When William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, had their first child, Prince George, Janet Ulbrich wanted to do something special.
So she made a keepsake bib and sent it across the pond to Kensington Palace. But about two months later, she received a package in the mail containing a kind note – and the bib.
The only thing Ulbrich, of Concord, could think of was that she included a business card, and the royal family cannot accept gifts from businesses.
“I assume they figured I was some bigwig mogul,” Ulbrich said with a laugh.
So what was she to do? She put the bib and note in a shadowbox and hung it in her sewing room. She also remembered the oopsy-daisy when she sent the bib she made for Princess Charlotte a few years ago, which generated another nice note of appreciation – but no returned bib.
And last week, Ulbrich completed the trifecta by sending out yet another handcrafted bib for the latest offspring of the Duke and Duchess, Prince Louis Arthur Charles. It included his date of birth (April 23) and time of arrival, weight and a cute representation of all three children. Each bib has been unique.
It cost a whopping $4.50 to send the package to Kensington Palace, which included a card created by her daughter, Wendy Ramsey, and a short note.
“I wished them good luck with their growing family,” she said.
We have to assume by the time this story hits the newsstands, the royal family will have received the bib, and with any luck, Louis is adding a little bit of drool to it. What else is a bib good for?
“It’s my thing. I love doing baby stuff,” she said. “And if people enjoy it, it brings me joy.”
And once she receives another acknowledgement, which would be the royal thing to do, she plans to put both notes in another shadowbox and add it to her sewing room wall.
“My mother taught me to sew when I was 10 or 11 years old and it stuck with me,” Ulbrich said.
Using her embroidery machine, it only takes a couple hours to sew the bib, but before that, she must pick out the bib and the color scheme, choose a font and write out exactly what she wants it to say on her computer.
“I just sit there and use my imagination,” Ulbrich said.
She also makes bibs for Care Net Pregnancy Center of Greater Concord.
If you’re interested in Ulbrich’s work, you can contact her at bill@ulbrich.us.
