I have been a busy volunteer-Ombudsman, full-time-student mama lately. . . and crafty mama has not disappeared, but she’s been slowed down a bit.

Projects have gone on the back burner. Only the really vital projects that I’m creating for my family lately have actually gotten done. And I have a growing short-list of Silly Bear Handmade custom orders from friends. Plus baby and big sister/big brother gifts that I made for my family members that I have neglected to ship. Whoops!

I have, however, still been making progress at being crafty!

Here’s what I have been up to lately.

Knitted Wristwarmers

I have been enjoying knitting these wristwarmers (aka fingerless gloves) for about a month now, and they are finally finished! I started and ripped out the project three or four times before I chose a pattern that I loved and made the correct alterations to it to make it work for me.

I ended up using the Fetching knitting pattern to make these wrist warmers, and I added a few inches to the cabling portion to extend the length of them. I have long arms and none of my coats hit my wrist where they should. This used to not matter when I lived in Texas, but now that I am a transplanted New Englander, it matters so much! Cold wrists and blustery wind going up your coat sleeves . . . yikes! Not ok!

Next, I’m planning on knitting a coordinating hat for the winter ahead, using the same yarn that I used for the wristwarmers. Now, I am knitting a coordinating slouchy cabled hat. More on that in my next Crafty Mama Monday.

I’m also planning on knitting the Silly Bears and nieces and nephews some wool gloves using the Easily Adjustable Knitted Glove Pattern from They Are All Of Me.

But for now, $1 mittens from the Joann’s dollar section work just fine.

Night Time Diapers

This summer, I ordered some Maiden Mills Windpro fleece from a destash album on Facebook, with the intention of finally taking the advice of my fellow diaper sewers and making Joseph a FLEECE night time diaper instead of one waterproofed by PUL or using wool at night (neither of which were working for us).

The diapers I made work fabulously through the night, and I fully intend to make more and list them for sale in my Silly Bear Handmade shop. (Stocking is coming SOON and there will be a $10 diaper sale for the first 24 hours. . . so watch the SBH Facebook Page for sneak peeks and updates!)

Joseph used to wake up smelling like ammonia and having wet PJs and a red butt from contact with all the pee during the night. The fleece night time diapers I created for him eliminate these problems. It’s so wonderful!

I am in the process of writing a photo tutorial on how I made these fleece night time pocket diapers, so that those of you who would like to sew one for a Silly Bear in your life can do so with ease and enjoy the benefits.

They are wonderful! It’s one of those “why didn’t I do this sooner!?” moments. You can view a detailed description and all the photos of the diaper here –> Introducing the Silly Bear Handmade Night Time Fleece Pocket Diaper!!!!!!

I am so thrilled that I finally have a diaper that hands down works for nights. Wish I could have sewn it sooner!

Bedroom Curtains

Back in the summer, I made blackout curtains for Abbey and Joseph’s room, and wrote a photo tutorial to teach you how to make them yourself.

A dear friend asked me to help her with curtains for her 7-year-old’s room. She couldn’t find anything in the stores that thrilled her, so she gave me the free reign to come up with what I could to please her daughter’s taste and coordinate with the quilt that she had. She didn’t need black out curtains, so I sewed some simple cotton curtains for her that her daughter loves!

What have YOU been creating for YOUR family recently? 

Is there anything you have been eye-ing or keeping on a Pinterest page that you’d love to create, but you’re slightly timid to try? 

I’d love to connect with you about sewing, knitting, and creating for the family. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!