Sewing for the Boy ~ Simplicity, Burda, Ottobre, Jalie

I don’t sew much for Mr. T anymore.  He’s a 15 year old boy so he is pretty picky on things.  He specifically wants things that are plain.  No graphics, no color changes, no fun… 
He wears hoodies every day to school.  So I thought I would make him a few.
 
First up: Burda 6718



Size: 36 which fits his measurements exactly.  However, it ended up short.  like 2-3 inches short.  Sadness.

It doesn’t look too short here, but it really is with jeans on. He wears it and likes it but I cringe every time!  I'll have to remake it only longer.



Fabric: Midnight Green Cotton Slub Jersey Knit.  I purchased it from Fabric Mart.  It said 4 way stretch but it barely stretches 2 way.  anyway. 2 yards $4/yard so $8 total for the hoodie. 

2nd hoodie: Jalie 3355
I never knew this pattern was unisex.  There are only girls on the front cover.  Then one day I read in a facebook post and looked on the website and sure enough, unisex!!  How perfect because I love this pattern for me and Miss K. 



Size: straight size U.  This is a couple sizes above his measurements.  I know he likes a men’s medium and I wear a men’s medium; I use size U for this hoodie so that’s what I used.  I’ve been using shoestrings for the hoodie string.  It works out great.



Fabric: 2 yards Dark Pewter Rayon French Terry Knit from Fabric Mart.  Purchased in May 2017 for $6/yard.  total for this hoodie $12.  This fabric is so so soft. but heavy because of the rayon. Mr. T LOVES this hoodie.  He wears it every chance he gets. 

Thoughts: I feel like the hem band is way too tight.  I remember I added inches to it for myself and K but forgot for T’s.  I need to add 1-2 inches next time to the width of the hem band. 

Pajamas. This is where I can have a little more creativity with Mr. T.
 
Ottobre 06/2011 # 37 Pajama shorts
I’ve made Mr. T these pajamas countless times.  He loves them but keeps outgrowing them!



This time I made size 170.  This is the highest size Ottobre offers so when T outgrows these he won’t be getting more! 

Fabric: 1.5 yards of this fun pinstripe suiting.  I got it in a scrap box from Fabric Mart June 2015.  It was only $0.83 for the whole bit.  The selvage said “Lana, Storia, 180’s Qualita Moderno” Quite honestly I didn’t know what I would use it for and them BAM!  it became perfect for this project. 



I recently got an embroidery machine and digitized this Overwatch design for Mr. T onto them.  This symbol is for one of his favorite characters in Overwatch.  Sombra I think?  He loves these, I love these.  they wash well and wear well.  Next time I’ll remember to widen the waistband and use 1.5” elastic instead of 3/4”

Simplicity 1021 Pajama Shorts
I thought it would be fun to try this pattern.  It has pockets, it looks cool. 


Size: Small.  I took 1” off the rise because it looked crazy high.  They turned out cute, but short.  Like boxers.  What sucks is that the pattern doesn't list yardage for just the bottoms.  They list it for the total top and bottoms.

Mr. T likes them.  I added a Lobster design and T’s monogram to the leg.  Mr. T really likes these.  I think I’ll make the pants version for him.



Fabric: 2 yards (though I didn't use all of it) Navy Lobster in Cotton Lawn.  I got this back in Feb 2015 from Hancocks on sale for $2.64/yard.  so total for these $5.28


Happy Sewing!

3 Hoodies, 3 Tees

 Hoodies are my favorite thing to wear.  Cozy, snuggly, warm; what’s not to love?  My purple Jalie hoodie from April 2015 is getting a lot of wear so I decided to make another one.

Pattern:  Jalie 3355 Hoodie



Size: "U" for shoulders/bust/waist to "X" at the hip.  My purple one had stretch so it was looser, this one is a stable french terry so it is more snug. 



Instructions:  Great instructions!  A sheet of written instruction and a sheet of photos for each step. 



Fabric: 2.5 yards Heather Grey French Terry; 80% Cotton 20% Polyester; purchased in July 2015 from fashionfabricsclub for $8.25 total.  This stuff is fantastic!  I wish all the french terry I purchased would be like this. It is stable and moderately thick, yet soft. I also used about 1/2 yard of Charcoal  Cotton Lycra from Stylish Fabrics; purchased in Sep 2016. $3.45.  Total for hoodie including vinyl: $14.70 (vinyl says “there’s no place like home”)



Thoughts:  I love, love, love this hoodie.  I wear it all the time.  It is my favorite thing I have right now.



Pattern: Jalie 3355 Hoodie

Miss K wanted a purple hoodie exactly like my purple Jalie one.  She asked for it about a year ago and I now just got to making it. Oops! Size: Q for bust and height, R for waist.  Fabric: 1.75 yards Regal Purple Sweatshirt Fleece purchased from fashionfabricsclub in October 2015 for $11.38; Also, 1/2 yard of Purple and Mint Rayon Modal Knit, purchased in Dec 2014 from Purpleseamstress for $2; Total for Hoodie: $13.38. Thoughts:  It fits her perfectly and she is super happy with it.  I wanted to put a graphic on it but she wouldn’t allow it.



