Oh, Baby!

I LOVE baby stuff! EVERYTHING is cuter when it's teeny tiny! I often find myself wandering through the rows of super-soft minature clothing...even when I have absolutely NO reason to buy any of it. However, as I mom I also fully appreciate a practical baby gift. Having a hundred precious pink dresses all hanging in the nursery is fun, but they won't help me one bit at mealtime, bathtime, bedtime, or travel time. When it comes down to it, I really NEED those baby essentials that I will use everyday!

Burp cloths are a great practical gift that can be personalized, turning a boring baby necessity into an adorable keepsake. My babies turned spitting up into an extreme sport, so I went through those bad boys by the dozens...I actually switched to using heavy duty cloth diapers and hand towels for burp cloths and still their clothes (and mine) were wet practically all the time.

When I found out that a friend was going to become a mom at the end of June, I finally had an excuse to try my hand at burp cloths. She has chosen not to find out the sex of the baby, so I got my creative juices flowing and came up with a couple of gender-nuetral designs.

 I think the key to giving an embroidered gift is to make it as personalized as possible. Using the recipient's name is always a great idea, but it's also important to think about the person's interests, favorite sports teams, favorite colors, etc. Anything you can do to make the item one-of-a-kind will make it even more special. In this case, I didn't know the baby's name - or even gender - so that added an additional challenge when designing a unique gift. I do know mom and dad are Pirate fans, so I couldn't go wrong with a little ECU flair! :)

The family's last name is Morgan, so I used an "M" firecracker applique as well...now baby will be set for all his/her 4th of July festivities.

The nursery is themed after Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit, so I am working through one more design that may turn into a blanket or something. Stay tuned!!!