Lapped Front Infant Hoodie: Tutorial and Pattern

Last year during Top-toberfest I had a newborn baby.  I made him the sweetest little sweatshirt, made up a pattern, and then it never found it's way into the series.  So, one year later, I'm finally sharing it with you.  Unfortunately a few of the tutorial photos were deleted from my computer, so I'll do the best to fill in the gaps.

I loved this sweatshirt for a newborn.  The lapped front, allows you to pull the sweatshirt off an on with ease.  No zippers, no buttons, no snaps.  Easy on, easy off, and a relatively happy baby (what baby really loves having their clothes changed).

This sweatshirt pattern is gender neutral-hooray.  I made a really basic sweatshirt with the materials that I had on hand, but you could really dress it up with pockets, buttons, trims, etc.

KCWC: Day 2- Little Leather Shoes

Woot Woot!  I made it to day two.  As I sat down to work on a project last night, I had in mind to sew a sweater/jacket for my youngest.  The truth is though, he doesn't really need a jacket.  I'll probably still make him one, but what the boy needed, was shoes that would stay on his feet.

He has long feet, and a puffy heel, making it nearly impossible to keep shoes on him.

So I decided to make some little leather (deer skin), shoes with an elastic heel.  They aren't the cutest shoes out there, but they're comfortable, and provide a bit of protection.  With winter on it's way, some sort of foot covering was necessary.

 The pattern is all my own, and needs tweaking before I share it with you.  Unfortunately/fortunately the shoes are just a bit on the small side.  I'm going to have to make another pair-hopefully I'll work out some kinks, and have a tutorial to share with you when I do.

Until then, these will do.  The leather provides a nice stretch.  And I think they're pretty cute for what they are.

Bow Tie/Headband Pattern and Tutorial

I recently guest posted over at Mama Says Sew, as part of her Just Sew Series.  I shared a simple little sewing project for an elastic bow tie/headband.  It's a really quick project and is fun to boot.

I thought I'd share the link for the printable pattern and tutorial here on my blog as well, just in case you missed it.

Free Printable Bow Tie Pattern

Bustled Buttercup Skirt-a mini tutorial

To go along with the lace appliqued onesie, I made a little buttercup skirt with a side front bustle.  I don't think that bustle is the correct term for it, but it's the only term that my little mind can come up with at the moment.

My husband thinks that the outfit looks a bit like a saloon girl outfit.  It might be fitting, considering that this little girl has a sister that wants to name her Sparkle.

Anyway, back to the skirt. To create the bustle all you will need is 5 inches of coordinating bias tape.  I used an extra wide double fold bias tape, because I had it on hand. You will also need about 18 inches of 1/4 inch wide ribbon, a safety pin, and fray check for the ribbon ends.

After sewing the side seams, and hemming the bottom, place the bias tape along the hem edge. I divided my front skirt panel in thirds, and placed my bias tape on the 1/3 mark, closest to the right side seam.

 Stitch near the side edges.  Sew up the center of the bias tape, stopping 3/8" away from the top edge of the tape.

Thread your ribbon up one side of the bias tape...

...and down the other.

 Pull on ribbon tails to gather the bustle of the skirt.  Tie the ends in a knot or bow. Apply fray check to the raw ends of the ribbon.

Continue to follow the original buttercup skirt tutorial to finish assembly.

The little bustle shows a bit more of the skirt lining, and is an easy way to remix the pattern.  

Well Dressed Man Onesies and Shorts

The practice onesie that I'll be hanging on to for my little guy.

 My brother was married last month, and I decided to take on the responsibility of making some little outfits for  two of my sweet nephews.  I found some men's dress shirts on clearance at Old Navy, and thought that they would make some darling, and lightweight,  little wedding outfits.

The tops have an appliqued tie, and a vest that is attached at the side seams of the onesie.  I ended up using interfacing on both of the vest pieces to provide it with a bit more structure.

The shorts were designed by me, and made to match.  They feature a faux fly, and some decorative tabs on both the side of the short pant, and on the back pocket.  The vests and shorts have several yellow buttons to pull the whole outfit together.

I love that the men's dress shirt's provided a lightweight material for the shorts.  Who wants to make a little baby suffer in the summer heat?  I was able to squeeze both outfits out of the two shirts, but I did have to be very careful when laying out my pattern pieces.

I don't have a tutorial or pattern prepared, but maybe in the future. I was really pleased with the fit of the shorts, and the overall appearance of the outfit, but these little cuties could make anything look good.

For the Baby: No Hablo Onesie

I've made a couple of embellished onesies for the baking bun. I saw this idea several months ago, and had to replicate it for the little one (unfortunately I don't remember where I first saw it).  I freezer paper stenciled the saying onto the front.  Super simple. 

Whale Appliqued Sleeping Gown

I've loved the recent trend of whale themed baby and children's fabric and clothing.  I couldn't resist making a little whale sleep gown for baby boy number two.

