kids clothes week

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KCW Spring ’14: Striped Top Clamdiggers

KCW Spring 14 Clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

My spring Kids Clothes Week sewing went all the way through Sunday night, and then a little bit of “corrective” sewing spilled over to this morning. The KCW challenge is supposed to last for a full seven days – Monday through Sunday – but I’ll admit I’m not always good at putting in my KCW sewing hours over the weekend. Sometimes it’s because I’ve sewn like crazy during the week and feel satisfied that I’ve accomplished my personal KCW goals, other times I’m just ready for a break because the sewing didn’t go as planned, and then still other times life has different plans and the weekends end up hectic and without much time to sneak in some sewing.

These short pants (which were originally envisioned as shorts and turned into these “clamdigger” length pants) came out exactly as I had hoped they would. I am particularly happy that my stripes lined up; the striped fabric was a bit slippery so I pinned it like mad to keep everything in place. My inspiration was drawn from this photo I saw on Pinterest and pinned to my KCW Planning board. I used Made by Rae’s Parsley Pants pattern as the base for these pants. While Eli would typically wear a size 5T in the Parsley Pants pattern, because I was using stretchy knit fabric for these pants, I used the size 4T pattern to compensate for the fabric choice. Using Rae’s tutorial on how to make shorts from a pants pattern, I altered the pattern for the shorter length. I also needed to modify the pattern to allow for the two different fabrics (the striped top and the solid bottom). I handled this modification the way you typically would to insert colorblocking in a pattern. Lastly, I added elastic to the bottom hems. The knit fabrics were both purchased from Girl Charlee online.

KCW striped top clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

KCW striped clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

As happy as I am with the end result, I have a KCW confession to make — these pants took way, way, way longer to make than they should have! The pants were not technically difficult and I’ve used the Parsley Pants pattern enough times to feel comfortable with it. Instead, this KCW Spring project was befallen by certain filial distractions and my own perfectionism. Thankfully both the pants and I have lived to tell the tale!

KCW clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

KCW clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

I started the pants on Saturday during what was supposed to be naptime. Daisy napped. Eli did not. But I was obstinately intent on sewing. If we were watching an episode of Thomas the Tank Engine, this is when the narrator would announce, “And then there was trouble.” I convinced Eli it would be fun to help his dad with spring cleaning in the yard, but that only lasted long enough for me to modify the pattern and cut my fabric. By the time I was sitting down at the sewing machine, he was sitting in my sewing studio, asking a million questions and touching everything he could reach. My sewing room is typically off limits to the kids, so this was causing me to sweat. But did I stop sewing?? Nope. Well, not until I realized that in my distraction I had sewn the striped top portion upside down onto the bottom half. Grrrrr… So, it was back to the cutting table, because I was determined not to pick out all the stitches.  At that point I decided to lengthen the pants legs to just below the knee. I love this clamdigger length on boys’ pants. I think it works perfectly for spring and summer, and I’m glad I made the change to lengthen these. (How’s that for finding the silver lining!?)

I picked up the project again on Sunday and it was smooth sailing until at the very end I decided I didn’t like the way some of the waistband stitching looked. In my first version some of the stitching appeared on the white portion of the striped fabric and some on the black portion. Although the seam was straight, it ended up looking sloppy because the line was visible in some parts but not in others. And so, as much as I sincerely despise ripping stitches out of knit fabric, I ripped out the entire waistband seam (zigzagged stiches, no less — ugh!). Let’s just say that’s an hour of my life I won’t be getting back! By then it was late, I was annoyed, and thankfully made the decision to go to bed and re-do the waistband casing this morning! Today’s efforts resulted in a much cleaner waistband seam. Even though it was completely annoying to pick out a million little stitches, if I hadn’t fixed it, it would have made me insane to look at the messy seam every time Eli wore these pants. (Who am I kidding? I probably wouldn’t have let him wear the pants if I hadn’t fixed that seam!!)

KCW clamdiggers by fromwholecloth

Seam neuroses aside, I had a fun Kids Clothes Week. I just may not be able to look at my seam ripper for a week or so.


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KCW Spring ’14: Woodland Leggings and Knit Cardigan

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More Kids Clothes Week spring sewing. And more comfy knits that proved perfect for the park today.

