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Domestic Imperfection: Triple Book Slings

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Triple Book Slings

Do y'all remember the list I posted about all the things I wanted to finish in the nursery before the baby comes?  Well, I've completed my first task...book slings! I first came across the idea on Pinterest and then found a tutorial here.  It's a really simple project...if you just make one. I of course had to jazz it up a bit and make three. Still a simple project, just a little more time consuming. 

Here is a picture of what the wall looked like a few weeks ago. Cinder block shelves, a radio that is too far from a plug to work, and a random star (which I have plans for!) 
Classy.

The colors in the nursery are tan, aqua, and green. I never planned on those being the colors, it just sort of slowly happened. I like it though. It totally works because the gender of our babies is always a surprise, so everything has to be gender neutral. Plus I'm plan on stuffing both rugrats into this room...even if they turn out to be different genders. Should be interesting. If any of you moms out in blogland have advice on having two under two share a room, please, do share!
I'm getting off subject - back to the book slings. I wanted to make three of them (we have a lot of books) and I wanted them to all be different sizes. Books come in all different sizes, why shouldn't book slings? I didn't want the giant books always looking like they are going to fall out, or the tiny ones to get buried.
After crunching some numbers (and measuring a lot of books) I came up with my three sizes. (All are 39" wide.)

Large:  42", which would make for a 8.5" deep final product
Medium: 36", 7" deep final
Small: 30", 5.5" deep final

Here they are all cut out. (Sorry the pics are dark, I did this at night while watching Band Of Brothers.)

Next, I folded them in half (pattern sides together) and sewed along one short side, the long side, and 3/4 of the other short side. The opening is left because the next step is turning then inside out (right side out?). 

Once you have them pattern side out and looking pretty, stitch closed the opening. Next I laid out my sling and dowel to make the rod pocket. I gave mine a little more room then I thought I needed and made them 2 inches. Good thing too, because I later returned these dowels and got thicker ones.


Here are the double curtain brackets I bought from Amazon (you can buy them here). They're beautiful and super sturdy, but when I opened the box I instantly thought "crap, I have to return them!" Why? They're HUGE. Like way bigger than I thought they would be. They stick off the wall at least six inches. When I got back on Amazon to try and find something that would hug the wall a little more, I found that they are all that huge. Who knew? I was actually kinda relieved, I wanted this project to be done, and not be waiting on snail mail returns. I've got a deadline to meet!

Hanging these beasts turned out be quite a task. Sometimes (okay, most the time) something so simple turns out to be a huge PITA. I knew I wanted them in studs - they are going into a little boys room, they WILL get hung on. 

As usual, here is the little man helping me with my crafts. If you are a frequent reader of my blog you may be starting to wonder if my kid ever wears clothes...

No, he doesn't... not unless we leave the house. Why make more laundry?

Once they were all hung up, I noticed a few things that were funky about it.
 The top one was way too shallow (and crooked) and the dowels were already starting to bow. 

I had a little leftover fabric, so I went to measure it. I was hoping it would be bigger than 30 inches.

It was 33 inches, barely enough to make a difference. I decided to make another anyway. Here is the new little sling next to the old little sling...

Since I hadn't cut the dowels yet I decided to return them and get something thicker. I'm not sure what size they were but I can tell you that they had yellow ends. I moved up to the purple ended ones, I think they are just a little less than an inch thick. 

Good thing not many men read my blog, they would be rolling their eyes at my dowel description. It's like when men give directions, they say "take so-and-so street west, then turn south onto whatever....". Women say, "take so-and so street till you get to the bridge, then turn right at the house with the ugly yellow trim...."

Anyway, here is the final product! I really like how it turned out, it's very sturdy and can hold a lot of books.




Elijah (clothes-less, as usual) approves as well!

