Carseat Swaddle Blanket

So its been a while since I've updated anything.  Little Alexis came into our family 9 weeks earlier than expected and we spent almost 6 weeks busy with life and vising her in the NICU.  Unfortunately her coming early put me WAY behind on the projects I wanted to get done before she came.  But I am slowly trying to get some things done.  Who needs sleep anyways :)

So a project I finally got a chance to do today was a Carseat Swaddle Blanket. 

I knew I HAD to have one of these when I saw them.  What a great idea.  I used this site for the tutorial.  Simply search "carseat" on her blog and you will see the tutorial.  She has a great pattern that you can use and a video tutorial, please only use for personal use, this is her pattern, so its not fair for you to get rich off of her design :).  Look over her tutorial first, because I am only going to explain some of the changes I made. 

First, her pattern did not go together as precisely as she said it would, or I just didnt do it right, either way if yours isnt perfect, don't worry, it'll work.  I think this size is great for a newborn, but I think it could be a bit larger for an older baby.  I would probably add an inch all around the pattern if I were to make it again.  I also did not add the batting to the inside.  I did not want to make it too thick.

I also did not cut the verticle holes for the carseat straps.  Actually I did cut them, then decided I didnt want them on so stitched them closed again.  I realized there was a better way to put it in the seat.

Cut the hole for the buckle, and just slide the blanket under the shoulder straps.  This works really well, and I think it will be nicer than having long holes in the blanket.

This is what it looks like with baby inserted :)

Now wrap the little one up.  Alexis is only 6.5lbs, so you can see why i think it could be just a tad bigger... there is still room for her to grow, but I cannot imagine this still working when she is closer to a year.  We will see.  Anyways, this was an easy project, and I think it is going to make life much easier!