Leggings details:

Fabric: Jay Cyn Designs for Birch Organics, knit, purchased from Fabricworm

Pattern: Go To Patterns leggings pattern, size 2T

Cardigan details:

Fabric: knit interlock from Jo-Anns

Pattern: Slouchy Cardigan by heidiandfinn, size 2T, modified with shorter cuff

WoodlandLeggings

The leggings were inspired by a post on the winthrop chronicles about leggings that the author, Sarah, made her daughter. I had been coveting this knit fabric on the Fabricworm site and musing about what to make with it. When I saw the leggings Sarah made, my mind was made up and I just had to have this fabric. Birch Organics has such wonderful woven and knit fabrics, and I especially love the designs by Jay Cyn Designs. I previously used a different design for a birthday girl’s horse skirt. Daisy and I have been playing “I Spy” with these leggings, trying to identify all the woodland animals it features.

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The knit was very easy to sew, probably because it is not very stretchy and is a nice thick cotton that doesn’t slip when sewing. The size 2T in this leggings pattern is still slightly big on Daisy. I think the fabric will actually show a bit better when the fit is more snug.

Mom Cardigan

In a nod to KCW’s theme of “Mini Me”, the cardigan I made Daisy was inspired by the cardigan I wear all the time. All. The. Time. I recall when I purchased it in early 2009. I was in J.Crew looking for some clothes for an upcoming trip to St. Thomas with dear friends. I loved the cardigan (it’s a medium weight french terry) but thought it seemed pricey for what is essentially a sweatshirt. My husband convinced me to buy it, and I can unequivocally say I have gotten my money’s worth! It has served me well.

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There is also another aspect of “Mini Me” to this cardigan. The fabric comes from a knit dress I made myself that was a HUGE miss. I accidentally purchased the knit dress pattern in the wrong size, then accidentally ripped it when opening the package (rendering it unable to be returned), and was too cheap to repurchase the pattern in the correct size. So, I tried scaling the pattern to my size, and it didn’t work — at all.  It was reminiscent of a hospital gown or a muumuu. At least I was able to reuse the fabric, although I wish I had taken a picture before cutting it up! The only problem is that I did not have enough fabric to cut one straight piece for the wide binding that runs along the cardigan. I actually had to piece three separate cuts together for the requisite 54 inch binding, and that resulted in an obvious and annoying seam on the left side of the binding at about chest level. Hence the little fuschia rectangle I attached in an attempt to cover the seam and add a little flair. Kind of a weak fix, but better than having to stare at that misplaced seam!

It was my first time using the cardigan pattern, and I liked it a lot. It was a relatively quick and easy project, with good instructions.

Daisy seemed really comfortable in her new clothes. She did, however, keep trying to button or close the cardigan front. I had to keep explaining that this sweatshirt does not close. Once she started running around the park, she didn’t give it another thought.

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Two more days left in KCW. I’m not sure what’s up next for me. But my son is definitely quite aware that so far I have sewn for only Daisy. I may be guilted into making him some sweatpants after all.


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Rockin’ the Raccoon on Vacation

Raccoon Top

I’m back. I just realized it has been forever since I last posted. I knew it had been a while, but where the heck have the last two months gone!? I keep feeling as though it’s still January — perhaps because Connecticut still feels like it’s stuck in January! Grrr…. enough of the cold and lingering snow!

In January I was going strong, feeling energized by the optimism that a new year tends to inspire in me. I was recommitted to exercising regularly. Intent on blogging more. I was inspired by new sewing projects. I was even prepared and on schedule with my Kids Clothes Week (Winter) sewing projects.  And then — boom! — the rose-tinted glasses of 2014 bliss and renewal were yanked off and exchanged for an unwelcome visitor in the form of the stomach bug. I suppose I was being uncharacteristically optimistic we’d avoid it, since the bug had been winding its way through my son’s preschool. It visited and stuck around for a while. Thankfully my husband and I were spared the worst of it, but my daughter experienced more than enough for all of us — yuck. And although we’ve long been recovered from the nastiness of GI bugs, it really knocked me off kilter for a while. I was rationalizing a newly adopted attitude of underachievement, “Listen, after that whole house o’ vomit thing, can’t I just coast for a bit here. Housework and fitness and general productivity are so overrated.”

