  There are too many other businesses that DO care about customer service!
 Amazon is much better.  It is easy to see and look over and the options of related items are really neat to see.  I have now returned to TRU and BRU at different locations and have had great experiences. 

BabyRegistry:  http://www.amazon.com/registry/baby/RR9FZ737TC5Y

We've got:
37 bibs  We use them like crazy!  Snaps on them is wayyy better than velcro.  If you are sewing some, I'd recommend it.  The Velcro destroys things in the wash.
2 pairs of sandals and 2 pairs of sneakers
Several newborn-3 month sized clothes, onsies, full-coverage do-hickeys, some shirts, some pants
30+ burp cloths  Used like crazy for about 5 months, now used often
8 AIO newborn diapers (cloth diapers that are self contained)  These were perfect and then, once outgrown, used without the insert all summer as swim diapers.  Don't buy too many--they do outgrow them in a couple of months.  The bigger all-size diapers were really too big until then.
Some cloth diapers without covers-experimental ones I have sewn from internet patterns to try out.
3 pairs of breast pads  I never really leaked.  We use these in the cloth diapers that absorb slowly.  If the diaper is advertised as being designed to keep your baby feeling dry, expect that it will absorb s-l-o-w-l-y.  If you kid pees a bunch at once, it can overwhelm the slowness.  These along with some pad doublers solved the problem.
One drop-in bottle  You can use the Lanisoh bags in these just like the old-style Playtex nursers.
2 Complete outfits for baby 3 month sized
3 complete outfits for babies 6 month sized
3 outfits for babies 1 year sized
8 Regular receiving blankets
6 Keepsake receiving blankets  The blankets were used like crazy and are still used when we go out.  He stopped liking to be swaddled at about 5 months.
Bathing towel-apron Kind of handy.  We still use it sometimes.
3 belly bands for supporting his navel (Peruvian baby fashion)  PITA
Convertible carseat  Baby HATED this and driving was torture for me.  At 3 months, I bought an infant seat that he still uses.  It immediately made all the difference and I could see his head in the carseat mirror
20+ Reusable cloth baby wipes  We use them all the time.
5 pairs of baby socks  Most baby socks suck.  The only brand that stays on is Robeez Kick-Proof. They're cute and He could not get them off at all until he was 7 months old.  It began to be his mission in life at 2 months to try--first by rubbing one foot on the other and then later by pulling. 
Baby pacifier medicine-giver
Baby bottle medicine-giver
6 pairs of socks
4 med sized onsies
year sized outfit with matching bib
Nose frida
Contoured changing pad for a changing table (We plan to use the dryer as our changing table)  Great item.  I made a designer cover that was perfect until we bought a really perfect Halo cover that has "wings" to swaddle the baby.  He started rolling over at 2 months and this made it much easier to diaper him.
Swing  Baby didn't care for it after the first month.
Lidded (baby-food) ice tray  Winner!
1 bottle of baby sunblock
Baby teether
A few baby books :) 
     Pooh and Eeyore
     Animal Babies
     Are You My Mother?
     Animal Colors
Some wooden letter/number blocks
A noisy toy (I couldn't resist--it was on sale and looks like fun!)  WINNER!
Snappi -5  Unnecessary for us.  My husband hated them. The most practical fold for us was just to twist it and use the cover to hold the flat or prefold.
          What is and how to use a Snappi - You'll laugh!
Glass bottles  WINNER!
Flat diapers - cotton, bamboo, or hemp -6
Prefolded diapers - 5
Plastic lidded bin for soiled cloth diapers plus two sized zippered wetbags for this  We put a big brick under this to raise the height.  It works alright but we'd prolly get a regular trashcan with a lid in the future.
Car seat hanging organizer for stuff that is handy to have in the truck 
Pacifiers  He only liked the one-piece hospital kind and loved them for about 3 months then only chewed on them after that.
An umbrella stroller with adjustable handles--With traditional umbrella strollers, the height is for very, very short people and anyone who is normal sized will get a backache quickly. Giant strollers that are huge and take up all the space where you are trying to use them are horrible and usually (IMHO) just to show off when used indoors.  If it can't be lifted one-handed, it is impractical.  Just now starting to use this.  We used carriers/wraps most of the time before.
Real Nappies sample pack
booster seat (high chair)  We finally bought a real high chair.  The little one is not so practical.
sun shades
Baby hangers (for clothes, not the baby-ha!)  We really like these.
Beanie monkey
7 onsies
Pacifier cuddler  WINNER!
Very cool skull romper 
3 pretty diaper/burp cloths
Floaty-spinny-bath-ball-toys  WINNER!
Gift certificate-Amazon
Gift certificate-Amazon
Gift certificate - Wal-mart
Contoured changing pad for a changing table (We plan to use the dryer as our changing table)
Breast pads  Hate these!  They somehow flipped over in my bra and I ended up with the sticky side against my skin.  The ones I made were much more comfy.
Bottle brush  Get one with a nipple brush, too.
Waterproof diaper covers  (5) in newborn size
Cotton toy ball
Baby pants-2
Baby gowns-4 (These were awesome when Isaac was tiny--he loved kicking at them with his legs and stretching in them--I made some cool ones from old T-shirts)
4 swim diapers/ covers
Wetbags (Washable waterproof zipper bags to put used diapers in when we are on the go)  2 is enough for us.  Bright red makes them visible.  Don't expect the daycare to have a clue.


We need:  (Used stuff/garage sale items are fine--we are big on recycling and appreciate extended-use items)

Waterproof diaper covers (3 or 4) in bigger sizes
Breast pump  (I've been bidding on eBay for this one--I am determined to get it for around 40$ instead of the new price of 125$!)  I ended up with 4--I'll make a specific post about this.
Changing pad - washable/foldable for on the go  Winner!
Baby sunblock
Baby first aid kit / meds
More socks
Back seat mirror to see the baby in his car seat from my own rear-view mirror  Gotta have detachable headrests for these--ggggrrrrr......
Pacifiers  (We'd like a few different ones so that he is accustomed to sucking on different shapes and won't freak at the bottle so much when I go back to work)
Pacifier clip - 3 or 4  The ones available to buy these days suck.  The suspender clips do NOT stay on more than a few seconds.  I make good ones as baby gifts now.
Breast milk storage bags to freeze Lanisoh!


We'd like:
A traditional play pen--they aren't sold any more so it would have to be found in someone's attic or garage  Graco Pack-n-Play is perfect. Cosco is a PITA. Get the good one. Really.
Gerber Graduates rest easy spoons--these are highly recommended.
Baby buddy 1st toothbrush  At 6 months, he started enjoying this and it gets use every day.
Red Cross nail clipper with magnifying glass (My eyes aint so hot these days)  Meh.  The magnifier didn't help and any small clippers are just as good.
Baby toys that aren't just colored plastic
Drop in bottles to use with the milk bags

We don't want:
Diaper pins
Dreft-laundry soap (We mix up our own laundry soap)
Diaper rash cremes or ointments--These ruin cloth diapers Coconut oil is perfect!



We plan to make:
Mei tais (2 or 3) baby carriers  Winner!
T-shirts

Baby Sewing/Tutorial projects/links - All grouped together

This post became an ongoing project that grew and grew and grew.

Sooooo....  I put it on its own page. 

Go here. Yep, that's right, just click on these words. These words right here.