As I was going through a lot of my project photos in preparation for the Owl Nursery Reveal post, I realized that I made quite a bit of STUFF in preparation for little He-Man’s arrival! While I loved every single minute of my first-baby sewing and crafting (and wouldn’t trade those hours of nesting and preparations for anything)…I realize NOW that there were some things that I spent precious hours and precious fabric on, and never really used them! So today, I thought I would round up my 5 best things to make for baby, and 5 that aren’t worth the time or effort!

I am by no means a “seasoned Mom.” After all, my He-Man is only 10 months old and I still have lots of learning to do. But for whatever it’s worth, to whomever is out there…here are 5 projects that weren’t worth my time or fabric, and 5 that totally were!

5 projects that were NOT a good use of my time or material!

1. The Nursing Cover! This was one of the very first items I made, convinced that it was on my “absolute necessity” list. I even purchased a pattern for this one (shame on me, there are so many free tutorials out there!). Turns out I used this only a handful of times. My baby hated to have his head covered while feeding, and I soon found out that a cardigan sweater with a swaddling blanket draped across worked just as well, if not better! Although fun, this bright-patterned cover also screamed out “look at me, I’m feeding my baby!” LOL!

2. Fabric-Embellished Burp Cloths! When I looked around the web for “cute” burp cloth ideas, I was super excited to found these. Not only were they fun and easy to make, but I just loved the “way cute” factor. Unfortunately, although they looked awesome, the cotton fabric on top really affected the absorbability of the cloth diaper underneath…in fact, the cotton fabric practically prevented absorption. I learned very quickly (especially in the early days of a new baby), these were NOT the burp cloths to reach for…shucks…

3. The Crib Bumper! Ahh…the crib bumper. I must have read at least one thousand times that crib bumpers were not recommended for safety and SIDS prevention. Still, for some reason, I was hell-bent on making one…and not just any one…a pretty detailed one with two fabrics and piping detail. This was a long project (because there were 6 of them) and took up a ton of fabric, and we only put it in the crib a few times…AND when the baby wasn’t in it! I thought I would put the bumper in for naps or during the day (almost like “making the bed”). Ha…that never happens. The bumper is now stored under the crib, folded up, and not used at all….So sad, because it is so cute. I should have headed all those warnings from experienced Momma’s that I didn’t need one!

4. Toy Blocks! When it comes to some things, I can have a “More is Better” versus “Less is Better” mentality..ESPECIALLY when it comes to cute fabrics and baby things! I made 3 very cute 8″ stuffed blocks and just loved the way they turned out. Then I found this picture, and went to town making more and more stuffed blocks in all sorts of shapes and sizes. I learned two things with this project. First, more is NOT better…the novelty of these blocks didn’t last long with baby. And second, you need foam blocks (not cotton stuffing) to make these blocks stackable and hold their shape. I kept the original 3 blocks…the rest are out in the garage sale pile. Boo.

5. The Crib Skirt! This is another project that took a TON of time and a TON of fabric for very little pay off. I mentioned before that I made this skirt before we bought our crib. When we picked out a crib with rails almost to the floor, the adorable crib skirt got very lost. Then, recently, we dropped down the crib to its lowest setting, and the crib skirt is too long, so we took it off completely. Now, I do have every intention of hemming it because I like the dose of color…but still…this is a project that I wouldn’t have spent nearly the time agonizing over.

5 projects that were completely worth it!

1. The Foldable Changing Pad! I bought this pattern too, and it was totally worth it. Although I could have figured it out myself, this was a quick and easy project and all I had to do was follow the directions. I love that the diapers and wipes are connected to the changing pad, so they don’t get lost in the Diaper Bag Abyss. We take this everywhere we go – I LUV this thing! The only change I would make is that we never use the vinyl side, so it wasn’t worth the headache of sewing with it!

2. Car Seat Cover! I bought this pattern too (I know, I know…this was before I discovered the world of free online tutorials!), and I think was the very first project I made. Although a blanket does the exact same thing, I found the velcro tabs indispensable in wind and rain! When the baby was very young, I took all my walks with him in his seat covered with this cover. Air was able to flow in through the sides, and I could make quick peeks without disrupting the whole thing! I still keep it in the bottom of the diaper bag for rainy days!

3. Lots of Burp Cloths! Okay, so ignore the burp cloths on the left because I just told you how much I didn’t like them! Nonetheless, I was so thankful to have 18 burp cloths in my stash. I thought I went a little overboard at first, but once the baby was born and we were doing laundry strictly to wash burp cloths, I was glad we had so many. The middle ones, with the ribbon detail, were my favorite! Cute and absorbable.

4. Changing Pad Covers X2! I mentioned this in my last post, but I was SO glad I made two of these changing pad covers. Not only did I like the designated place to put baby’s head (not that big of a deal to many people probably, but my husband is a lefty and would change the baby the other way if he didn’t have a visual reminder!!). Making two was key: when one went in the laundry…I had another one at the ready!

5. Hooded Towel! I didn’t include this in my original post, but I made this hooded towel using directions from my favorite web site, Sew4Home. It was super easy to make! Using matching fabric to the baby’s room, it turned out adorable. We use this towel EVERY NIGHT…I wish I had made two of this also! It’s not size specific, so it worked with a newborn, and it will probably work until he’s 45 years old (well…depending on how big his head gets…and if he still wants to use his baby towel as a middle-aged man!). I loved that it wasn’t an animal or gimmick-y. Just a simple hooded towel for baby!

So there you have it! 5 projects I wouldn’t make again, and 5 projects I would. I had some other things that would make the “would make again” list (like the mobile, the laundry bag, and the crib sheets), but these are my top 5!

Anyone else in the same boat? Are there things you found you needed or didn’t need once the baby arrived?

Have a great week!

Megan Signature

You can now see some of my favorite baby projects from across these years below:

See the full owl nursery here:

Henrys-Owl-Room-2-0011

Get my favorite burp cloth tutorial here:

Terry and Flannel Burp Cloths

Get the details on the hooded baby towel here:

Hits and Misses - Kid Edition | Hooded Bath Towel

See You Soon!
Megan