Gathered Eyelet Trim Baby Bodysuit

Last week I was invited to a baby shower, for a baby GIRL.  I love sewing for girls.  Boys are fun too, but I get to do that whenever I want.  Girls mean that I get a chance to indulge in lace, and ruffles, skirts, and ribbons.  It's just fun.  I'll admit it.

 About a year ago I inherited some gathered eyelet lace trim.  It is so delicate, and clean, that I thought it would be the perfect addition to a baby bodysuit.  I love lace trimmed bodysuits, but eyelet lace, it's even sweeter.

I used my serger to finish off the raw edges of the eyelet lace, but you could easily use a tight zig zag stitch or some fray check to prevent fraying.  I then tucked the tabs up under the envelope neckline, and tacked them in place.  The lip of the lace was positioned right next to the neckline, and stitched down.

After embellishing the neckline, I couldn't help but embellish the backside.  a few rows of eyelet lace on the rump, and the little lady is ready to shop off her adorable diaper bum.

Just to make sure that the ruffles on her onesie were shown off, I added a mini version of the buttercup skirt.  Sweet, simple, and a quick baby gift.

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.

Minnie Mouse Template

My husband comes from a Disney loving family, and last week his sister threw a lovely little Minnie Mouse birthday party for her daughter.  I couldn't resist making her a simple little freezer paper stenciled onesie.  I'd planned on using a polka dotted ribbon, but the width I had just wasn't working for me.  So, I mustered all of the self control I had, and used some plain grosgrain ribbon that I had on hand.

A little bit of trim around the neckline added a little something extra to the simple top.

Want to make your own Minnie/Mickey mouse stencil?  Here's a Minnie/Mickey Mouse Template that you can transfer to some freezer paper for a quick little project.  I've added four different sizes of the template...just in case you want to throw a little Minnie Head on the bottom of your baby's onesie bottom.

You can find more information on freezer paper stenciling here.