31 more to go

My whole great epiphany to sew my own crib rail covers seemed like a super idea. Until I experimented with the batting and some old sample fabric trying to come up with the perfect size and thickness of batting to create what I had in mind. If you've heard of wonder bumpers, this is what I was going to try to create in my own way. These are a fairly new product, and only available from this certain retailer and as you can see, are very spendy. So I thought I'd experiment and find my own way to make something that would work the same way.

Having no idea how to go about it, I tried a few different times with different sized fabric swatches and different methods of sewing the pieces together to still end up with something that was way too thin and not enough padding to protect a little one's head and body parts from getting bumped or stuck between the railings.

When I had first told Joe what I wanted to do, his first response was to find some type of padded home improvement item to use and then just cover; suggesting a pool noodle or similar. I thought he was ridiculous, and of course what does he know about decorating and baby items? Turns out he was right though...

After my many failed attempts at batting and fabric, I searched online thinking there had to be someone else who has tried to re-create these wonder bumpers that could give me some guidance. Sure enough, there was one woman who had done it, though with a very different method (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEwTiiiosLY). I watched her video but still thought I could sew mine and make it work. I was hesitant as well about the fact that she used foam insulation and if it would be safe to have near a baby. I talked to Joe about it and he didn't seem to think there was any risk to it, especially since it would be wrapped completely in fabric. He offered to accompany me to Home Depot to check out their pipe insulation to see if we could find some that would fit the rungs of our crib. Sure enough, the smallest size they carry was a perfect fit. So I gave him the task of cutting the pipe insulation to the size I wanted (they came in 6 ft. long sections) and I was on my way!

My supply
10 pieces at $ .97 a piece! Not bad!

The first seven. Note the furthest orange one on the right
This one is only a single layer of fabric, I'll need to add a layer

I can't wait to get them all done!
I need to find a crib sheet that matches too, or make one

I did take pictures of each step and I'll post them with a sort of step-by-step process on another post so you can see what I actually did. So far, I've completed 7, so I still have 31 to go! My fingers are burnt from the hot glue gun and it was somewhat of a trial-and-error at first to see the best method of attaching my fabric to the insulation. I think the first two I made aren't the greatest and I discovered that my orange fabric is really thin, so after the first one, I made the next two with a double layer. Those first ones can hide in the back...