Pattern:  Patterns for Pirates Relaxed Raglan with Hoodie Add on



Size: Straight size Large. Fits exactly like a sweatshirt should.



Instructions: Fantastic.  These instructions hold your hand each step of the way and photos are provided for each step. 



Fabric: 1 yard Owl French Terry from Wanderlust Designs Custom Fabric on Facebook.  I purchased this in May 2016 on sale for $16.50; also 1 yard Red Scarlet French Terry from Stylish Fabrics; purchased in September for $7.50 – the red is thin and seems like it would pill easily.  I am tempted to take out the red and replace it with a heavier cotton terry in blue.  We will see. Total including vinyl: $27.00  (Vinyl says “dreamer, soulsearcher, wanderer”)



Thoughts:  I really like the pattern.  I like the fit of the raglan.  I’m just not happy with the red french terry.  It is much lighter and thinner than the owl fabric – which makes the sleeves feel heavy. 

Pattern:  Patterns For Pirates Relaxed Raglan



Size: M bust/waist to an XL at the hip.  Options: Short sleeve, Cut on the Shirt hemmed line, Round neck.   I slimmed 3 inches off each side seam from nothing at bust to 3” at waist to nothing at hip.  I like the slimmer fit.



Instructions: Fantastic.  These instructions hold your hand each step of the way and photos are provided for each step. 

Fabric: 1 yards Royal Blue Poly/Lycra Jersey Knit, 95% Polyester/5% Lycra, purchased in May 2016 from fabricmart with a coupon, $2.84. Also, 1/4 yard Laguna Stretch Cotton Jersey Heathered Knit Pepper, purchased from Fabric.com in March 2014 $1.48. Total for top: $4.32.

Thoughts: I made this top before the below top.  I loved the gray sleeves and blue body of the raglan.  I wasn’t sure if I liked the lightweight drape of the Poly knit.  It hasn’t been worn at all.  So, I decided to remake this top in all cotton lycra, as seen below.

Pattern:  Patterns for Pirates Relaxed Raglan



Size:  M bust/waist to an XL at the hip.  Options: Short sleeve, Cut on the Shirt hemmed line, Round neck.   I slimmed 3 inches off each side seam from nothing at bust to 3” at waist to nothing at hip.



Instructions: Fantastic.  These instructions hold your hand each step of the way and photos are provided for each step. 



Fabric: 1 yard Kaufman Laguna Stretch Jersey Knit Royal, purchased from Fabric.com in May 2016 for a tank for my husband (more on that later) but, it didn’t work out and so I repurposed it for this shirt,  $6.97. Also, 1/4 yard Charcoal 2 Tone-N Cotton Lycra Jersey Knit Fabric Combed 10oz, purchased from Stylish Fabric in Sept 2016 for $1.73. Total for shirt with vinyl: $11.70.

Thoughts: Well, I love the graphic however I think the shirt is too tight at the bust – I should have made a Large in the bust.  Also, I mistakenly cut it on the “Shirt Banded” like instead of the “Shirt Hemmed” line so I feel like it is too short.  Maybe I’ll try to add a band to it or maybe I’ll just scrap it.

Pattern:  Patterns For Pirates Relaxed Raglan

Size: XXS; Cut on “Shirt Banded” Line; Short sleeve option.



Fabric: 1/4 yard “Shattered Showers” Poly Jersey from Cuddle Muffins on Facebook.  I purchased yardage of this in March 2015 and like to use it sparingly to save hoard it; $5.25.  Also, 3/4 yard red cotton lycra that I’m not sure where I got or when.  Normally I pay $6.50 a yard for CL so we will say $4.88 for the 3/4 yard.  Total for shirt: $10.13



Thoughts: This looks great on K. It fits her well and she loves it. Win-win!

Tally: 3 hoodies, 3 tees; 3 wins, 3 so-so's; 4 for me, 2 for Miss K

Happy Sewing!
Kristin

Clothes for the girl

I had a relatively uneventful procedure last week and am pretty much recovered.  I wanted to thank you for your kind comments on my last post.  I have the results already but do not meet with my doctor for 2 weeks to discuss. 

So, Miss K hit a decent growth spurt recently and needed some new clothes.  I’m trying to bribe her to take pictures so we will see how many of my makes I can get photographed.  Here are the first 5 things I made her.



First up is Jalie 3355 Hoodie
I used size Q for the shoulders/bust/height and size R from the waist down.  This is 1 size up from her measurements because last time I made this hoodie it just fit and I wanted a little growing room added in. 



I’ve made this hoodie for her before: January 2015 I made K a polka dot hoodie;  March 2015 I made her a pac man one  and also a teal hippie bus one. This hoodie is the perfect pattern and I’ve even made it for myself in purple and tie dye.



The instructions are fantastic, but all Jalie ones are.  I am such a visual person so the written steps are nice but the pictures steps are what really help me.
 