And now I get to cross something off my nursery list. Crossing something off a list feels oh so good. 
(also, I've finished the ottoman, so I'm going to cross that off to. I'll post about that when I finish the chair.)
  • Sand and paint chair and ottoman
  • Reupholster chair and ottoman
  • Make and hang book slings
  • Make and hang shelf
  • Move Elijah's crib and name letters
  • Buy and assemble new crib
  • Make star decor
  • Make new baby name letters
  • Paint closet
  • Sort and organize baby clothes
  • Remove closet door
  • Buy/make and hang closet curtain
  • Make growth charts
  • Buy another dresser for closet
  • Organize closet
  • New cloth diaper set up    
Linked to:

Mad In Crafts, Keeping It Simple, The Girl Creative, Dittle Dattle, Home Savvy, Running With Glitter, CraftOManiacBetween Naps on the PorchThe DIY Home Sweet HomeSew ChattyBe ColorfulMaking The World CuterLines Across My FaceSumo's Sweet StuffPolly Want A CrafterLife Made LovelyMy Uncommon Slice of SuburbiaConfessionsBella Before & AfterAll Thingz RelatedSugar Bee CraftsSassy Sites!Me and My BoysA Bowl Full Of LemonsCreative ItchNot Just A HousewifeOops I Craft My PantsHomeworkNothing But CountryReasons To Skip The HouseworkTip JunkieSweet Little GalsCherished BlissMy Girlish WhimsSavvy Southern StyleDIY By DesignSew Much AdoBlue Cricket DesignSomeday CraftsSouthern LovelyWomen Who Do It AllHandy Man Crafty WomanThe Thrifty HomeLil LunaPassionately ArtisticRaising 4 PrincessesEisy MorganCreations By KaraSaved By LoveYesterday on TuesdayThe Shabby Creek CottageBeyond the Picket FenceHouse of HepworthsThe 36th AvenueFireflies and JellybeansHappy Hour ProjectsFrench Country CottageDesign it Chic30 DaysdelicateCONSTRUCTIONShabby NestFreckled LaundryChic on a ShoestringDesign DazzleFingerprints on the FridgeFun to CraftFinding FabulousA Little Knick KnackDesigner Garden504 MainSerenity NowRemodelaholicLet Birdz FlyAddicted 2 DecoratingTatertots & JelloLolly Jane, Be Different Act NormalNifty ThriftyUnder the Table and DreamingI Heart Nap TimeWhile He Was NappingPlayful DecorGinger Snap CraftsYoung House LoveBower PowerHouse of Earne                               

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65 Comments:

At September 14, 2011 at 5:16 PM , Blogger shallan said...

Ash! LOVE the blog! Love it. As for the two-under-two sharing a room advice, talk to Momma English. She did it, and in my opinion, did exceptionally well! i.e. Paul and I still love each other and are friends. :)

 
At September 14, 2011 at 5:52 PM , Blogger Katie said...

Love how they turned out!! Such a cute idea!!

 
At September 14, 2011 at 6:21 PM , Blogger Elsa said...

The directions made me laugh!! That is the truth. I always give directions like that... "the house with the ugly yellow trim." :) As for advice on room sharing, I have no idea because my 2 year old sleeps in bed with us and I'm trying to figure out where to put the newborn when he arrives in Oct.

I love that you waited to find out the sex of the baby. I considered it, but my husband can read ultrasounds, so when we went he saw the gender before the technician could even ask if we wanted to know.

 
At September 14, 2011 at 8:17 PM , Blogger Lish @ Imprintalish said...

They turned out great!! I have my curtain rods and fabric waiting in the closet...check out IKEA for the double rod holders...they are cheap and smaller...I saw them on line! :)

 
At September 14, 2011 at 8:53 PM , Blogger Anna@Directions Not Included said...

What a great way to store books! I love them! Your little one is adorable too :)

 
At September 15, 2011 at 9:53 PM , Blogger Devon said...

So cute! And creative!

 
At September 16, 2011 at 3:20 PM , Blogger ha ma lo said...

Stopping over from boost my blog - love the book slings - going to put that on my "to do" list. Have a good weekend!

 
At September 17, 2011 at 3:51 PM , Blogger asdf said...

