NILMDTS

I wanted to post about a really great organization that is helping families through their grief of losing a baby. It is called Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS), which is a group of professional photographers who donate their time to take pictures of babies and families after a baby has gone to sleep. The gowns and outfits I have been making have been going to some of these wonderful individuals to give to families who do not have any clothing items small enough for their infants.

If you have a wedding gown or light coloured bridesmaid dress consider donating it to Heavenly Angels In Need (HAIN). They will send it on to a seamstress (like me) who makes gowns, blankets, bonnets, and outfits for these precious angels.

Here is a video of what NILMDTS is all about. Have a tissue handy ....



I managed to get 6 preemie gowns/outfits out of the bridesmaid dress that I was working on. Now onto the wedding dress. Here is one gown that I have finished. The pattern is on the Newborns In Need website. They have many wonderful sewing patterns there. The gown will fit a 2 to 3lb preemie and has a bonnet and bracelet that I made to go with the gown.

After this gown if finished I will be receiving another gown from a young lady who is pregnant with twins. One of her twins has passed away and she has asked for something to be made from her gown as a keepsake to remember her precious little girl. This is so heart breaking and I know there are many, many families who have gone through similar situations.

This post has been a bit (ok, maybe a lot) depressing and maybe even makes you very distraught. This is the reality of life and I only hope that what I do will bring a tiny amount of healing and comfort to these families.

"Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." Romans 12:15

Preemie Dresses

Since I last posted I made up two gowns with the idea I had. Knitting the top of the gown and then using fabric to make the skirt. This works up much faster than knitting a whole gown and looks pretty good. I did one boys dress and one girls dress.

I used Libby Wilson's Dress pattern to knit the top of the gown using Patons Beehive yarn and size 3.25mm needles. Once the top was knit I measured the width of the top, added 1" for finishing off the back seam and about 4" to add some gathering. I machine sewed the skirt to the top, added trim and was finished.

The angel that goes with the boys gown is from LucyBug. She has a pretty angel wrap on her website too.

I am very excited to have received a wedding gown and a bridesmaid dress from a donor who wants the dresses made into baby gowns and internment items. I have been working on the bridesmaid dress which is a pretty light blue with a small amount of beading on the front. There is also a white satin insert in the front. It has been fun and challenging to come up with ideas on how best to use the fabric.

The boys vested outfit (size 2-3lbs) is from Newborns In Need patterns set#3. I highly recommend this pattern set as there are some very beautiful patterns in there.

The gown (size 2-3lb) is a free pattern from CareWear website. They have some wonderful free patterns on there for preemies and newborns.

There are two other gowns that have been sewn up and one more newborn size that is cut out. As well as 4 buntings from the Carewear bunting pattern.

Most of the bridesmaid dress has been used up. With the rest I plan to cut out 3.5" squares and mix and match them with the wedding dress fabric to make some small quilts.