Baby Hat and Pants from a T-shirt

I spent last week tackling my upcycle clothing pile, which was getting too big.

I selected about eight pieces of clothing that needed to be turned into something new, and worked my magic.  One of those articles of clothing was a gray turtleneck that was never worn, but was in great condition.  It became a new pair of baby pants, which happen to be one of my favorite little things for baby boys, and an adorable top knot hat with a Mom Tattoo Applique (another of my favorite things).

For the hat, I printed off Prudent Baby's Top Knot Hat Pattern.  I aligned the original hem of the turtle neck, with the hem line on the pattern.  Cut out the hat, leaving the side seams of the turtle neck intact for the baby pants.

I followed her instructions, minus the cuff on the hat, and the hat was finished in no time flat.  Then, just to dress it up a bit, I added a small  Mom Heart Tattoo Applique.  I love it so much more than I ever did the turtle neck.

 As I mentioned, I preserved the side seams of the shirt, and cut out my infant pants using the existing hem as well.  I added a faux fly, crotch and leg seams, and the casing, and these were done in minutes also.  So easy.  I'm thinking that I need to make at least one more pair of these.  Do you want a tutorial?

Then, just for good measure, I whipped up a Mom Tattoo appliqued body suit to complete the look.

You can find my PDF file applique template here.

Thanks for reading, and I have more upcycled goodness to come.  It was a productive week.

Faux Peter Pan Collar Embellished Onesie

I had a few of you ask about the shirt that went along with my niece's birthday outfit.  I did make embellish the shirt, but didn't sew it from scratch.  Embellishing is my favorite approach to a top.  

First I started with a 24 month size onesie.  They can be hard to come by, but I've picked some up at Ross Dress for Less, and this particular one my mom found for me.

This onesie (which I love for girls in skirts), has a super simple sparkly faux peter pan collar.  You only need a few basic supplies:

1-Scrap piece of knit fabric, mine was a piece of dance knit that I use for super hero cape appliques.  

2-Heat and Bond fusible web, sewable bond

3-Press Cloth

4-Iron/sewing machine

5-Buttons

6-Scrap Piece of paper, and a pencil

First off, you'll want to make a template.  Start by placing your scrap piece of paper over top of the onesie.  Feel your way around the neckline, tracing the basic shape.  Follow the neckline all of the way up to the top, extending about an inch underneath the envelope closure.

Once you have your basic neckline shape, fold the paper in half, at the center point of the neckline.  Sketch out your basic peter pan collar on one side, add a mini placket if you'd like, and cut.  With your template folded in half, it should be cut symmetrically.

Once you have your template, transfer the shape to the paper side of your fusible web.

Iron your fusible web to the back side of your knit material.

Once your fusible web has cooled, cut out your collar. 

Position your collar on the outside of the onesie, matching up center marks (look for the tag). Use a press cloth to prevent any foiled knits from melting, and adhere to the onesie according to manufacturers directions.

Make sure that you are adhere the collar under the envelope sleeve as well.

 Once adhered and cooled, stitch 1/8" away from the outside of the collar.  If you are using knits, you should not have to worry about finishing off edges.  A straight stitch with a ball point needle will do the trick.  Add a couple of matching buttons to the faux placket, and you are done.

Here is a look at the tips of the collar that hides under the envelope sleeve.  I like the collar to extend right up to the top of the shoulder, that way it doesn't peek out when the shirt is being worn.

Obviously, you could use this technique with any shirt, it doesn't have to be a bodysuit.  You could either extend the collar up to the shoulder seam, or create a narrow band to extend around the back of a crew neck top.

There you have it.  A super quick embellishment.  It adds just a bit of sparkle, and is still wearable.

Personalized T-Shirt and Cape

I hope that you've all enjoyed the past week, wether or not you were stuffing your face with holiday foods.  Things are going well around here.  In the time since my last craft fair I've been able to spend a little time catching up on projects. (I signed up for another fair this weekend, so the catching up didn't last long).

My cousin asked me to make a custom t-shirt for her youngest son.  Apparently, the only thing that he has on his Christmas list is a shirt with him first initial on it.  Isn't that awesome?  Clark's list grows daily, and I fear he'll be horribly disappointed on Christmas day, Wylie however, will probably be perfectly content with him awesome new "W" shirt.

I bought a basic long sleeve shirt at Wal-Mart, and turned to my trusty x-acto knife and freezer paper to make a stencil.  I stenciled a basic serif "W" onto some blue interlock knit.  Once the paint was dry I adhered wonder under to the wrong side of the knit, Trimmed the blue knit to leave a small border around the stencil, and appliqued the letter to the shirt.  Pretty simple.