These are great! I have seen something similar for sale and was thinking about how useful that would be, we use a magazine basket right now but when the kids pick up their own book it's a mess. In these when a child cleans up their books it'd look just as nice as if I did it! I like that about it. Plus you could even maybe store puzzles in bags or other toys that were similarly shaped. A variety of uses, great! I like the color scheme, it'll work nicely for both genders and as far as putting them in together I started Glory in the room with Galilee at 5-6 months. (that's just what age we do it at) and it went FAR better than I had anticipated. Galilee is not a finicky sleeper though and if Glory woke her up she must have just gone back to sleep. That's still how it is. When we were all five in a hotel room for the last two months all the babies ended up sleeping through each other's random wakings and cryings. It might be a personality thing though so I'll be praying that Elijah sleeps like a rock with the new baby in the room. :)

 
At September 19, 2011 at 6:02 AM , Blogger Sweetwater Style said...

I am pinning this great idea! I plan on sharing it with my teacher friends...since I am the librarian at my school...I have plenty of shelves :) but not everyone lives in a library! This is a great way to keep those books in front of the young un's!

 
At September 19, 2011 at 9:44 AM , Blogger Ann @ makethebestofthings said...

What a neat project and well done! I can think of many places where this type of sling would work. Such a nice alternative to bookcases.

 
At September 19, 2011 at 2:03 PM , Blogger Julia @ 551Eastdesign said...

Love it, love it, love it, love it, love it! Did I mention I love it!

 
At September 19, 2011 at 2:04 PM , Blogger Julia @ 551Eastdesign said...

PS I'm a new follower!

 
At September 19, 2011 at 2:45 PM , Blogger Athena said...

This is awesome - I found you at Homemakeronadime. Feel free to link to my weekly Success U - Wednesday Linkup Parties at www.thestuffofsuccess.com. I am also a new follower.

 
At September 19, 2011 at 3:27 PM , Blogger kinze said...

now that's a cute idea ... coming over from life made lovely ... and glad i did cause your site is cute!

 
At September 19, 2011 at 3:32 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

this.is.fabulous! and so tangible! Thank you for sharing, I really want to try this one.
Nice to meet ya!
Jules :)

 
At September 19, 2011 at 10:29 PM , Blogger cherished bliss said...

Love the book storage! and the bumgenius (I think) diapers! I miss when my little boy was in those! I'd love for you to share this at my party! : )

http://www.cherishedbliss.com/2011/09/craft-and-tell-no-23.html

 
At September 20, 2011 at 5:03 AM , Blogger Joni Nickrent said...

WOW! What a great idea and dresses up the space beautifully! Ready, set, READ! POP ART MINIS

 
At September 20, 2011 at 9:19 AM , Blogger Kelly said...

Beautiful! How did you end up liking the hooks? They don't look bulky at all with all the books in there!

 
At September 20, 2011 at 9:39 AM , Blogger Susan @ Defrump Me said...

OOh! I love it!! I've been wanting to do this so bad! My good friend Audrey over at defrumpme.com did a couple, too, and she thinks I can do it. Guess I really should give it a shot. Oh, and your boy E is SO cute! I love kidlets in diapers ;-)
Cute blog!
Susan
www.defrumpme.com

 
At September 20, 2011 at 10:07 AM , Blogger Vanessa said...

hi, Ashley

I love your book sling. Great idea!

I found your blog on notjustahousewifel.com. Glad I stop by.

Vanessa

 
At September 20, 2011 at 5:58 PM , Anonymous Jenny said...

They look great! I planned on doing this for our playroom! I love how easy you make it look.

 
At September 20, 2011 at 9:12 PM , Blogger raising4princesses said...

so adorable. I love the way the books face forward so the baby can see them. Good job! I started a link party at my blog and I'd love for you to link this up. If you're interested it's http://caribbeanmissionarywife.blogspot.com/ Have a lovely day, Maria

 
At September 20, 2011 at 9:59 PM , Blogger Leslie said...

They look great! I’ve been meaning to make something like this for a while...just need the time!

 
At September 20, 2011 at 10:59 PM , Blogger Judy @ In His Grip said...

What a fabulous solution to your little kiddos library. I really like the colors.

 
At September 21, 2011 at 6:15 AM , Blogger Tam said...

Adorable... great job!

 
At September 21, 2011 at 8:19 AM , Blogger Tammy said...

