Teething Guard Tutorial

A few weeks ago I mentioned that my daughter became a little chipmunk and chewed chunks out of her crib!  Apparently kids can do this when they're teething and I had no idea!  So to stop her from further destroying her bed, I thought it would be good to get some teething guards.  I looked online, but they didn't have the colors I wanted and could be pretty pricey.  So I decided to make my own and also made a crib skirt to match.  That was a project I had been wanting to do for months.

Yes, my daughter did that with her teeth!

And here are the results!  A perfect solution!

I had an idea in my head as I made the teething guard and learned some things along the way.  So I wanted to share with you how I made it and how to make it better than how I made it.  ;-)

Materials:

Fabric - 2 yards (you want 2 yards for the length of the crib and then you can use the rest for a crib skirt or pillows or a little girl dress!)

Batting - 1/2 yard

Ribbon

Pins

Sewing Machine

Rotary Cutter

Cutting Board

Here's How:

Start by cutting four strips of fabric 52 x 6 each.  (This will make a teething guard for both sides of the crib). When I made this, I didn't make a hem, but I wish I would have to help prevent fraying.  So fold over each side about 1/2 inch and sew along the entire length and width to make a hem. 

Then fold over the batting so it's doubly thick and cut two strips that are 51 x 3 inches.  Since I only bought a half yard, I couldn't get the full 51 inches, so I just cut the inches I needed and added it on the end when I put it all together.

Cut some ribbon about 13-14 inches long.  I cut mine 12 inches and would have liked it just a tad longer to tie bows.  But if you're just doing knots, 12 inches is fine.  You'll need about 17 pieces.

Then lay one strip of fabric right side down and lay one of the batting strips on it.

Then about every 3 inches (you'll want to measure where the bars on your crib are so that they're not in the way when you want to tie the ribbon) lay down a piece of ribbon.  Then lay the other fabric piece right side up on top of the batting and ribbon and pin them all together to prepare for sewing.   

Sew around the entire border of the fabric, ribbon, batting, and all.  Do this again to your second set to make the second teething guard.

 Tie down the ribbon on the crib and there you have it!  A handmade teething guard!

It works perfect!

- Alexis