What I do. Making Handmade Blankets and Pillows for Children

Ok so here is Part II of How it Started..

Once the idea to make my Blankets was formed I had to start shopping for the supplies.

So most of my Fabrics in the beginning were purchased from other ebay sellers. There are several that I purchase from regularly that have Beautiful Childrens fabrics in multiple yardage which is what I need to keep my stock refreshed.

I use mainly 100% Cotton Fabrics but I also have many Designs in the "Snuggle"or "Cozy" Flannel Fabrics all of which are Machine Washable and Low Heat Dryable

And my philosophy is to help the other ebay sellers make money while helping myself make money.

The Batting on the other hand was a different story. I need such a large amount there were no ebay sellers that I could buy from.. So I headed back to my Favorite local Fabric store to purchase and put in a standing order for a 45 Yard Long Roll.

It`s a Good thing I have a Van :>)

These Rolls are 52" wide and around 2 ft in diameter..

Next came the Thread in all different colors that I needed.

I purchased what I could budget wise to get me started and then watched for a Sale Online and next ordered more than 100 Spools of High Quality Polyester Thread in every possible color.

And finally where could I find Large Quantity of Packages of the Satin Blanket binding I use for the edging ?

Back to ebay of Course ! A wonderful seller who happens to also live in CT carries this in her store and I`ve been ordering 15-20 packages at a time from her to keep me in supply.

Now this is what I use to make the Blankets :

And these pictures show how the finished product looks :

Even though I specialize in Children`s Fabrics, I have many for the Bigger Kids (Teens ) and Adults as Well.

The sizes I can make are Toddler Bed /Crib Size which are 36" x 44" and this size also makes a Nice Lap Blanket for folks who are Wheelchair Bound for whatever reason.

Many of my Blankets are Purchased for the Little ones who are in DayCare and need a Nap/Rest Time Blankie with them

And some are purchased to use as a Sofa Back throw to use as TV snuggle Blanket or just to add to the Decor..

Many of the All Over Prints I have can be made for Twin Beds as well which are 44" x 72"

All of them are Backed with a Matching Solid Color Fabric to match the Front Pattern

And the Blanket is edged with a Matching Color Satin Blanket Binding as well.

So if you are looking for a Very Special One Of A Kind Gift for someones Birthday, Christmas, Baby Shower Gift or just a " I Love You" Gift please visit me @

http://stores.ebay.com/KDMORE-CRAFTS-AND-MORE?refid=store

and click on the link for Blankets to see what I have available right now.

You can also find me @

http://bonanzle.com/booths/kdmoretti to see some of the Blankets I have ready to go and on

http://etsy.com/your_shop.php

I will gladly look for a special fabric for you as well if I don`t already have it in stock.

Just email me @ kdmore99@sbcglobal.net and mention BLANKETS in the subject line

I LOVE to Fabric shop !

Hope to see you around :>)

How It All Got Started.........Making Handmade Children`s Blankets

In 2000 when our first Grandchildren were about 5, 5 and 4 , I was pulling ideas together to create something for them for an Easter Gift , other than a bunch of Cavity Creating Candy.

I decided I was going to make them Decorative Pillows for their beds here at our house for their sleep overs.

So I headed over to ebay, where I was already a registered user and seller, to find some Fabric that I knew they would like.

Since we are a Disney Fanatic Family and everyone has their favorite Characters, I found Princess Pillow Panels for the Oldest Girl, Tinkerbell for the younger girl, and BUZZ Lightyear for the oldest grandson. (Since then we have another Grandson too)

Once I received my fabric I headed to Wal Mart to buy the Stuffing for them.

The Pillows were a Huge success on Easter Morning ! Much more than the Basket full of Candy and Marshmallow Peeps and Jelly Beans that they each had.

They immediately headed upstairs to their rooms and proceeded to find the proper places for their new Head Rests !

The ordinary pillows were tossed to the side and the NEW pillows had found their place of Honor on each of their beds.

So the Daughter In Law married to the youngest son says to me " Mom why don`t you make some more of these and sell them on ebay "

So off to the computer I go to search for more Pillow Panels that would appeal to the children out there in Cyber Land..

Low and behold after sewing up and stuffing about 10 more I started listing them and within a few days I actually sold a couple.

Now I come up with the idea of making Toddler Bed size blankets to match the pillows.

So with a little help from my friends at the Fabric store with a sewing lesson on how to make a 3 Layer Blanket, I venture into the "Blanket Business "

Since we ( my husband and I ) already had a idea of opening a Craft Store for his woodworking projects (another blog coming ) we applied for a Ct Sales Tax # and I was off and running with

KDMORE CRAFTS..........

And since I also sell lots of odds and ends I find at Yard Sales and things around the house that are no longer neccessary, ( and not nailed down, as my Husband likes to say LOL ) like clothes that the kids have outgrown but not worn out, my ebay store became known as
KDMORE - CRAFTS-AND-MORE.

Through the last 6 years since making the first pillows and then the blankets I have also started signing up for the Craft Shows that are held in my area around the Christmas Holiday Season and have found that fun but also quite challenging..

You need to have a large inventory ready to do the Craft Shows so you will have a little different something for everybody and plenty of it.. Especially the Disney Movies

Because of limited storage space ( these pillows and blankets take up a LOT of space ) On ebay I always listed a picture of the fabric and explained how I would "make" and ship the blanket or Pillows within a 3 day time span.

I now had 9 Plastic totes filled with all kinds of different Fabrics that I have carefully selected to make the blankets and pillows with, piled in the corner of the spare room of the house which is dubbed " the EBAY ROOM"

And a 45 Yard Roll of Batting which is what goes between the layers of fabric, standing up in the other corner

With the Craft Shows I needed to start sewing weeks ahead of time so I would have plenty of inventory.

Now how to store all these before the shows ?????????

Rubbermaid to the resue !

Lots of Plastic Totes with the snap on covers, and there are 4 rows piled 3 high stored in the Utility Trailor that we bought to transport everything to the shows.

And in between the shows if I have sold a blanket or pillows on ebay that`s been already made up, I just go pull it from the totes and I`m able to ship it that much faster to make Happy Customers !!!

Then I can replace it at a later date and start all over again.

Last year I have also expanded my Internet Online Selling by opening a Bonanzle.com store and a store front on Etsy.com

You can find me on bonanzle by searching the sellers list for kdmoretti

On ebay my store is http://stores.ebay.com/KDMORE-CRAFTS-AND-MORE?refid=store

And on etsy my store is http://etsy.com/your_shop.php

On Bonanzle I can be found here: http://bonanzle.com/booths/kdmoretti

I hope you have enjoyed reading this and will follow me for additional blogs in the near future.