This turned out great!!! What a perfect place for it too! Love the last pic. My kiddos always looked like that in the summer :) I am your newest follower. Hope you can visit me sometime too :)

 
At September 21, 2011 at 1:22 PM , Blogger Bailey K. | Travel Heals said...

wow, this looks amazing! great job. and babies are supposed to be naked! ;)

i would love for you to come link up this or any other amazing project at my creativity party going on right now!

letbirdzfly.blogspot.com

thanks so much for sharing!

 
At September 21, 2011 at 2:07 PM , Blogger Stephanie said...

Love something that's useful and cute!

 
At September 21, 2011 at 3:24 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Very cute! I can't wait to try this out!

 
At September 21, 2011 at 4:37 PM , Blogger Christine said...

What a fantastic idea!!! So cute and practical!

 
At September 21, 2011 at 4:55 PM , Blogger Naturally Creative Mama said...

What a great idea! They turned out great!!!!
~Katy

 
At September 21, 2011 at 5:27 PM , Anonymous Meredith Resnick said...

I love this. Beautiful and functional- the ultimate combo!

~ Meredith From A Mother Seeking A Mother Seeking...

 
At September 21, 2011 at 5:29 PM , Blogger Crafty Mischief said...

I've loved the book sling since the first time I saw it but you have taken it to a new brilliant level! I have 3 kids and lots of books, so this idea would fit our needs better. Thank you for the inspiration! I found you at the Cherished Bliss linky party.

 
At September 22, 2011 at 10:57 AM , Blogger Unknown said...

what a fantastic idea, well done!

 
At September 22, 2011 at 1:54 PM , Anonymous Rachel (Lines across my face) said...

These are amazing. I love the fabric and that you have 3 of them. You are being featured today on Lines Across My Face's facebook page.
Rachel

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lines-Across-My-Face/197428556982169

 
At September 22, 2011 at 2:00 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

What an awesome idea! My kids have destroyed more books than I care to admit, simply because I didn't have a proper place to store them.

 
At September 22, 2011 at 9:56 PM , Blogger Kate @ craftwhatever said...

So pretty and thanks for the info on the dowels. I followed you on the yellow vs. purple description!! We have over 300 books for my kids so they are always a mess. Love this idea!

 
At September 23, 2011 at 8:59 AM , Blogger Emily said...

I love this! We are always trying to organize our books better. Thanks for sharing. I am visiting from Freshman Friday and am your newest follower!

Emily

www.mirrorsmetaphorsandkaleidoscopes.blogspot.com

 
At September 23, 2011 at 9:26 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

very cool idea! I'm thinking of redoing my son's room. i shall pin this on pinterest!

 
At September 23, 2011 at 2:46 PM , Blogger Jenny said...

This is so daggone cute! I am so smitten with bookcase alternatives like this that eliminate the need for yet another piece of furniture on my floor. This is darling, and it looks like it was quite a hit with your son too. :-)

 
At September 23, 2011 at 9:49 PM , Anonymous Chrissie said...

What a great idea to do multiple slings! And I covet the fabric you used, so beautiful!

I'm found you on Freshman Friday, and I'm your newest follower. I would love it if you would follow me back!

http://cleverfaeries.blogspot.com

 
At September 23, 2011 at 10:19 PM , Blogger Lindsay said...

Okay, you are AMAZING! What an awesome idea! Very clever. I love that fabric that you used! Makes me want to create something like that in my house! Thank you SO much for sharing this @ Show & Share. I bet my readers LOVED this!

 
At September 23, 2011 at 11:14 PM , Blogger Anita @ GoingALittleCoastal said...

These are so cute. What a great idea. I have not seen them before. I really love them!

 
At September 24, 2011 at 12:01 AM , Blogger Unknown said...

These look so good! Unlike you, this is the first time I've seen them! I really think I need to make some of these for my older boys room to hold miscellaneous homework, instruction manuals...you name it! I am planning my nursery as well and have a lot to do! Only 9 more weeks to do it in!

 
At September 24, 2011 at 7:36 PM , Blogger Stephanie & Brad Bishop said...

Love the pattern and color of the fabric you used for your book slings! Delightful way to organize books in a child's room!

 
At September 24, 2011 at 8:16 PM , Blogger Unknown said...

