Chatty Corner

High quality Sarashi-momen and Sashiko thread were made to last without fading after multiple washing. The more you wash, the softer it gets.
Sarashimomen is so durable and soft, it was used as a cloth diaper and maternity belly band.
Now commonly made into a dishtowel and handkerchief in Japan, Sashiko samplers are made to withstand daily washing. I thought it would be perfect to be made into a bib.
Best of all, 100% cotton is also gentle for baby's skin.

Digging through my piles of Sashiko sampler, I came across cute pattern ones, SC-0023. Thinking of some new ideas, I decided to spice up Sashiko pillow by adding raffled trims, and turning them into a bib and pillow set for a baby  and mommy.

For basic instruction on how to Sashiko click here.

For pillow:

To make the process easier, I only did Sashiko on printed side. Fold the edge of the stitched side about half an inch from the outer most Sashiko line, and pin the trim to the folded border  and determine the position. Open the border, and fold the Sashiko fabric in half right sides together.
Now Sashiko stitching and raffled trim should be folded inside. Pin couple places to secure all position and  sew around the folded line around the border leaving an opening for 12"x 12" pillow insert.

Flip the pillow around, squeeze the pillow insert in, close the opening and voila a cute pillow.

Bib:

For this bib, I wanted to be easy, durable and soft at the same time. Sashiko was originally applied to strengthen an worn out garmets.If I applied Sashiko to the whole bib, it would have been durable but would be time consuming.
So instead, I stitched the bear, tulips and hearts first, then fold the right sides together to sew around the borders.
After I turned it inside out, I stiched the rest of the border line and square piece for extra strongth.
So much easier and cuter end result.

I tucked two spots at top for better curve for baby's neck.

For the neck piece, I used pink ribbon and metal snap AK-11-10 in Silver. You can use two ribbons to tie in a baby's back but snap would be more practicle. If you can find any plastic snap that might be even better.

Now I'm off to making a set for a baby boy!