The applique is my own design, and the sleeping gown was created by using an existing article of clothing as a guide.  I don't know why it is, but I can never seem to get the envelope neckline to properly line up, even with the help of Dana's tutorial.

So despite the fact that this little gown has kind of a goofy neckline, I think that our little boy will be nice and comfortable while he sleeps (or stays up all night screaming).

 I know that not everyone is sold on the idea of gowns for their little guys, but I found them to be extremely nice when you have to change diapers in the middle of the night.  I love them.

The Piped Pocket Infant Skirt Pattern and Tutorial

I was glad to hear that so many of you were interested in a tutorial for the Piped Pocket Skirt.  I've done my best to create a printable pattern, and hopefully it will be helpful. This pattern is for an infant skirt, and I've tried to size it to be about a 3-6 month size, but you could easily adjust it to fit a larger or smaller baby by adjusting the length and the amount of elastic gather.

The Partly Cloudy Infant Sun Dress

So you're probably assuming that I'm pregnant with a baby girl, seeing that all of the sewing projects I've done lately have been baby girl related. The truth is that we still don't know.  Hopefully by early next week we'll have some news.  I had this idea for a little dress recently, but I only had enough fabric for an infant sized dress, so that's what I made.  I guess that by next week I'll know if I'm going to be keeping it for our baby bump, or giving it to one of the many baby girls that has been born recently.

The dress is simple in design, and has three pintucks on the bodice, and two at the bottom of the dress.  I used two different widths of ric-rac to have add a little peek-a-boo of color.

The raw edges of the dress are finished off with a coordinating bias tape, which also serves as the shoulder ties.

I did my best to match up the pintucks and ric-rac on the side seams.  I was pretty pleased that they matched up as well as they did.

I left the back of the dress bare, with exception on the two pintucks and row of ric-rac at the bottom edge of the dress.

I still haven't tried the dress on an actual baby.  I'm guessing that it will probably fit a 9-12 pound baby, but I'm not positive on that.  Once I figure out the exact sizing I'll consider doing a tutorial with pattern for the dress.

On a related note, I'm hoping to have a tutorial and pattern available for the piped baby skirt later this week.  I have the photos taken, I just need to scan in and prepare the pattern.

Thanks for reading, and happy sewing!

Shirr Thing For Spring: Day 2-Shirred Sunsuit for Baby

Shirred Sunsuit For Baby

For Day two of Shirr Week, I decided to share a baby sunsuit.  The shirring is used in basically the same way, gathering in the suit around the chest, but it is also applied around the leg openings.  I love the gathered look around the base of the bloomers. I love the idea of a one piece sunsuit for a crawling baby.

This project is based on the Baby Sunsuit Tutorial, from Rae of Made By Rae.  She is always coming up with clever patterns, and I absolutely love this project.  She provides dimensions to create a 6-12 month sized baby sunsuit, but also gives instructions on creating one to fit your little babe (no matter how small).

 The criss crossing straps on this project will surely help them stay in place.  I am a bit concerned that my straps are too long, I may have measured them incorrectly, but the great thing is that I can always add more button holes.

 Rae used a double gauze for her sunsuit, but I used a regular quilters cotton.  I've had this fabric in my stash for about a year now, and I think that this is a perfect project for it.  Nice and bright for a summer picnic. You absolutely must hop over to Rae's site to see her sunsuit modeled.

I didn't do the jumper any favors by hanging it on a hanger.  When it's worn on a little one it balloons out, and makes for a cute little outfit.

When shirring the legs I made my rows 1/4" apart.  I made three rows so that I was sure to have enough gather.

Baby Blessing Romper: Simplicity 5813

My sister and her husband blessed their newborn son this past weekend.  It was wonderful to see them, and to meet my adorable new nephew.

This is their first son, and my mom and I decided to make him his own blessing outfit.  I picked up the material at Joann's.  It was originally $14.99/yard, but I was lucky enough to pick it  up in the remnant section for 90% off.  I only paid a little over a dollar for the piece of fabric.

The pattern we used was Simplicity 5813. There is an optional jacket and bonnet, but unfortunately we didn't have enough fabric to make all three pieces.

I used this same pattern to make Clark's blessing outfit two and a half years ago.  I really like how it turned out.  It was nice to be able to use a serger to clean up the inside seams this time around.

The pattern calls for Middy braid to be used as the trim, unfortunately I wasn't able to find any at our local Joann's store, and the trim I used was both thicker, and narrower than middy braid.  It made it quite difficult to get it to line up straight.

Personalized Blessing Booties

I know that you've seen the wing tipped bay booties before, but I made these special for my nephew's blessing that is happening this weekend.

I thought that it would be nice for him to have a special pair of shoes for the special occasion.

Using the font stitches on my machine, I stitched the date in one shoe, and my nephew's initials in the other.  Hopefully they will be a special keepsake from his special day.

Thanks for reading.