Wow! That is a lot of books! I love the way the slings turned out and I really love that you did different sizes. You're a brilliant woman with that idea. I need to do something for my little one's books and this may be the ticket to keeping them off the floor! Thanks for sharing.

Krista @ While He Was Napping

 
At September 24, 2011 at 10:35 PM , Blogger Be Colorful Coastal said...

Great project and kudos to persevering and figuring it all out. It was so fun to see all the book titles you have. I way overspent on children's books when my kids were little but I have never regretted it. I still have most of them and someday, if we ever have grandchildren, I will pull them all out again.
Thanks so much for sharing your project on Motivated Monday at BeColorful.
Pam

 
At September 24, 2011 at 10:39 PM , Blogger Jenny @ Simcoe Street said...

Oh I LOVE this! Great job!

 
At September 25, 2011 at 6:19 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

That looks great! I'm pinning this for my own nursery... I've been looking for a great way to store my little man's piles and piles (and piles and piles...) of books. Also, he is constantly naked as well. So it's either normal or we have weird naked ones together. :)

I just popped in from Delightful Order to say hi!

~Kristi

 
At September 25, 2011 at 10:27 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

At least he's in a diaper, my little man wouldn't keep that on either!! My grandmother bought him a T-shirt that read "I'd rather be naked"......he took it off....lol.

Great idea!!! I will be incorporating these in our new nursery as well!!

Thanks!!
Anna

 
At September 25, 2011 at 1:06 PM , Blogger Anna said...

great idea! I love the fabric you used

 
At September 25, 2011 at 8:22 PM , Blogger Unknown said...

love it! you did great! and he's a cutie pie. thanks for the inspiration/motivation to make these for our playroom :)

 
At September 25, 2011 at 11:02 PM , Anonymous Carrie said...

Thank you, thank you, thank you! For providing a simple, cost effective to a nightly annoyance of mine. I purchsed some wooden book shelves 5 years ago - they do not hold books for nothin! Every night I growl at them. Ahhhh - relief.

Your newest follower,
Carrie

 
At September 26, 2011 at 9:37 AM , Blogger Erin of HomeSavvyAtoZ.com said...

I love this shelving idea! It is so function and super stylish. Thank you so much for linking up your post at Freshmen Friday at HomeSavvyAtoZ!

 
At September 26, 2011 at 6:24 PM , Blogger Confessions of a Stay at Home Mommy said...

Thanks for linking up to my Tuesday Confessional party last week. You've been featured so stop by and grab a brag button! http://www.craftyconfessions.com/2011/09/it-is-almost-time-for-this-weeks.html
I hope to see you at this week's link party which starts tonight.
~Macy

 
At September 26, 2011 at 6:52 PM , Blogger Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Those are so cute and how smart are you creating those. Thanks for sharing at Wow.

 
At September 28, 2011 at 3:38 PM , Blogger Ethereal PLUS what I Love said...

These are adorable ...love them. My 13 yr old daughter seconds that :)

 
At September 29, 2011 at 7:51 PM , Blogger Unknown said...

Those are COOL! I'll be featuring tonight!

xo,
Jami

 
At November 2, 2011 at 5:15 PM , Blogger Renovating Rothenbergers said...

This is so cute! I'm bookmarking this for sure!!

 
At January 2, 2012 at 10:30 PM , Blogger Desiree @ The 36th AVENUE said...

I'll be featuring you tomorrow during Sticker Time!
Thank You So Much for Visiting my Party!

 
At January 8, 2012 at 3:47 PM , Blogger Sylvie Créative - Créations Ma Déco Maison said...

I really love your nice and useful idea!

 
At January 8, 2012 at 5:49 PM , Blogger Tulip Row said...

Wow! Impressive! You have got to feel pretty proud! I am your newest follower, you can follow back at tuliprow.blogspot.com

 
At January 9, 2012 at 10:56 AM , Blogger Trish - Mom On Timeout said...

Just pinned this! Found you on Singing Three Little Birds!

 
At January 9, 2012 at 5:22 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow! Those look great...I am going to make some for my classroom. I have some leftover upholstery material from a home project and there would be more than enough to make these.

 
At February 6, 2012 at 5:37 PM , Blogger Unknown said...

That is a cool idea. Love it!

 

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