Every mom wants to show off their cute bundle of joy, but there comes a time when they're snoozing in their carseat and a complete stranger in the grocery store wants to sneak a peek. No ma'am. Please don't touch my baby.
My Memaw sent me a "carseat canopy" and we've gotten so much use out of it. As soon as those hot summer days rolled around, I wanted to make a more lightweight version. The darker fabric on top & minky layer on bottom of the one I have is great for cooler days to keep Mr. Knox all toasty inside the stroller and/or carseat...but since our stroller is black and the Colorado sun is brutal, I needed another option for hot days. Thus, this tutorial was born! This cover is a bit more breathable and the lighter color keeps it from absorbing as much heat.
If you can sew a straight line, you can make this carseat cover. Not to mention, what a fun & customizable baby gift!
What You'll Need:
1 yard muslin or linen or solid kona cotton
1 yard designer fabric
thread
pins
scissors
sewing machine
(optional: velcro and decorative button)
Directions:
1. Wash, dry, and iron fabric.
2. Using the width of the fabric (44 inches) for the length of the carseat cover, cut both pieces of fabric into a rectangle of about 43 by 29 inches. I trimmed off the selvedges because sometimes they wash differently.
3. Cut two more rectangles that are 4 inches by around 20 inches, or however long you need them to be to tie. These are what attaches the cover to the carseat. I didn't want a bow, so cut them a bit longer if you are making one for a baby girl and want the ties to tie into a bow.
4. Pin the muslin and your fabric together with the "pretty" side of the fabric facing the muslin. Sew around all the way, leaving a 3-5 inch gap to turn. Trim your corners, turn it right side out and press. Top stitch all the way around the edge to make it look nice & close up the hole.
((steps 5 & 7))
5. Fold the cover in half and mark with pins all the way across. Sew across the width of the cover to keep the pieces of fabric in place.
6. Fold the edges of your "ties" in, press, and then fold in half. Press again. Top stitch all the way around the edges.
7. Mark about 9 inches in from each side (( again, it will vary depending on your carseat )) and center the straps on the line you just sewed. Pin in place and sew about half an inch on either side to secure.
8. Tie onto the carseat and you're done!
love.
notes:
-fabric is korkek in dandelion by lotta jansdotter
-any cotton will work well
-instead of ties, you can add velcro to the straps and a decorative button on top
-have fun with it and get creative. this would be fun in patchwork, add some embroidery to the corner, etc
