Fun Hats, I mean, Sun Hats

So, come September, I will be an aunt. Unfortunately I have just been idling away these last seven months by not making anything for my little nephew. That changed yesterday when I started making sunhats for the kid. He is going to need quite the collection as a new resident of sunny Orlando, Fl.

I chose to use the "Sprinkles Sunhat" pattern from Sweet Booties!: And Blankets, Bonnets, Bibs, & More by Valerie Van Arsdale Shrader (say that ten times in a row!). This book is filled with about thirty different baby/toddler patterns. The best part: it is not filled with things just for little girls. I cannot tell you how many times I have looked online and in stores for good baby boy patterns only to be bombarded with oodles and oodles of dresses for little girls. Whenever I open up to the baby section of a pattern book, it screams "Girls Only! No Boys Allowed!". Plus, I can feel the pink from the pages attempt to hypnotize me: "You will follow socially accepted gender norms!" My sister has refused to accept any boy things with sports or trucks. Instead, she is going for an animal theme.

I have only made the sunhat pattern from this book and I found it extremely Sewer Slut-friendly. After a minor hiccup on the first hat (sewing the inner edge of brim, when should have sewn the outer) and a minor hiccup on the last hat (missed one layer when basting four together), these four hats came together with relative ease. They are lined and the inner brim is finished with bias tape. I made one of each size (NB, S, M, L) and demonstrated, once again, incontrovertible proof that I have the smallest head in the universe (my head fit the medium size!). They do seem a little large for babies, but as I have no baby at hand to test this theory, I am going to go with my small head theory instead

I used mostly printed cottons for all of the hats except for the blue one, the outer layer of which is made out of corduroy with a red velvet ric-rac trim. I love the "Little Shark/Big Shark" fabric, so I was glad to see it take the form of something besides an apron, which is what I have been itching to make with it. The duck and bubbles fabric was a gift, so I was glad to put that to use as well. I have yet to add the chin ties with velcro closures, because I am fresh out of velcro.

So this marks the start of my baby(thing)-making craze. I still want to make bibs, diaper covers, burp cloths, and a diaper bag. If you have any suggestion for diaper bags, please let me know. I read one review of the one I've chosen, but the review was completely negative. The shower is in August. Wish me luck!