Sew Tina - Review and Giveaway

I recently received a copy of Tina Givens' new book, Sew Tina, which is published by Lark Crafts.  Tina is well-known for her fabric designs and sewing patterns and this book is a good marriage of the two.  The book includes many clothing items in sizes 3 months to 7 along with complete patterns.  There are booties and hats, dresses, tunics, pants, bloomers and more.  Tina also included many accessories in the book and these are what caught my eye.

I think this tulle bed canopy is super sweet.  It looks like a fun and manageable project.  I happen to know one eight, almost nine, year old who has been begging for something like this for a long while.  Hmmm...maybe for her birthday?

I have never considered making a sleeping bag for my kids, but this number has me thinking about it.  Tina also includes directions to make a tote for, well, toting the sleeping bag around.  Great idea!

The checkboard crib quilt is a basic pattern, but would be fast to put together and would be a great baby gift.  I also like the idea of a fabric Moses basket.  I had one when my girls were tiny and I used it all the time.  I had never considered making one out of fabric - it could be a great shower gift for new parents.

Lucky for you, Tina and Lark Crafts have offered a sweet giveaway to one of my readers.  The winner will receive a copy of Sew Tina, a stack of fabric (4 yards!), stationery and sewing patterns all designed by Tina.  To enter, comment on this post before 5:00 p.m. EST Friday, October 15th.  Tell me what you like to make for a baby gift or what was the best baby gift you received.  Good luck!

Comments

[Jennifer H.]

I love to make simple patchwork baby quilts. They come together so quickly and most of my friends don't sew so they are always impressed!

[Heather]

wow- this book looks really great and i haven't heard of it yet! i like to knit tiny newborn hats, sew quilts, tiny baby dresses and diaper bags. i'd love some more inspiration! thank you so much for sharing!!

[patricia]

The best baby gifts I received when my twin girls were born were monogrammed white baby sun hats and matching white eyelet bloomers. They were so adorable and I used them all the time until the girls outgrew them. I would love to make the hat and baby booties in Tina's book.

[michelle]

I love to knit hats for babies. This December, I know of four new babies coming, so I am going to knit them candy cane striped elf hats in red and white. And for those with siblings, I will knit the siblings the same except green and white. The best baby gift I received was a hand made quilt for my oldest daughter. My husband's grandmother was convinced I was having a boy, so the theme is 'little boy blue.' Even though I had a girl, she sleeps with that quilt every night. :)

[Shannon]

I like the basket. It can be used later for toting toys, books, or anything. My best baby gift was a pretty quilt made by a co-worker of my husband. She obviously put a lot of love into it.

[mcregan]

I really enjoy making baby gifts for my friends and family. I usually make quilts because I don't have patterns for anything else. I think Tina's book could inspire my future gifting! (The other art teacher in my department is expecting a baby in December!) Thanks for the giveaway!

[MeganAnne]

I love to sew up cute baby booties. I'm excited to have a new baby to sew for as we just found out our friends are expecting.

[andria]

I think you can never have enough quilts to cuddle with a new baby, so I think a quilt is perfect.

[Liz]

I love to hand knit baby items, but I also love to make baby blankets - really big soft ones that keep mom and baby warm during late night nursing sessions.

[Joanna]

I always like to make lots of burp cloths! Not the ones with pre fold diapers, the super absorbent hand towel kind! Also way up on the list are flannel receiving blankets! You can never have enough of either of those things!!

[Marci Simonini]

Wow, this looks and sounds like an amazing book. I would love to win a copy. Thanks for the giveaway.

[Jenn]

Pee Pee Teepee...I made one for a friend's new baby boy. I'm still a novice sewer and made it on a whim so it ended up resembling a party hat...I made sure to clarify it's intended use :). She says it works like a charm!

[Anna]

For my family, I like to make quilts with special fabric or themes. For friends and co-workers, I like to make personalized onesies.

[PJ]

The best baby gift I received was a satin on one side, velour on the other blanky which hasn't left my daughter's side. She is 4 1/2 now and hasn't spent a night away from it except for when we left it at a hotel once. Realizing we couldn't live without it, we hightailed it back to retrieve "Pink Blanky." If I were giving a blanky like this as a baby gift, I would make two identical ones. That way there would always be one to cuddle...just in case.

[Chelsie Varga]

I like to make almost anything. I don't have any kids of my own yet, so it's fun to make something kid related every once in awhile. Making a sweater for a baby goes so much faster than making a sweater for me :)

[Jackie]

My daughter received about 6 handmade, crib-size quilts and we love each of them dearly. She loves to get them all out and make a "nest". I wish I were prepared enough to gift quilts for new babies, as it is I am usually stretching it to knit a small hat or something like that.

[Tong]

a soft and snuggly baby quilt is definitely the best baby gift! thanks so much for the giveaway!

[Jessica]

Love that fabric Moses basket...though my baby gifts are a little more modest (maybe an appliqued onesie and matching pants?)--

Looks like a great book!