I used my Super Hero Cape pattern to make him a matching cape.  Initially I wanted to design something more elaborate, but my cousin insisted that all he wanted was a W.  I actually love how both pieces turned out.  I think that the metallic paint, and shiny knit, do a great job of creating a bit more visual interest.

So, I'm totally fine with boys wearing metallics.  Am I alone in this?  Do you think it's okay?

Should you want to make a similar project, here are a few helpful tutorials to help you along the way:

Appliqueing with Knits
Sewing Straight Lines
Freezer Paper Stenciling
Super Hero Cape Pattern

Shark Attack T-shirt with Template

I'm going all out with my boys tops this year aren't I.  Graphic tees all over the place, not a placket in sight.

I realize that not everyone loves sharks, or wants a shark shirt, but my little guy happens to love them.  When I say love, I mean he's a bit obsessed.  We started calling him Clark the Shark a while ago, and now he thinks that he is a shark.  The other day he told me "Mom, when I die I want Heavenly Father to make me into a shark".  I told him he'd have to talk to Heavenly Father about that, so he went on the back porch and said a little prayer to ask Heavenly Father to turn him into a shark.

He also request fish for nearly every meal, including breakfast, "because that's what shark's eat".


Should you have a shark lover in your house, you can find my pdf pattern here. Download it for personal use.


Materials:
I <3 Sharks Template
t-shirt
freezer paper
fabric paint
x-acto knife
iron
foam stencil brush
sewable fusible web
felt
*knit fabric same color as felt, if desired

Sewing materials

Interactive Moster Tee By Stacey of Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy

I'm thrilled to have our Stacey of Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy, as our guest blogger today.  She's the mother of, you guessed it, three boys.  Her blog is filled to the brim with great boy projects, activities, and mother approved boy books. The best part about her projects is that they have the boy in mind.  Her projects are fun to view, and even more fun for the boy receiving them.  If you're the mother of a boy, be sure to stop by her blog.  She's very clever, and I'm so happy to have her sharing today's project.

Hi there! I'm Stacey and I blog over at Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy! I'm very excited to be here to share for Toptoberfest.  With three boys running around, most of my sewing falls into the boy category.  I've found that the secret to spicing up their wardrobes and convincing them to wear the "mommy made" clothing, is a variety of t-shirts.  And if the boys get to pick the themes, all the better.  Star Wars, vikings, ninjas, and personal jokes all end up in the laundry time and time again. 

Today I'm sharing my tutorial for an interactive monster t-shirt.  Post naming, I'm thinking I should have gone with "perpetually changing monster t-shirt" or something along those lines but while I've gotten the hang of sewing, clever t-shirt names allude me.  Regardless of what you call it, it's sure to be a hit with your little one.

Supplies:
t-shirt
wool felt scraps (I prefer 100% wool.  It tends to be more expensive but washes with much less pilling)
Velcro
Heat and Bond or other fusible interfacing
coordinating thread

Step 1:  Cut pieces from wool felt.  Before cutting the body, eye stems and horns, follow package directions to apply fusible interfacing.

Step 2:  Cut small squares of interfacing for the eyes and mouth pieces.  Iron on per package instructions.  When you are deciding on monster "accessories" keep in mind that you'll want at least two different color combinations of each facial feature in order to mix and match. The boys helped me to choose which colors and mouth features they wanted for their monsters. I find they are immeasurable more excited about a piece of clothing if they get to make choices during the project.

Step 3:  Iron the body, horns, and eye stems to your shirt per the interfacing package directions.

Step 4:  Sew around the edge of each piece in order to applique it to the shirt.  For the eye stems, I made three rows of stitching.

Step 5:  Cut a positive/negative piece of Velcro for each facial feature and each place where you want it to attach.  Sewing a rectangle around the outside edge, attach the all of the positive pieces to the monster body and the negative pieces to each "accessory".

That's it!  You are now able to mix and match to create a new monster each time you wear it.  One note:  if you have a clothing sensitive kinda kid (like my middle one) you may want to be sure they wear an undershirt underneath or place a piece of fusible-cut away stabilizer behind the shirt when you sew on the Velcro pieces.

Here's just three of our monstrous creations.  My oldest two thought this was such a great idea, I've been commissioned to sew two more.  Next time around we'll play with the body shape.  Personally, I've always been partial to the "Monsters Inc." monster type.

