Crochet Ruffled Skirt and Bikini Top for My Baby

We often wish for our babies not to grow too fast. It's so nice to have such little cuties that we can cuddle and kiss non-stop. But babies do grow fast, and for some who buys a lot of clothes for them, like me, we end up with a pile of clothes that were just worn only for a few times, sometimes even just worn once. When it was time for my baby to have her first swimming experience, she was six months then, as expected, my husband and I went to the mall excitedly but unfortunately there were just a few choices of swimwear with her size. We only found one that is nice looking from Carter's which was Php 1300, and my husband was about to pay for it when I stopped him from doing so. For me, it was a bit pricey for something that would be worn for only just an hour or less, and I was sure that it would only be a one-time use since it fitted my baby perfectly and I didn't think that we would be going on another swimming trip soon after that. So rather than spending on a swimwear that's sure to end up on top of my growing pile of old baby stuff, I decided to make one myself. Sure, it's not as good and expensive looking as the one we almost bought, but hey, it's handmade, which means it's made with love.

That's my cute baby wearing my finished work. This outfit was one of the first ones I made for her, and as a beginner crocheter, I wasn't still good at making my own patterns then, and I found it easier to follow video tutorials. 

The bikini top, the ruffled skirt, and the barefoot sandals are all on an easy level. I made the bikini top with the help of this video, Crochet Triangle Bikini Top. And here's the link for the ruffled skirt. 

The making of the barefoot sandals was very easy, too, but I'm sorry, I don't have the exact pattern. Anyway, I just remembered making two flowers, you can choose any flower pattern you want, just the size good for your baby's foot, then I crocheted two sets of about 20 inches long chain, folded each in the center, attached each flower by sewing on the folded center of the chain just leaving a loop enough for my baby's toe to go through, as shown in the picture below. I guess my explanation is not so clear, lol, but anyway, there are a lot of free easy barefoot sandals pattern you can find online.

I used these yarns I got from my friend which she got from Yarn Source Manila. They're cotton yarn which are loosely plied, a bit difficult to work with at first but I got used to it. I also made a lot of adjustments with regard to the tutorial/pattern because these yarns are far different from the thickness of most regular yarns. 

I was happy with the finished look. A lot of my friends said my baby looked really cute in them, well, I'm not really sure if the bikini top and skirt looked good because my baby looks cute in just about everything, haha....