[Colleen]

I love to make quilts for new babies - and for sure a cute taggy blanket too. Thanks for the review of the book!

[Chris]

I usually sew some bibs - different sizes!
Thanks for the chance.

[Samantha]

I think a quilt is always a nice baby gift.

[Carol]

I love knitting baby hats! And, it's been soooooooo long since I was the guest of honor at a baby shower, I have no recollection of the gifts!

[Ana]

I love to make a baby quilt either crocheted or sewn. I also love making baby hats.

[Lorrie]

I like making baby gifts - usually quilts or toys. I'm going to be attempting some sweet baby shoes soon.

[Kimberly]

That canopy is marvelous! I love making the Stardust Shoes baby shoes for gifts - they turn out so well and are easily personalized.

[Shelly]

My favorite things I received were a nursing cover and a large, simple receiving blanket. Consequently, these are my favorite things to make (and give) as gifts.

[Olivia Gatti]

I loved getting some of my old home-sewn baby clothes from my mom and grandmother to pass on to my girls. In return, I can whip up a baby hat or two for the newbies. I love babies in hats.

[Anita]

Wow, what a great gift! Yes, please include me in this awesome give away!

[Anita]

Opps missed the last line of the give away details...My favorite baby gift for my daughter, was quilt made by my good friend Beth.

[Jolie]

I love to make diaper pouches as gifts. . . but I am expecting baby boy #2 in Feb and would love some inspiration on how to make some fun things for this little guy.

[Amanda]

I'm about to make my first pair of baby booties.

[annie]

I usually sew a baby sling, especially since that was the gift I used the most when I had my two children. I had some other wonderful, sweet gifts, but the sling beat everything in practicality and long-term use. :)

[Sascha Jeffers]

The best gift I received when my daughter was born was a quilt made by my dear friend, Eva. Cora loves it so much that she sleeps with it every night. :)

[[email protected]]

My favorite gifts to give to new babies are quilts and burp cloths. I would love to win Tina Givens' book.

[Caroline]

It seems like everyone is having babies right now. I made by boyfriend's best friend a quilt for his baby with the sailing flag from the team that the father and my boyfriend grew up sailing for. I've also made several tag blankies recently. I am just starting to plan a present for a baby shower coming up in November.

[Mindy]

I love anything handmade/sewn....i love to make blankets and skirts/dresses. . and burps, carseat covers...i can't decide.

[Jen G]

The best baby gift was a hand-knit blanket with satin edging, knit by my mom for my youngest. Thanks for a chance to win, the canopy looks like a lot of fun!

[Panamomma]

All the best baby gifts I received for both my son and my daughter were the handmade ones. Receiving blankets, crochet blankets, etc. My daughter would love that canopy!

[Michele]

My oldest daughter would love the tulle bed canopy too. The best baby gift that I recieved was a Boppy pillow - it's been used for both of our girls and was my nursing crutch!

[Marcia W.]

The Moses basket does sound like a good gift. My family is expecting the addition of 2 grandnieces later this year, so the projects in this group would be great.
mlwright29 (at) hotmail (dot) com

[Kathleen]

My usual baby gift is a hand knit hat and a board book. Thanks for the chance to win. The book looks great!

[Zura]

Awesome book! I make it a point to give only handmade items as baby gifts. My favorite to make is either a dress/outfit or a set of outfit + baby bonnet. They are always received with the new momma smiling and asking "Wow..You made this??". The feeling is lovely :)

[Sarah :: greenclogs]

I know a little one around here who could benefit from that book for a long time. :)

My go-to baby gifts are knit hats, freezer paper stenciled shirts and small baby quilts. I adore making baby gifts.

[Kerin]

This book looks like it's filled with really useful patterns!

I'd love to make the crib quilt for my cousins new baby. I made my very first quilt for her first born and I want to continue the tradition!

[Teresa]

When I have a little more time to prepare I like to crochet baby blankets, they're so soft and unique. But if I'm just putting something together at the last minute (like this last weekend for a friend of my niece's) I love to make matching burp cloths and baby bibs, backed with chenille. It's such a cute and fast gift. And ironically the best baby shower gifts I received were burp cloths. I didn't bother buying any for myself because I didn't realize how much I would need them....boy was I wrong! Those things were a life saver!

[Paula L.]

For baby gifts I usually make softies in fabric and felt but I would love to try a baby quilt. This book looks fantastic, thanks for the chance!
ap_lemos at yahoo dot com

[Rebecca]

Honestly, the best baby gift I received was hot food in a disposable dish. I appreciated that even more when I had my second child. I also liked the fancy burp cloths - the going-out-to-dinner ones.

[Rachel at Stitched in Color]

Right now I'm making AMH's Color Spectrum quilt from her recent book for a baby shower. I think it may become a good go-to gift!

My favorite gift to get would be cloth diapers by BumGenius!

[Nandini]

The tulle canopy would make a wonderful gift!! I wish I had one too!

[Kristin]

I love the tulle canopy and the fabric moses basket. That looks like it has some great ideas in it!