Did you know 26th September is the most popular day for a baby to be born.

Now I hear you ask why? Work it back nine months.... that’s right Christmas! The week leading up to and over the Christmas period is the most popular time conceive (I’m blaming the sherry!!)

So the next month is the perfect time to be putting those baby makes into production. You might not know to gender of the new arrival, but this does not need to stop you creating.

With hats, booties, blankets, cardigans and so much more you maybe a little baffled where to start.

If you are new to crochet or knitting I would stick to something easy. A pram blanket, is a great way to build your yarn confidence. There are so many free and easy patterns available all you need to worry about is the yarn you use. Something soft is ideal, remember it’s going to be close to baby’s skin. There a few I would recommend…

Sirdar snuggle baby bamboo, a really nice baby soft yarn, with bamboo, giving it a natural breathable feel. Sirdar snuggly baby bamboo can be found here.

West Yorkshire Spinners bo peep is a British produced wool with a blend of nylon, this one speaks quality, luxury and washes really well.  WYS bo peep luxury baby dk can be found here. 

Stylecraft do a nice baby dk, in a range of pastel shades, this one is a is a great yarn and great price too.  Stylecraft special for babies dk can be found here .

What could you make...

One of my first blankets was a granny square blanket (after about 2 weeks of learning to crochet!), using chunky acrylic yarn even though not a baby soft it still felt lovely and washed great. I even managed to master a daisy square or two to complete the project.

If you have a little more knowledge then why not a little hat and booties, remember though to create a gauge square to ensure you get the correct the size as a baby born in the next month probably won’t need a wooly hat yet (if anything like the bank holiday weekend was to go by!) so plan to fit baby over the colder months. A couple of cute patterns, I found in a great book in the Sirdar range.  It has very cute little bobble hat and booties and once you get a bit more practice in, you could create some of the knits in the pattern book,  Little cutie pie pattern book can be found here.

For those who prefer to crochet, these booties they would make the perfect gift. Crochet booties for babies pattern can be found here.

For the more experienced then try your hand at a piece of clothing. There are some lovely patterns on the market, its too hard to decide!  Rowan do a lovely, very simple jumper made with baby cashsoft Merino, it’s a unisex boatneck style, with a simple pattern detail around the top and bottom.  This pattern is free on the Rowan website. Rowan baby cashmere soft merino 4ply can be found here..

If you are more of a crochet creator, then this little hooded cardigan is bang on trend.  The pattern can be found here.

Soft toys

Soft toys are very popular, remember they are for babies, so CE tested stuffing is essential and even though you can get safety eyes, I would stick with stitching embroidery eyes on. I adore the merry go round bunnies pattern and you can make a plain bunny with only one ball. If you add the accessories you will need two.  The pattern can be found here

The Stylecraft Merry-go-round yarn can be found here.

I love amirgumi when it comes to creating wooly soft toys, they give you a much nicer finish and I feel that the stuffing is safe inside your creations.  You can find hundreds of free patterns online and you can create them in double knit or chunky depending on the size of the toy you wish to create.  I did find a really cute giraffe pattern, which would be a great universal toy.   The pattern can be found here.

My favourite to make for a family or friends newborn, has to be a crochet 12 pointed star pattern. Such a cute design and looks great in neural and bright colours. The pattern is widely available.

To give it some extra flair you could add Pom Poms to the points (extra yarn would be required) or maybe a couple of teething rings stitched on (a great way of not losing those little toys!) 

 Other Siblings

My last note, sometimes you may feel obliged to create something for the older sibling or siblings, I don’t think you can go wrong with this… WYS matching outfits, such a cute idea, you could even make one for new baby so they all have matching sets!  The pattern book can be found here.

I hope I have inspired you to create a gorgeous baby make.  I’m off to make a star blanket (another baby coming in the family!!)

Love

The Crafting Cow