A tale of two diaper bags...

        To be honest, I waited awhile before I took a pregnancy test. I don't know if I was scared, or in denial or what it was, but I waited. And waited. And waited. When I did find out for sure, I was probably 8 weeks along. After telling my husband, I called my mother next. Then, a few weeks later, I called my older brother. His response, of course, was, "Well, it's about time." :) A few weeks later, he called me, laughing, to tell me that he was having a baby, too.
         It's been really cool to be able to go through this experience with my brother. We don't physically live close to each other (the Army made him live in New York, where he settled down, and the Marine Corps made my husband and I live in California, where we settled down), but this experience has brought us closer. It's very cool to be able to talk to each other about nurseries and baby names, and doctor's appointments and all of those things. And, as it turns out, we're both having girls, so we'll have even more to talk about. It's been wonderful. It's also really great to know that my brother is having a child because he is going to be an amazing father! He has always been really great with kids, and to see him with one of his own will be SO COOL!
        Now, as soon as my husband and I found out we were expecting, I knew that I would make our diaper bag. Making bags is kind of my thing, so that was a no brainer for me. I wanted to make sure, though, that whatever I made would be something that my husband would be able to carry if I asked him to. Now, I could count on one hand the number of times that I have ever asked my husband to hold my purse, and I think that all of those times involved me leaving a hospital. He would do it, if I asked him to, but I just don't. So, I wanted to make sure that, even though we're having a girl, our diaper bag would still be manly enough for him. So, I decided to chop up an old set of his cammies, and re-purpose them into a diaper bag. I've made a few of these bags for the shop before, but I like the idea that the diaper bag that I'll be carrying for my daughter is made from the actual cammies that her father wore. I just think there's something cool about that.

      These are the pockets from the front of the blouse. I took them off, and moved them to the sides of the bag to be used for extra storage.

      I didn't take a picture, but the inside is a solid brown that matches the cammies. As you can see here, you can see some of the uneven fading from where I took things apart and moved things around, but, to be honest, I think it's cool. It shows that these cammies were worn, and there a great sense of pride that comes along with that.

    Now, for my brother's diaper bag, I wasn't so worried about making it manly. I'm not sure if he'll ever end up carrying it around, but the idea of him carrying around a super girlie diaper bag kind of makes me chuckle anyway.....So, I focused on making something that his girlfriend would love. I asked him what her favorite colors are, and this is what I came up with.

Like ours, I wanted to give her an adjustable strap, so that if she needs to carry it over one shoulder, or across the body, she'd have those options. 

 I added the ribbon on the front and the bow to break up the zebra print, and to add a touch of femininity. You can't tell in this picture, but the bow is attached with a heart shaped stitch.

 

 There is a back pocket for extra storage, just like on ours.

 The inside is lined in a vibrant purple and have plenty of pockets for storage.

I hope she likes it!!!

Things I love....

     Obviously, I've got a baby on my mind these days. With that said, Etsy has a ton of amazing things for babies. Here are a few that I have my eye on these days....

I love this adorable baby album by alabouffe.

 These baby blocks from  TarasElegantDecor  are precious

I love these baby shoes from  petitebelleboutique

 My husband loves hummingbirds, and it would be wonderful to have this print from paintedbliss   on the walls of the nursery.

My husband may not be an active duty Marine these days, but our daughter will be raised with the sense of pride that comes along with that. These shoes from  mysweetbabylove are so cute!

 I am a huge Wizard of Oz fan, and I love this print from sugarfresh

And finally, this giraffe print from beththompsonart would match the nursery theme perfectly. 

I'd love to hear about your favorite handmade baby items.....Please feel free to comment and leave links in the comment section so I can check them out!

Oh baby!

Two posts in a week? Holy moly! See, I really am making an effort here folks. :)

 In other exciting news, along with all of the big changes to my shop, there area also some big changes in my life. Shortly after my birthday, I found out that my husband and I are expecting our first child! It's a girl, and she is due in early December.Please forgive some of these pictures. I was horrendously sick for about the first 6 months, and so despite my best efforts to look like a glowing, radiant, pregnant lady, I look like Ma Gorg from Fraggle Rock.

 

22 weeks

 26 weeks

 28 Weeks

 

30 weeks

 I thought that it was important to have a diaper bag that I could ask my husband to hold for me if I needed to, but that would not be an insult to his manhood. I didn't want to have to hand him something pink and sparkly or whatever, so I made this for us. It is made from one of his old cammie blouses (or shirts, for you civilians out there....). I chopped it up, moved the pockets around to where I needed them, and sewed it back together again. You can't tell from this picture, but the pockets that were on the front of the blouse are now on the sides, so that I can use them to hold things that I need. The inside is lined with black duck cloth, and has lots and lots of pockets. The entire thing is machine washable as well. Word on the street is that babies can be messy. ;) I also really like the idea that this is made from something that my husband actually wore. There are stories in this fabric, along with lots and lots of starch from mamasan. I think it's cool, and hopefully my husband will too. (He is currently deployed, so he hasn't seen it in person yet.)

 I also started, but haven't quite finished, making a baby quilt. Hopefully, once I get it finished up, I'll be able to post some more pictures for you to see.

So, that's my big secret! This does mean that I'll probably be closing my shop early for Christmas, so if you have your eye on something, it's better to order sooner, rather than later. 

Long time no see!

I have been missing, for quite awhile, and for that I apologize. There have been big changes going on behind the scenes during this absence however. First and foremost, I made the decision to re-brand. When I chose the name "A Stone's Throw," I had the idea that I would be making lots of quilts, and with my last name being "Stone," the name fit. However, my business ended up taking a different direction, and the name didn't really fit. A name change, however, does mean losing everything that I have built with A Stone's Throw. I wasn't able to keep my shop hearts, sales information, feedback, or any of those important things, so I've been building these things back up from scratch. On July 4th, I opened J. Stone Accessories, where you will find the same quality handcrafted accessories, but with a new name, and a new look. So, please, stop by and check out the new shop!