DIY GIFT IDEAS FOR BABIES - #GIFTINGMAKESUSHAPPY

Macramé Pacifier Chain

A pacifier chain is not only a very practical gift for babies, but can also be a beautiful accessory - especially if it is homemade and made with love! We present a super simple tutorial on how to make a gorgeous pacifier chain with only a little bit of manual skills using the knotting technique macramé!

For this project you will need:

• 2 x 1.2 cm Macramé strings with a thickness of 3mm
• Pacifier-Clip
• Pacifier
• Ruler
• Scissors
• something for coloring, e.g. turmeric as a natural coloring agent

If you have purchased white string and want to bring a little more color into play, you can easily do this with natural means. For example, turmeric powder is wonderful for a nice, strong yellow tone. To do this, simply sprinkle some of the spice into a bowl, pour a little hot water over it and mix everything lightly with a spoon. Now dip the string into the hot water and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Fork the string out, let it dry on a cloth and voilá - the string is dyed!

Now it's time to tie and knot! The pacifier chain is knotted in a very simple pattern. The following macramé techniques are used: Lark's Button Knot, Square Knot and Wrap Knot. Don't worry, we'll explain step-by-step how these knots work!

Begin by attaching two strings to the pacifier clip using a lark's head knot. You do that by making a loop in the middle of one string so that two ends of the string are facing downwards. Pull the loop through the hole in the clip and pull the ends of the thread into the hole in the loop. The lark's button knot is finished! Repeat the step with a second string.

If you have finished, there should be four loose threads dangling from the clip, which will be now tied together using square knots. For the square knot you need four adjacent threads, two from each knot. The middle two threads always need to remain taut and you work with the two bands hanging on the outside. The left thread is placed across the two middle threads and under the right cord. The right thread then goes under the two middle threads and is then pulled through the loop between the first two cords, so that it is over the left thread. Then pull on the two threads on the outside so that the knot is pulled tightly to the top of the end. Now repeat the step from the right side: that is, over the two middle threads and under the left thread. The left string goes under the two middle strings and over the right thread. This is how the square knot is created! Repeat these steps until you have reached your desired length, but make sure that the chain is not too long. Be aware that with a length of more than 22cm, there is a danger of strangulation. Our pacifier chain has become about 11cm long.

Now take the longest thread and double it into a loop. Tie it with a double knot directly under the last square knot, so that the loop is well fixed. After that, there should be a loop and a loose end pointing up. Take the other long thread and wrap it around all the threads a few times. Make sure the thread end of the loop is peeking out at the top. Keep doing this until you are happy with the length. Place the end of the thread in the loop and pull very tightly at the end of the thread from the loop to make the knot nice and tight - the wrap knot is done! Cut the fringe straight, being careful not to cut the loop. Then place the loop in the ring of the pacifier and pull the loop over the clip and all along the chain back to the pacifier to finally tie it in a knot. Done!

Your pacifier chain is ready! It's a perfect gift for your own baby or for the next baby party. You can match your homemade gift with one of our set of folded cards, such as "Welcome little baby" or "To the birth" with which you can easily wish the new little person all the best in the world.

Ombré Mobile

A beautiful mobile does not only decorate the nursery, but is also a fascinating and fun sight for the baby. Instead of spending a lot of money on a produced one, you can make your own very easily - a great gift for kids and parents! Our DIY idea has a total length of about 1.2 meters and can obviously be customized with your favorite colors!

For this project you will need:

• 8 thin strings, ca. 90cm long
• A ring with at least 14cm diameters
• Colorful paper
• Pencil
• Circle
• Ruler
• Scissors
• Glue

For a beautiful color gradient in the spirit of the ombré look, you need sturdy, colorful paper in different shades. Cut circles from it in three different sizes - it's best to use a circle for marking so you can easily cut out the circles along the line. For our mobile, we cut 32 large circles per color, 40 medium circles per color, and 24 small circles per color. After that, lay out the individual strings and sort the circles by color and size before placing them on the string and gluing them down. We recommend double-sided tape so that the thread only needs to be taped from one side.

For the ring you can take a simple wooden circle or wrap it with some cord. Take two strings and attach them well to the ring and create a loop at the intersection, so that the mobile can also be hung up well. Now fasten the cords with the paper circles. That's it! Your own mobile is finished!

We hope you enjoyed our DIY gift ideas and we were able to motivate and inspire you to create your next baby gift yourself! For matching cards and other cute gifts, check out our PICKMOTION online store - over there you can find a wide selection of many beautiful cards (and magnets!) for birth.