One word of warning, the line between the monster's facial features and one's own, may begin to become confused.

Here's hoping your little one has a better monster face than mine.  Maybe he thought I meant he was supposed to make the face he makes when he sees a scary monster.

Thanks for having us, Tricia.  The boys and I would get a huge kick out of seeing your monster shirts, so please feel free to stop on over and share if you decide to make one.  Have a great day!









Wasn't that great!  What little boy wouldn't love getting dressed in the morning, when it involved creating a one of a kind monster face.  Love it!  Thanks Stacey for sharing your great project.

Wonder Woman Halloween Costume

Last week I finished up four Halloween Costumes. I got to choose what to make for my friend's two year old daughter.  It was harder than I thought.  Not having a girl, I felt overwhelmed with the possibilities.

Initially I thought I'd turn her into a Disney Princess, or maybe a butterfly, but then she'd have the same costume as every other girl between the ages of 2 and 10.  Then I worried that maybe she'd want to have the same costume as every girl between 2 and 10.  Finally I decided to turn her into a superhero princess.  After making her mom a cape a couple of weeks ago, I thought that she might like to be like her Mama. So the wonder woman costume was born.


The costume is complete with red leggings.  They reference her famous red boots, while still keeping her little legs warm.  The Star spangled hot pants were replaced with a simple knit circle skirt. And the bustier top was replaced with a long sleeve top with color block sleeves (because I ran out of red knit).

My favorite elements of the outfit have to be the armbands and the headpiece.  I love how they turned out.  The faux sequin fabric was picked up at Joann's.  The faux red leather stars were cut out with one of my new dies for my accuquilt Go! baby fabric cutter.  It made this costume to much easier to put together. Sew in Peltex interfacing provides the shape for the armbands and the headpiece.

I added a shiny gold applique to her cape.  I know that Wonder Woman doesn't traditionally have a cape, but in my opinion, if a kid dresses up as a super, they need a cape.  I used my Super Hero Cape Pattern, the pdf pattern is available in my shop.

I stitched the applique on the knit top.  I always trust a stitch better than a fusible adhesive, especially on stretch fabric.

Technique Tuesday: Zig Zag Stitching

When I purchased my first sewing machine, I was so confused by all of the stitches that came standard on my sewing machine.  They were a major selling point for me, but once I opened the box, I had no idea what I'd ever use many of them for.  Three years later, and I've discovered many useful applications for many of the stitches.  Today we're just going to talk about a few of them...mainly the zig zag stitches.

There are three main zig zag stitches that are found on most sewing machines: The standard zig zag, a narrow zig zag stitch, and a two or three point zig zag stitch.  So they sound similar, and they look similar, so why would one need three different stitches?  Well, you probably could get away with a standard zig zag stitch, but having the additional stitches really can come in handy.  

So let's get down to the nitty gritty shall we...

The standard zig zag stitch: can be used to do a variety of things, including but not limited to: overcasting raw edges, attaching appliques, working with stretch fabrics, and creating decorative details.

Three Point Zig Zag Stitch: Overcasting on stretch or medium weight fabrics, darning, attaching elastics (Sheer Thing Skirt). I use it most often when attaching elastics.  The multiple stitches in the zig zag help the seam hold up to greater stress and strain.

Narrow Zig Zag Stitch:Sewing stretch fabrics, and creating decorative details.  Because this stitch is narrow, you can sew seams on stretch fabrics with it.  The angle of the stitches prevents the thread from breaking as the fabric stretches, and the seam is stressed.  I used the narrow zig zag stitch on the side seams of my swimming suit.  I also like to use it when sewing with knit fabrics.

If your sewing machine doesn't offer three point or narrow zig zag stitches, you can generally adjust the stitch to meet your needs.  By adjusting both the stitch length and width, you can create a large variety of stitches to meet your sewing needs.

Decorative Application

By shortening the stitch down to next to nothing, you can create a satin stitch.  Satin stitches are often used as decorative details (especially when done using specialty threads).  The stitches fall right next to one another, creating a satin like appearance.

Practical Overcasting Application

Before I had a serger I had a sewing machine, and my good ol' zig zag stitch was my best friend as I finished off the raw edges of my fabrics.  To do so, you just want to make sure that the needle drops just off the side of your fabric when it is in the right position.  In this case, my zig zag stitch is at it's preset settings.

Overcasting raw edges prevents fraying and gives the garment or project a more polished finish.

