Pyjama time: episode two

Ever since I first saw Jalie 3244, I'd always wondered about a footed, onesie pyjama pattern that could fit the whole family and what kind of nutjob family would ever want to buy such a pattern.

Of course I bought it, but only because I had an awesome idea for costumes for the whole family for Melburn Roobaix. (Which is, sadly, corona-cancelled for this year.)

The kids loved the idea of onesies as pyjamas so out came the pattern anyway. I traced off just the one size, size O (and not one for Flipper or myself, so you can give up on the blog post now if you like!)

Both kids are roughly the same size in every regard except height and limb length.

Hers is a straight size O with no modifications to size and it's great. Not ridiculously oversized but I can see it should get a few seasons of growth, especially if her limbs start to catch up with her torso length.

His is size O but with length to sleeves, torso and legs. Of course I should have thought that by adding torso length I would maybe not need to add so much leg length, but I just went with exactly the discrepancy between his measurements and the size O measurement chart.

So, for my records, that was: 8cm torso length to front and back (his torso loop length was 15cm> pattern). 8cm leg length and 10cm sleeve length.
It's super baggy in crotch and leg length with a good arm length, but I bet that's what he outgrows first!

For each onesie I needed 1.5m of fabric, assuming it was around 150cm wide. I was keen to use a cotton lycra (95% cotton, 5% spandex) but didn't have any cuts that big in my stash. So I went online shopping.

All the really cool euro knits would have been great, but I was being too tight to fork out more than $50 in fabric costs alone for each onesie.... I ended up buying both fabrics at a much more agreeable price from Lush Fabrics.

This one feels fairly nice, not awesome, but fairly nice. It has good recovery, but I don't think it's cotton at all. I suspect it fell into the cotton knits category because the rabbit character gives the fabric the name "cotton tail" and that might be what tricks the store category search? I dunno, maybe it is a cotton lycra... Edit: listing says it is: cotton-tail-in-blue

The print is really sweet.

P's fabric on the other hand is not so nice at all. It has a hard hand, this weird, slubby texture, very little recovery and the print opens up to the background fabric when stretched. We both agreed we really liked the colour and the print and since we had it we might as well sew it up. He's been wearing it every night it's not been in the wash so it's not like it's terrible. Yet it was a bit disappointing. I always prefer to feel knits before buying, and I think if the price is below $30/m I might need to stick to that rule!

We hunted through the ribbings stash and found some that matched nicely. Red and grey were their choices and lo and behold, the stash delivered.

What I didn't have, and wasn't prepared to buy, were zippers. I also figured that a long zip might bend and buckle weirdly when you're sleeping. Instead I fashioned a little button placket and used snaps with my big bench mounted snap press. I don't mind sewing in a zipper but this is definitely quicker and easier.

The kids are delighted with them and have now declared they want another one each, but this time with the feet sewn in option.

When I cut and sew those, I'll upload some more details about the placket variation and how to sew it in.

Meanwhile I think that's it. Except for all the outtakes. :)

Details:
Pattern: Jalie 3244
Fabrics: Cotton lycra (hmmm) from Lush Fabrics
Size: O with length mods for him
Modifications: 2cm wide button placket instead of zip.

Secret Sewist Gift Exchange

It's no secret that I can't resist joining in a secret crafty gift exchange. I was so enamoured of Sanae and Ute's Secret Valentine Gift Exchange that I ran with it for 11 months last year after it was officially wound up.

So when Caz (Useful Box) suggested a gift exchange to keep ourselves amused during Covid19 lockdown, I signed up straight away.

To keep things simple, and maybe to warn off people like me who get carried away, there were three suggested patterns:

The Bombazine oven mitt, The Apertio Pouch and the Fibresmith Cloth Pot, all of which are free, downloadable patterns.

My secret sewist gift recipient had said she liked navy with mustard or dusty pink and didn't care which project I chose.

That suited my stash of fabrics well and I figured was a great opportunity to play with the Wefty needle I'd bought ages ago.

I first learned of fabric weaving when Mr Domestic made this amazing trench coat for his duaghter and shared it on the Oliver + S blog. A little while later he also contributed a tutorial on fabric weaving. I bought the Wefty needle and then never used it.

I decided to make like I knew what I was doing and use 1cm strips (apparently for "advanced" weavers) on my first try. I had some solid navy quilting cotton, a check shirting and an uneven painted stripe woven along with some mustard yellow lawn.

I figured there's nothing worse than an oven mitt hat doesn't insulate well, so I batted this puppy up. There's one layer of wool melton and two layers of wool quilt batting on each side. I'd also stalked my giftee enough to learn that she's a smaller human and so I figured even if my oven mitt turned out a bit small due to its thickness that wouldn't be a worry. Unless she was a smallish human with enormously oversized hands! :)

I was completely delighted with the weaving, but once I sewed it into the oven mitt, with all that insulation and then turned it right side out, the weaving got a bit munted up. It really bothered me and I was ready to bin it and start over....

But then I sat on the couch, picked up some mustard yellow linen yarn that Sarvi sent me, and some macrame rope and crocheted a mat to go with it. Then I figured I had a gift worth giving.

Some yellow roses came off the bush (and that, fortunately, turns out to be my recipients favourite type of rose) and I did and knock and run delivery this afternoon. Fun!

Kensington Knit Skirt Variation - part B

I'm over on the Oliver + S blog doing a little Sew + Tell for another Kensington Knit Skirt that I made.

Not much to say except that it's shorter and much more seasonally appropriate. Check it out with this link.

Details:
Patterns: Kensington knit Skirt and Metro Tee - both from Liesl + Co.
Modifications: Shortened the skirt, View A.
Fabrics: Vintage double knit from the great destash, a few years ago, of a friend's mum - who sadly passed away just at the time I was sewing this skirt. Yoke is a rib knit
Top is a stretch velour.