Last Day of Christmas: Monster Softies

It's Christmas Eve and the last day of our Christmas freebies at CKC!  We know you are going to LOVE this one, almost as much as your kiddos will.  And if you happen to be scrambling with your last minute gifts preparations, you could even print off today's template, wrap it in a pretty package with some fabric, and call it an IOU activity for your child. Fun! 

Today's tutorial comes to us from Dawn Anderson, the super creative designer of some of our most over-the-top patterns at CKC. She will be showing us how to create Monster Softies using the imaginations of the smartest kids around - your own! 

Don't these look SO fun?  We have the template and step-by-step instructions all included in this tutorial, so let's get started! Here's Dawn: 

16th Day of Christmas: DIY Bubble Bow

It's the 16th Day of CKC Christmas and we have a new FREE pattern for you today!  This one comes to us from Leah Gardner, one of our baby girl pattern designers.  Leah is well known for her fabulous bow and headband tutorials on our blog and I'm so excited that she has another adorable one to teach us today! Here's Leah:

I love these bubble bows. They’re super easy to make and they can be made out

wovens, flannel, chiffon, knits, and just about any other fabric. You can use them

as hair bows or to embellish your favorite Create Kids Couture creations!

Hooded Bath Towel Tutorial

A few days ago one of our fabulous testers, Kelly Hodge of Simply Tutu, shared a Hooded Bath Towel tutorial in our patterns group.  It was a hit, especially with her creative use of embroidery to make the towels even more amazing!  Since then we have had so many people wanting a copy of it to save for later that we knew we should have it on our blog for easy access. So I want to give a huge THANK YOU to Kelly for sharing her free tutorial with us on the blog today!  Here's Kelly: 

15th Day of Christmas: Canvas Prints

Today is the 15th Day of CKC Christmas and we have a new FREE tutorial for you that has me completely intrigued!  It comes to us from Nikki, the head designer of our women's patterns at CKC.  Nikki is a talented photographer and has quite a few tricks up her sleeve. Today she is teaching us how to transfer printed images onto canvas!  This is such a clever/special project to making using all those adorable pictures we have of our kids in their CKC outfits! Grandma will be pleased!

Nikki was making these for her family members yesterday and I just HAD to know how she did it. She was nice enough to put her instructions into a PDF file for us. Merry Christmas to all of us!  

14th Day of Christmas: Eye Mask

It's the 14th Day of Christmas and today's free pattern comes to us from Tosha Smith, the designer of our dancewear patterns at CKC! I think this accessory is going to be a huge hit for Christmas gifts this year, judging from all the super cute pajama pictures we have seen you post in our patterns group this week. 

What little kiddo wouldn't want a super cute (and comfy) eye mask to match their new PJ's?  Plus you can give Santa a little reassurance that the sleepers aren't peeking if their eyes are covered while they sleep! You can make an eye mask to match any of our fabulous pajama patterns at CKC or even pajamas that they already own. It's quick and easy! 

13th Day of Christmas: Patchwork Bed Scarf

Today is the 13th Day of CKC Christmas (yes, you read that right) and we are excited to continue on with our free patterns for you every weekday right up until Christmas! Just a little gift from us to you! Today's free pattern comes to us from Jessica Fulton, the admin of our CKC Sew-Alongs group. This pattern is perfect for the Christmas holidays right now and right on through to the other seasons! 

Isn't this quilted bed scarf just beautiful? I love how the fun prints bring a lot of Christmas to the bed without needing an entirely new bed cover.  And it looks very classy! 

 The construction for this bed scarf is sturdy and easy to follow with Jessica's tutorial. I bet you will fall in love with it and want to make one for every bed in your house and for every season! 

12th Day of Christmas: Shell Topped Boot Cuffs

It's the 12th Day of CKC Christmas and you are in for a TREAT today!  This free pattern comes to us from Kristi Fitzpatrick, who has an amazing women's pattern coming out later this week AND she is opening up our brand new category of crochet patterns in January! 

So what better way to celebrate the new line than with a free crocheting tutorial today?  If you haven't bothered to learn crocheting in the past (like me), I'm pretty sure this next photo is going to inspire you to learn asap!

Aren't these boot cuffs amazing!?! 

11th Day of Christmas: Fabric Bead Necklace

For the 11th Day of CKC Christmas we have another fabulous FREE tutorial for you!  This one comes to us from Susan Smith, one of our girl size pattern designers. (Just wait until you see the dress she's working on right now! So pretty!)  Today Susan is going to teach us a fun new accessory to go with all those adorable CKC outfits we're making. 

Look at this trendy fabric bead necklace!  It's much easier than it looks (with help from Susan's tutorial, of course), and all you need to make it is fabric strips and wooden beads!

10th Day of Christmas: Doll Stocking

It's the 10th Day of Christmas and we have a really fun new free pattern for you today!  You might have seen our super cute stocking tutorial from last year. Well this year, Maria, the head designer of our doll clothes patterns, has made a matching ruffled stocking for your dolls!  

How cute is this?!   Your daughter will love to have a matching stocking for the little best friend in her life. It's so teeny tiny but we know you can do it!  Maria is really good at making doll clothes doable and I can't wait to make one for my daughter!  

9th Day of Christmas: Tablet or Phone Bean Bag

It's the 9th Day of CKC Christmas and we have a new free pattern for you!  This one comes to us from Lana, the designer of our Home Decor patterns. I am really excited to share this freebie with you and I'm also excited that my kids don't ever read the blog because they're going to be getting one of these for Christmas!