Appliques

Appliques can be attached to projects by using an overcast zig zag stitch.  The stitch length and width can be adjusted to fit the size and shape of the applique.  In this case I narrowed the stitch, but didn't shorten the stitch length much.  If your fabric frays easily, you may want to shorten it to create more of a satin stitch.

 Hope that helps understand a few practical applications of the zig zag stitches.  What do you use your zig zag stitches for?  Any particular projects, techniques, or materials that you like to use them for?

Worn/Stained Clothing Up-cycle

Having two boys in a row has been nice to our pocket book.  We haven't had to build a wardrobe for Miles completely from scratch.  Aside from a few onesies with mustard yellow stains, most of Clark's baby clothes are still in great condition.  Unfortunately the clothes that Clark is growing out of, haven't faired as well.  Boys get bigger, and clothes wear out sooner.  I was about ready to chuck a pair of too short, holey kneed pants, when I had this revolutionary idea.  Turn the pants into shorts.  I know, it's brilliant.  Who ever thought of such a thing (please sense sarcasm).  

I grew up wearing cut off jeans during the summer.  I can't say that I was ever thrilled to wear cut-offs, but I did it none the less.  As a mother I like my kids to look somewhat presentable when we are out in public, but when Clark is digging holes in the back yard, and looking for dinosaur bones, cut-offs are quite fitting. 

So, I took that old pair of pants and cut them off. (Rotary cutters are great for that)

Then, in an effort to control the ridiculous amount of fraying that occurs with cut-offs, I stitched a few rows of contrast stitching along the bottom of the shorts.  They'll still fray, but only up until the stitching lines.  I used a lengthened triple stitch; it makes the stitching a bit more visible.

Clark really wanted red stitching, but the only red stitching was along the bottom.  It looked a bit out of place.

 I had a fantastic art teacher in college that had several one-liners that he'd often repeat to us when discussing our artwork.  One of his famous phrases was "If it looks out of place, add more of it".  

So I added more of it.  I added some contrast stitching on the coin pocket...

...and along the back pocket...

 ...and I couldn't forget the tag.  

They look better, still like cut-offs, but a bit better.

My favorite part about this project was Clark's reaction.  He was absolutely amazed that I'd turned a pair of pants into shorts.  He's asked me more than once how I did it.  I tell him that it is just one of my many mom super powers.

Along with the pair of holey jeans, we had a stained shirt that I figured couldn't be passed down.  I was about to chuck it as well.  I know, it sounds horrible, but I'm feeling overwhelmed with STUFF lately.  Anyway, I didn't throw it away, I cut it apart.

I've always loved the banded stripes on this shirt.  It reminds me of clothes that I wore as a little girl.  So, I saved the stripes.

I added some fusible web to the back of the knit fabric, and adhered it to a onesie.

I then stitched around the outside edges with my sewing machine.  I used a basic straight stitch as the knit won't fray.  It's now a super simple striped onesie. I love it, and I love the fact that I was able to reuse something that even I thought was junk.

So, what are your mom super powers, and your favorite ways to salvage damaged clothing?  I'd love to hear.

Tutorial: Embellished Lace Onesie

My sister is expecting a little baby girl in the summer.  Little girls are so much fun to sew for.  Even though I have two boys, I probably end up making more for girls than boys.  I whipped up a remixed buttercup skirt for the new baby, and decided that it needed a coordinating top.  I've had this black lace in my stash for quite some time.  You might remember it from my lace embellished cardigan refashion. It was just wide enough to add a fun lace accent around the neckline.

To start with, I cut out a piece of lightweight fusible web, that was the same size and shape as my lace.

 I then adhered the fusible web to the wrong side of the lace using a press cloth, and my iron.

After the fusible web was attached, I transferred the basic outline of the onesie shoulder seams, and neckline to the paper backing. The shape was then cut, and paper backing removed.

Position the lace piece under the envelope sleeves of the onesie, and as close to the neckline as possible.  You may even be able to slip the upper edge of the lace under the lip of the neckline.

The shoulder tabs of the lace were tucked underneath the envelope sleeves.  You will want to make sure that these extend as close the shoulder fold as possible, that way your lace edge won't peek through when the garment is worn. Adhere the lace to the onesie with your iron and press cloth.

 I used a narrow zig zag stitch to secure the lace.  I followed the contour of the lace closely. I should probably note that this will work best if your lace doesn't unravel or fray much.

That's it, a super quick lace embellished onesie. I'll share more details on the skirt later.

Thanks for reading.