Playing with the pages

Here's my girl playing with the pages, while I'm adding more stitches to the drawstring bag page. I'm paranoid like that, keep feeling that it'll fall apart and adding stitches along the seams again and again. My girl can't resist playing with the completed pages whenever she sees them.

Sick

Back at work yesterday... sad, why is my maternity leave used up so soon?!

The haze was back over the weekend and yesterday. Both of my girls and myself are unwell. My little baby's having congested nose and coughing, so today I brought her to the family doctor and took childcare sick leave. I also had a consultation with the doctor and have my own share of meds for my congested nose and sore throat.

I should be napping and recuperating in the afternoon, but I have a new addiction.

I still can't believe i hand stitched every single one of these... and i went through the stitches twice some more, just to make sure they won't fall apart easily...

Back pocket with a wallet

This is my own idea!! :D

Glad my elder girl's cooperative today. I couldn't finish the entire thing as it takes time for the glue to dry and I'm gluing and clamping bit by bit.

It's a back pocket with a wallet! This will be the back cover of the quiet book that I'm making.

Inside the "wallet", there are 4 pictures - family photo with hubby's folks, family photo with my folks, photo of the two girls together and a picture of their respective Chinese names - printed, laminated and glued into the wallet before I stitch it up ^^

Wardrobe in my quiet book

Wanted to make a wardrobe for my dress-up doll page, so I free-hand sketched it on the felt with the brown marker that I have, then I cut it, pasted it and stitched it up.

Now I just need to find those mini pegs I have.

Ouch

Doing the counting pages...

Stitching, knotting, n putting glue on the knots. Hopefully making them more secure??

I hate accidents :( especially when I'm rushing and had to stop until I'm sure I won't stain the felt with blood... sigh, that's a good long scratch by the tip of the needle...

And what happened when I get too impatient... luckily it's on the back. I better stop for a while.

This beads seem to be too heavy. Now I'm worried they'll pull the strings out, although I've secured the strings by sewing through them and knotting them with strings that I sewed through the felt as well. I'm just feeling too paranoid now, but it'll be troublesome to remove the stitches I've painstakingly done and redo everything again.

Obsession

I'm obsessed but I shall stop for now (maybe make her some shoes and hair accessory add-ons later)... it's 1:30A.M.!

This is not enough... so I made more clothes for her...

Before hubby went to bed, he reminded me that if I kept on making clothes for her, I'll never get to move on to the next page. *oops* Anyway each item here has two sides. ^^ and I'm not done stitching the long-sleeved one...

Felt doll

Before and after... nope, I'm not voodooing! :P

Today's progress. This is fun~ ^^

Apple tree

Idea vs reality.

Was rushing as have spent most of the day adding the final touches to the little tokens of appreciation for my girl's teachers. Didn't print or sketch any template for this; just cutting freely and glad everything comes together nicely.

Wanted to stitch in the woven effect on the basket but yucks, fail. Ended up actually weaving the felt. Happy that it all comes together nicely now. ^^

Today's accomplishments

I'm very very excited with today's progress!!!

A little bag made from my original idea.

Sewing up the entire bag while my girl's napping ^^

My quiet book accomplishments so far - two pages, entirely hand-sewn!

My baby's cooperative today. Managed to stitch a couple of apples... made use of the scrap pieces of felt for the back and "stuffing" of the apples ^^

This quiet book project is beginning to be addictive... I just can't stop making them~ I love it!

Flowers

2 days ago, I met some mummies at Serangoon NEX and since I was early, I went shopping at Popular Bookstore and bought these.

Now, I better start working on this quiet book project!

Yesterday.

Working on the first flower.

Just stitched on the first button!

My accomplishments yesterday!

And today! ^^

This is what happens when i tried to cut a flower free hand, with no pattern drawn for it... totally outta shape (>__<) but somehow, I love how unique it looks. ^^

The next 3 shall be 5-petal flowers ^^ sketching the pattern.

Yes, it's completed!

Finally, one page down~ Woohoo!!

Cutting alphabets and numbers

Slow start... but definitely getting started!!

I didn't download any template. Instead, I used Powerpoint text art, blew up the font, printed out and traced onto the adhesive backs of these adhesive felt before cutting. I didn't print all the alphabets as this page is for spelling their names. 

I saved the Powerpoint slide as an image then flipped it horizontally to get it laterally inverted, so I can trace onto the back of the adhesive felt. When I cut them out, they will be on the correct side. Then I did the tracing the old-school way, by shading with pencil on the back and tracing over.

The outline of the alphabets or numbers will be transferred onto the back of the adhesive felt via the old-school tracing method . If it's not clear, I'll outline with pen again.

Yay, numbers done before I head out for high tea with my baby and my girlfriends ^^

More materials

I hope I'm definitely making the quiet book happen... because I've spent a lot on the materials. Went shopping at Daiso today again and look how much materials I've bought!

These are all the materials from when my toddler girl was a new born and from today's shopping spree at Daiso. I think I've spent S$20 on felt alone, and another S$20 on other materials such as zips, beads and velcro fasteners.

Quiet book project

I have been reading up on the Montessori method and I was so intrigued I wanted to make little toys that can engage my girl in some play-based learning activities, especially on training her motor skills. I bought materials (felt, pompoms, wooden clothes pegs, etc) for making them since my toddler girl was a new born baby but I procrastinated on making them actually happen.

Recently, there's been a growing trend (or craze) of mummies making quiet books in Singapore. I read up about quiet books and it wasn't a new thing in some other countries, but it's definitely is very new to me! Coincidentally, the materials I bought could be used to make a simple quiet book. I'm once again intrigued, this time by this quiet book trend, and I want to try make one myself. But procrastination got the better part of me again and it took me so long to finally try to get started today. And hopefully I can do something with the materials I have before the end of my maternity leave.

I joined the Quiet Book Singapore Group on Facebook!

Sketching out what I have in mind for each page of the quiet book I'm planning for... hopefully I can make them happen!

Some of the materials I have at home. Yes, it's time to start!!