And, well, what do you know? It’s just about time for Kids Clothes Week again. It’s as though I hardly missed a beat; February and March serving as mere filler between sewing challenges. Now that KCW occurs 4 times/year and is scheduled along with the seasons, I kind of feel like I just finished sewing for one KCW and need to get organized for the next. I’ll admit to a preference for the old days, when KCW happened just twice a year. And I realize that’s a silly lament, because it’s not exactly as if someone has the metaphorical gun to my head, making me sew myself silly for all four KCWs. It’s just so hard to not get wrapped up in the KCW excitement and want to create for my kiddos. Especially when folks in the sewing blogosphere start previewing their KCW sewing plans weeks in advance and recommending patterns and fabrics and loads of other goodies (you can check out the kids clothes week blog for a taste of the KCW Spring fervor).  Alas, KCW Spring is right around the corner.

kid's clothes week

Now putting aside my complaints of late winter doldrums and stomach bugs and irresistible sewing forums, there was a very bright and warm part to our late winter. Vacation!! It came together kind of quickly, although we’d been talking of getting away for some time. And it was really nice. Like perfect-weather-fun-at-the-beach kind of nice. And I had the chance to sew up a couple simple items for the kids to wear on vacation; although I only got the chance to photograph one top (on location, of course).

Raccoon1

Enough Raccoon

This top is a simple self-drafted peasant shirt using raccoon-themed fabric from the Acacia collection designed by Tula Pink for Free Spirit. The sleeve fabric is from the same collection. I sewed up the top the night before we left for vacation. This fabric just makes me smile, with the big raccoon eyes looking out at you. And the colors go with a bunch of other items in my daughter’s wardrobe, so it has a high wearability factor. Since we returned home she’s been wearing it layered over long-sleeved shirts, so this top has already seen a ton of wear.

Lookin' good, girlfriend!

Lookin’ good, girlfriend!

Daisy and I snuck out early one morning to snap these photos, while the boys made the breakfast and coffee run. She insisted on wearing her brother’s sunglasses. Always hiding from the paparazzi, this one.

Raccoon2

 

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This year’s vacation was better than last year.  I was grateful for the improvement a year made in terms of my children’s adaptability. There was less fussing, more napping and they were just generally more portable.  I think it was due to all of us being a year older and wiser — the kids starting to shed that knee-jerk reaction of being instantly irritable when faced with a series of new experiences and a disrupted sleep schedule, and the parents (reluctantly, at least in my case) accepting the difference between a “vacation” and a “family vacation.” As much as I sometimes wish they could just stay little, I guess growing up has its benefits, too.

I hope to be back next week to share some of my KCW plans. Have a great weekend!

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KCW Fall 2013: Day 4

You’re getting sleepy. Very sleepy.

No, wait a second. I’m getting sleepy. I am sleepy. But it’s Kid’s Clothes Week-induced sleepiness, so I’m okay with it. Late nights at the sewing machine are worth it.

pjpants2

On the docket today — pajama pants! And flannel pajama pants, no less, from the snuggly soft Fanfare line from Birch Fabrics and designed by Rae of Made By Rae. Yep, good ol’  Rae. I say that like we’re dear friends, but basically I just cyber-stalk her by devouring every word of her wonderful website. The woman is a sewing and pattern-making rockstar and she recently added fabric design to her list of talents, too.

Her flannels have been making the rounds on blogs since their debut. Using them to make pajamas/lounge pants is hardly an original idea since it was done many times already during the blog tour (check out Rae’s site here for more info). But every post I read raved about how soft and comfy these flannels were, so I had to take the plunge. The fact that Eli went straight into thumb-sucking, fake-sleeping mode upon trying them on tells me I chose well. I’m sure it had nothing to do with 4 consecutive, napless days. Nope.

Sleepingpants

I used Rae’s parsley pants pattern as the base for these PJ pants. Eli wears a 4T in the pants pattern, and I cut the fabric between a 4T and a 5T for these PJs to make them a bit more roomy and lounge-y. I added a cuff in quilting cotton from Michael Miller Fabrics Mini Mikes collection. He’s wearing them with the cuff rolled up right now; but they will definitely last through the winter (maybe into next winter????) with the cuff rolled down if necessary.

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These pajama bottoms also serve a very practical purpose in our house.  Full bodysuit-style pajamas pose too big a challenge for a young boy who is still new to staying dry overnight. These pajama pants are easy on/off with an elastic waist and faux drawstring.

 

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Sweet, soft, flannel dreams!