Sew in Tune- A Radiohead Robe. Kind of.

Hey guys, today I'm over at Stacey's for the fun Sew in Tune series, talking about how I made this robe for Hendrix and my love of Radiohead. Check out my post here. 

If you don't go for me, go so you can leave a comment and enter the giveaway for Melissa's (MellySews) new ebook of patterns for boys, Blank Slate Patterns. I am SO EXCITED to get my hands on these patterns. I think the concept is brilliant. They really are blank basics that can be customized however you like, which I think is exactly what we who sew for boys need! But basic as they are, they are very stylish and look to have a great modern fit. I truly think you could buy this ebook and be set on making your boy's wardrobe from 18 mo to 8 yrs. It always makes me so happy to see talented women like Melissa stepping out in bravery and making their talent a business. You go girl. Just kidding, I don't say that. Except for right now. 

Hope you have a happy Monday! I'll be attempting to baste a quilt. With pins. Yikes. 

That Time I Made Clown Pants

Ok, so they are not really clown pants. They appear to be somewhat cute little boy pants when they are innocently hanging on the wall there.

These are the Treasure Pocket Pants from the book Sewing For Boys. This is the third pattern I've made from the book, and like the others, this was a GREAT pattern. (Just make sure you check out the pattern update here if you try it.) So many great finishing details like the faux fly and hem facings. All while keeping in mind what a little boy would like- lots of easy to access pocket space for little boy belongings. 

The problem is that I cut them a size too big, and Hendrix looks like he's wearing harem pants/ MC Hammer pants/ chef pants/ mall rat JNCO's. (anyone?)

He really loved wearing them, they just look a bit too goofy for me to stomach taking them out into the world. Of course, that's much better than making them too small, I was just really excited about him wearing these right now. And this almost-3-year-old just keeps outgrowing everything, so maybe it won't be too long after all.

It's a funny thing making clothes for your kids. Sometimes I don't know what I enjoy about it more, the process itself, or getting to see them wear it... maybe the process here served me well enough and I don't need him to wear them that bad. Unless he just really wants to take up sagging.

Sewing For Boys: 2-in-1 Jacket

It's January 21, we live in Ohio, and my 2yo finally just now has a coat. This project just kept getting pushed back all winter. I've had the fabrics for a long time, so I didn't want to buy him a cheap Target coat when I had already spent the money on this. I just had to make it! Tara's sew-along gave me the push I needed and the sewing guilt has been lifted. Luckily, winter didn't really arrive here until this week. So now that he has a coat, I'd rather just stay inside, thank you.

But he LOVES it. I don't know where this modeling enthusiasm came from, but check out the moves today-

The outside is a wide corduroy and the reverse is flannel, both from Joann's. Once I started sewing, I really wished I had found some better corduroy. This one just feels chintzy and I'm not in love with the shade of brown. But I'm just nit-picking, overall I'm really happy with it. 

I made the side 4/5 since he's wearing 4t now, and I think it's big enough that he'll be able to wear it next year too. I interlined the front and back pieces with an extra layer of the flannel for warmth. 

My favorite part is definitely the toggles! I couldn't find any buttons that were right, but I didn't want to take short-cuts on the details. So I ripped these off an old baby jacket of his, thinking this would be a quick solution with high payoff. Well, the payoff was good, but it was not quick or easy. First I had to make a bunch of those tiny cords out of the flannel, making sure they were rolled tight with all the raw edges inside. Then I had to jam them thru the tiny holes in the toggles. This was a lot of tedious work. I've never used my teeth so much in sewing. Of course, now the jacket isn't truly reversible like it's meant to be in Sewing For Boys, but I don't think I would really reverse the sides often anyway. The toggles make the thing. 

This was a great pattern to follow and I really enjoyed tackling those welt pockets. (Not as hard as you would think.) After my experience with this and the raglan tees, I cannot wait to make more from this book!

A couple of Raglans on my Ragamuffin, and Other Knitsy Thoughts

Hey guys, just wanted to pop in and let you know that I'm guest posting today on Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy. Stacey is starting a sew-along thru the very awesome Sewing For Boys book, and this week she is having a bunch of guests showing off their projects from the book to get things pumped up.

I'm sharing 2 versions of the raglan tee pattern in the book, plus all my best tips for sewing with knits. (Which I hear Rae also happens to be talking about this whole week. Knits-apalooza!)

You should go check it out here. All of the cool kids are doing it. And you'll be able to see what hilarious thing this shirt says. You know you want to.



Ok, while we are at it with the knits, I might as well answer Rae's kniterview questions. No, I'm not just pretending that she asked me to guest post too :) She actually wants people to do this!

1. I honestly don't remember. This was the first knit project I made, an LBB Hoodie. I don't think I knew enough back then to even know that knits were different and I should possibly be afraid of them. So that took care of that.

2. See #1

3. Clothes for my boy! And I've now made one LBB Hoodie for my baby girl too. Hendrix's Halloween costumes I've made from knit the past two years as well. I'd like to try a top for myself come spring...

4. It's hard to compare. I'm into quilting pretty hard now (have you noticed?) so that's what I like to do with wovens. I'm obsessed. But I also absolutely love being able to make super-comfy practical things for my kids. Apples and oranges really.

5. Interlock is easiest. Jersey can be a tricky bastard but it's just so soft. I've only used ribbing once and I still need to get a better feel for it...

6. I've only used recycled tee-shirts and sweatshirts until just this week. (See above linked guest post for my other shirt made with store-bought knit.) Oh, and I did buy the ribbing as well. We have a few really nice Michael Miller knits at the local fabric store I work in, but I've also browsed this online store and lusted after their wide selection of knit prints. 

7. See #6

8. My main machine, a Brother pc-420.

9. Nope. I have one. It's a sewing resolution this year to actually figure out what to do with it.

10. I used to just lengthen the stitch slightly, but the Sewing For Boys book has a fantastic tip on this that I  will be utilizing from now on: zig-zag stitch, 1.0 width and 3.0 length. 

11. You know, I haven't. But I can see how that would be pretty helpful. My current walking foot needs replacing though.

12. oooooh, also need to try that. 

13. My absolute favorite thing to do with knits is to cut out my pattern pieces with freezer paper. In fact, I've started doing it with all patterns on any fabric, but it especially makes the cutting so much easier and more accurate with knits. I explain a little more with pictures here. 

14. Don't be afraid. It's really a must if you like sewing for your kids, so just cut into an old tshirt and go for it. This free tutorial is a good place to start. 

More about Rae's Kniterviews here. What about you guys? Do you embrace or fear the knits?