Fabric: 1.5 yards of red sweatshirt fleece.  “hearts on red”  I picked this up in February 2015 for $4.50 a yard.  I wish I had bought more!  Do you ever get fabric that you wish you had just bought a whole bolt of?  Anyway, I also used some navy cotton lycra scraps.  Hoodie total cost was $6.75



Next time:  I think I will take 1” out of the overall height because with the band that you can’t always see in these pictures, this hoodie is a bit long on K.  She likes to wear it but asked for it to be shorter next time.  She also asked to have a kitty heart put on the front with my silhouette machine. 

(here is before Kitty heart was added)

The pants she is wearing here are Ottobre 01/2009 #29 Saija Sweatpants.  These pants are no stranger to this blog.  This is her favorite pants pattern.  I think if I counted right this is the 10th and 11th pair I’ve made for her. 





I used size 152, reduced the front rise by 1” and shortened by 1” in length.  I use 1.5” wide elastic inside the yoga waistband to help hold them up.



Fabric: Dark Navy Blue Jersey Knit, cotton lycra.  This fabric is super nice and beefy at 11oz in weight. It was a dream to sew and it feels so nice in hand.  I purchased this in March and used 1 yard for $3.95.






I sewed her up another pair in a light french terry.  It is a Ruby Two Tone French Terry Fabric and made of 87% Polyester 9% Rayon 4% Spandex.  This fabric is so super soft I knew K would like it. 



She actually didn’t like them at first – hated the heathered look of the fabric – but now has come around and likes them. I picked this up in Nov 2015 for $7.40 for the yard.



With the leftover 1/2 yard of sweatshirt fabric from the hoodie I decided to try a shorts pattern out for K. This is Jalie 2445.  I used size R on the shorts and Q for the rise/height.  They turned out really cute but also really, really short.  K uses them for bedtime because she’s a hot sleeper.  Shorts: $2.25



I made this pattern a second time in Lilac Purple Cotton Spandex Knit.  Same R sizing and Q for the rise.  I added 1/4” to the side seams though to give K’s hips more room.  I added 1/2” full butt adjustment and 3” to the length of the legs.  These are just ok.  They fit nice on the hips and nothing is wrong with them, K just doesn’t prefer them.  These are pajama shorts now too.  I picked up this fabric in August 2015. Cost of shorts: $3.25



In summary, K received 2 pairs of pants, 2 pairs of shorts, and a hoodie for $23.60 total. 

If you follow me on Instagram you have seen that I am almost finished with a Maxi dress for me.  It is turning out nicely!  I’m also working on a tank for me as well as K.  I have started putting together my summer “want to sew” list.  Have you started your summer sewing yet?

~ Happy Sewing! ~

Kristin

Silhouette Excitement and Miss K Sewing

My mom (who is the best ever) gave me my Birthday present early.  A Silhouette Cameo!!!  Oh how I love this thing.  I was impatiently waiting on some vinyl to come so I could make my first design.  Well, it came and I just went for it.  I made my design, the machine cut it out, and the next thing I know I have the best sweatshirt ever!

This is the Jalie 3355 hoodie that I made in April 2015.  I was sort of “meh” about the sweatshirt but then I wore it a few times and it is amazingly comfortable to wear.  So I loved it but it was so plain.  Well, plain no more!! Here is my new favorite sweatshirt debuting my first ever vinyl creation!

My “I’m so flipping excited” face

And my smug “I’m going to make tons of these” face

I’m going to have loads of fun with this thing. This is the Siser Easy Weed Stretch Heat Transfer Vinyl.  I wanted to make sure it wouldn't crack when my fabric stretched.

Anyway, on to the sewing. 
Miss K picked out some fleece (oh how I dislike fleece) at the store and asked for nightgowns.  I dug up a vintage Kwik Sew from the 70s it is #628 and is a simple nightgown with short, medium, or long length and bonus panties!  I sewed up the medium length in a size 12 for Miss K grading out to a 14 in the waist and hip, per her measurements. 



I made the elephant one first and Miss K approved.  She asked me to make the Inside Out fleece out of the same pattern.  So the bonus is that I had it already traced off.  These sew up really fast too.  It's a pretty shapeless nightgown which is downright perfect for a 9 year old.

I had to beg her to take pictures and she wanted to use the remote by herself.





Fabric for elephants: 1.5 yards “Elephant Party Gray and Blue Microfleece” purchased in September from Hancocks for $5.93 on sale.



Fabric for Inside out: I carefully squeezed this out of 1 yard of “Disney Inside Out Emotions Packed Fleece” also purchased in September at Hancocks for $6.72 on sale.



I also made Miss K up another Jalie Dolman ~ 3352
I sized down with this one to a “N” for the shoulders/bust and a “Q” at the waist/hip.  Unfortunately K thinks this one is too tight in the sleeves and shoulders.  I’m not sure if she will even wear it.  She prefers the ITY fabric like the one I made her in October.



I may just take the Navy sleeves off and hem it to be short sleeves.  She seems to have a problem/irritation where the seam on the sleeves meet. The fabric is Rayon Jersey.  The elephants are scraps from my shirt the other day, the Navy is also scraps from that shirt. I would say the Navy was 1/4 yard for $1.31 and 1/2 yard of the elephants for $3.75 for a total of $5.06