Fitted Crib Sheet Tutorial

I'm so excited to share my first tutorial with you! It's extremely easy and can be done by even beginners! 

Fitted Crib Sheets.

You will need....

1. A piece of fabric 45" wide by 72" (2 yards) long. I prefer a soft quilters cotton, but you can use what you feel is best.

2. Approximately 75" ish of 1/4" elastic ( I just bought a pre-packaged 3 yard elastic)

3. Sewing  machine and thread.

4. Scissors or a rotary blade

5. Tape measure or dress-makers ruler

6. Pins

Let's get started!

Start with your fabric folded in half length-wise (or "hot dog style") and measure a square 8" x 8" on the open (not folded) side of the fabric. Flip your fabric and do the same on the other end (again, not on the folded side). This will be the base for your corner.

When you open up your fabric, it should look like this on both ends.

Pull the edges of the square you just cut to meet...

... And pin them together.

Then stitch them shut! If you have a serger, this would be a great way to finish the edges; I have a mock-serge stitch and just used that, but you can also use a basic zig-zag to ensure durability through washes.

Mock-serge edges

After you're finished stitching up all 4 corners, flip them right side out and they should look like this.

Now we're going to add the casing for the elastic...

Fold your edge over .25" and press, all the way around the sheet.

Now press the edge over again, but .5" this time, and pin.

Sew along your casing, close the open edge, making sure to leave about 1" open to insert your elastic.

It's time to add the elastic! (You're almost done! woot-woot!)

Take your .25" elastic and measure out approximately 75" (you can make this a little tighter/ looser depending on the amount of stretch you would like to have when you place the sheet on the mattress)....

Attach a safety pin to one end of your elastic.

Use this pin to guide your elastic through your entire casing, and out the other open end.

Once you reach the other end of the opening, zig-zag stitch your elastic together. Make sure you give it a pretty heavy-duty stich; you don't want this to come undone! Stitch the opening shut.

Now flip that sheet right side out (if it's not already) and, if you're a little anal like me, iron it! haha This is definitely not required. Place it on the mattress and YOU'RE DONE! YAY! See, I told you it was easy! (Lenny likes it too! ;) )

I want to see your finish products! Make sure you share them in the comments below!

Marriage.

Today my post is about marriage.

Sunday was our one-year anniversary, and though this may seem  like nothing to some of the great relationships that have withstood the test of time, they say the first year is the hardest, right? In this year, I have learned SO much about myself, and of course my husband. Here is what I have learned about being married...

Christian and I are both BIG dreamers. This can be extremely difficult sometimes because we are so opposite and often have very different goals (mostly career-wise). Running a brand new business, while being a stay-at-home mom to an almost two-year-old, and being married to an ambitious husband preparing for medical school takes its toll on you some days, but it gives the biggest rewards too. We have learned what it is to truly compromise. We have learned how to communicate and share what is really on our mind, and we continue to get better at this every day. I cannot stress enough what great communication can do for a relationship. After all, men (or women, for that matter) are not mind readers! This is sometimes easy to forget ;)

For as much as you compromise in a marriage, it is so vitally important that you surround yourself with amazing, supportive friends that you can have "me-time" with. It's important to have things you do separate from each other or you start becoming less like a couple, and too much like one person... Find things that make you happy individually and you may discover something new about yourself or about one another. You'll find yourself appreciating your time together a lot more too.

Marriage really is a lot of work, but I also believe that you get what you put into it. The harder you work, the greater your relationship will be. It's not just about these two people being together forever; it's about two individuals learning how to better themselves, how to become more selfless and how to encourage each other to grow into something wonderful.