You know those giant beanbag chairs that are so comfy to plop down into for movie night or to read a good book?  Well now you can make a mini version for your handy little device to sit in! How cute and practical is that?!  Lana has put together the tutorial as a free downloadable PDF, and you can access that file here: 

8th Day of Christmas: Hanging Hand Towel

It's the 8th Day of CKC Christmas and we have another free tutorial to share with you! This one was put together by Nikki, the head of our Women's and Tweens' patterns at CKC.  Nikki wanted to take the classic look of a hanging hand towel and dress it up CKC style! 

Aren't they both so cute?!  I love using this kind of towel because my little ones can't pull it off our oven door as easily. The Mrs. Clause towel is the simple version and we think it would be pretty cute to make as a green Christmas tree as well, with a yellow felt star in just the right place. Then the dress version of the towel is perfect for all the little girl lovers out there!  Both styles are included in the pattern and you can download it here: 

7th Day of Christmas: Stuffed Animal Scarf

It's the 7th Day of CKC Christmas and we have a fantastic freebie tutorial for you today!  It comes to us from Tosha Smith, our dance wear designer at CKC. Tosha has such creative and trendy ideas, and I'm sure you'll agree that she is right on the money with this one!  

How cute is that?!  Yes, it's a scarf made out of a stuffed animal!  My kids are going to flip when they see this!  I don't recommend cutting your kids' furry best friend in half without their permission, but there are lots of stuffed animals out in the world just waiting to be made into a favorite accessory! 

6th Day of Christmas: Fabric Bowl Cover

It's the 6th Day of Christmas and today's free pattern comes to us from Morgan, the designer of a few of our most popular toddler patterns such as Cosette's and Maggie's! Clearly she is full of creativity and we're excited to show you what she has to offer.  Here's Morgan!

If you all know me personally, you know I have this addiction called Pyrex. Haha yes, that's right! I collect vintage Pyrex. So when the staff started bouncing ideas off each other for this year's 12 days of tutorials I knew exactly what I was gonna do! 

5th Day of Christmas: Knit Infinity Scarf and Nursing Cover

It's the 5th Day of CKC Christmas and today our free pattern/tutorial comes to us from Emily Wise, one of our tween pattern designers. I know that girls of all ages are going to love this style, and especially those with new little-ones-on-the-way like Emily!  Here she is with today's tutorial: 

Knits are soft and cuddly, a perfect fabric for an infinity scarf.  I needed one to double as a nursing cover, so whether you’re a hip tween or stylish mamma, you’ll love this addition to your accessories.  These also make a wonderful gift for girls of all ages!

4th Day of Christmas: DIY Knot Headband

It's the Fourth Day of Christmas and today our free pattern comes from Leah Gardner, one of our baby pattern designers here at CKC. I'm sure you'll recognize her adorable baby.  Here is Leah with today's tutorial:  

These knot headbands are a favorite of mine.  They’re super easy and fast to make.  They also make perfect ear warmers during the colder months.

Open Back Dolman Shirt

It's Nikki here at CKC. I have a fun, creative tutorial on using the new Donna’s Dolman shirt and making it backless!  If you can’t wear a backless shirt, don’t worry. You can just wear a tank under it.  It still makes for a wonderful top.  

I am going to tell you both ways to do it and they both end with similar results. The two options are to either sew the neckband on or to just add a band to the back:  

3rd Day of Christmas: Picture Frame Pincushion

We're excited to share today's free pattern with you for the Third Day of CKC Christmas! This one comes to us from Shannon, the co-owner and co-founder of CKC. So of course this project is going to be super cute and trendy. Here's Shannon: 

Looking for the perfect gift for a fellow seamstress in your life? Or maybe you just want to add a little personality to your sewing room? Today's Picture Frame Pincushion tutorial is perfect for just these situations and it takes only minutes to whip up. Let's get started!

2nd Day of Christmas: Fabric Tic Tac Toe Game

It's the 2nd Day of Christmas here on the CKC blog and today our free pattern comes to you from Jessica Fulton, the head of our CKC Sew-Alongs. It's a fun one! Here she is: 

Looking for an easy sewing project to make a gift for a boy or girl? I’m here today to show you how you can whip up an easy Tic Tac Toe game that is sure to please boys and girls alike. You can have fun making it unique with the fabrics and trims you choose to use. Let’s begin!

How to Use a Store-Bought Shirt for Cosette's Dress

One of our most popular dresses at CKC right now is Cosette's Knit and Woven Dress.  Our fans love that it is comfy and fitted on top and then frilly and ruffly on the bottom using our favorite woven prints. Sometimes we like to take the quick route on Cosette's by using a store-bought shirt for the bodice and we have had a LOT of requests for a blog tutorial.  So here you go!  First we have a step-by-step photo tutorial and then we even have a video where Morgan, the creator of Cosette's, will show us how it's done. 

12 Days of Christmas 2014: Dog Bone Toy

Our Twelve Days of Christmas free patterns were such a hit on the blog last year that we have had a bunch of requests to do it again this year. We LOVE to share free patterns with our fabulous fans so here we are, at it again! Our whole staff at CKC is going to get involved this year, and first up for the 1st Day of Christmas is Kimberly, the head of our dog patterns! 

Look at this super cute Dog Bone Toy that Kimberly is teaching us how to make today!  You can make it using scraps or that cute doggie print from your stash, and Kimberly even shows us how to install a squeaker piece in the toy if we want to. 

(Is it just me, or does this picture make you want to take apart the nearest dog toy, just to look at the squeaker?)

This Dog Bone Toy project should be pretty quick to sew up and I'm sure all the little pups in your life and your friends' lives are going to be super happy that you can make these!  All you need to do to get started is to...

DOWNLOAD THE FREE PDF HERE!

Enjoy your sewing!  Kimberly does a great job with doggie outfits and toys, so go show some love to your four-legged friends!   (And yes, we will be back with another great free pattern tomorrow!) 

Let's Create! ~ Kristen