Cozy, handmade treasures make especially memorable baby-shower gifts. The following pillows, burp cloths, and changing cloths are also wonderful additions to baby's time capsule.

Handsewn Baby Gifts
Baby Pillows with Applique
Martha's favorite baby gift is a down-filled baby pillow personalized with a hand-sewn sham. These pillowcases are made from blue gingham with a yellow flower applique applied with fusible iron-on fabric. There are lots of different applique options to choose from. You could even use cookie cutters as templates. We used a duck, a hand, an initial, and a bear.

1. Cut the fabric to an appropriate size: For a one-piece sham, cut the fabric the same width as the pillow and add 1 inch for the seam. The length should be equal to twice the length of the pillow plus 11 inches.

2. Stitch 1/2-inch double-fold hem at one of the short ends.

3. At the other short end, turn the fabric under 1/2 inch, then again another 2 inches, and stitch.

4. For the pillow's overlap, press the fabric under 7 1/2 inches on the end with the wider hem. Then, fold the sham crosswise with the wrong sides together, so the narrow hemmed edge is in the pressed fold. You can now fold the overlap over the hemmed edge.

5. Stitch a 1/4-inch seam on the two long sides, and trim the seams to 1/8 inch. Turn your sham wrong side out, and iron the seam edges.

6. For French seams, stitch 1/4 inch from the edges. Turn the sham right side out.

7. To make the applique, begin by cutting a square of contrasting fabric and a square of Pellon Craft Bond slightly larger than your applique template.

8. Iron the Pellon to your fabric.

9. Using tailor's chalk or a pencil, trace the applique onto the fabric, and cut out.

10. Cut a piece of fusible web using your applique template as a guide.

11. With the fusible web between your applique and your pillow sham, iron on at the center of the pillow-sham front.

12. Insert the pillow in the sham.