There’s so much anxiety involved in preparing for a baby, the obvious is the joy of a little one growing inside you, you being responsible for a whole life, your continuous prayers for wisdom to raise your child up to be the best person he/she can be, and of course the anticipation of delivery. During these nine months, there are so many things you have to prepare for mentally and physically, but most immediate is the fact that you have to “make room for baby” and make space to accommodate this new addition to your family.

Decorating the nursery is just the room I’m referring to, and over the next couple of weeks I will be showing you how to make your own crib bedding set. When I was looking for crib bedding, I just couldn’t find much I liked, and the few I did like cost nearly US$1,000, simply out of the question, so you know my solution to that costly problem… DO-IT-YOURSELF.

The set is fairly simple to make, it just takes a few days to make the whole set, and I would suggest cutting all the pieces needed for all pieces of the set, which usually includes the bumper, skirting, sheet, coverlet and pillows. Once you’ve decided on your colour scheme, choose fabrics that are soft, natural and breathable (appropriate for baby) and calculate your yardage. You have to figure out the exact dimensions of your crib and this you can usually find online once you know the name, or the crib mattress dimensions can also guide you.

For the crib skirt we are making a tailored skirt pleat detail, so you will:

o Cut 6 rectangles, 2 for either end of the crib (the width), 2 each for either side of the crib (the length) my measurements were 25-inches X 14 inches. Add an inch for seam allowance to both sides.

o I went with a contrasting colour for inner pleat detail, so for this you will cut 2 pieces measuring 4 inches X 14 inches. Add an inch seam allowance for both sides.

o Cut a large rectangle measuring 50 inches X 25 inches (plus seam allowance) for the body of the skirt to which you will attach the pleats.

o With right sides facing, line up and pin each 25 X 14- inch cut piece to the body, so you will end up with 1 each on the sides and 2 pieces side by side for the front and back. Stitch all in place and hem.

o Hem both sides of the inner pleat fabric and pin them in between the opening of the front and back pieces and stitch in place, then hem, making sure that the lengths are equal.

o Then iron your crib skirt and fit.

And you have one piece down. Be sure to check back next week when we’ll make the crib bumper and a pillow case.