Playtime Pocket Pants for Cloth Diapered Toddlers

I was very lucky to test the darling little Playtimd Pocket Pants and Shorts by Jill Auxford of AimerLae and Finn because I just found out that my sister will be cloth diapering my new niece, and these little things will be perfect!

The pattern features a fold over yoga band waist that allows for adjustment in the rise as well as cuffs on the legs that allow for variation in length. This allows the pattern to be one size for children sizes 12 months to 3T. Furthermore, if you know anything about pattern adjustment, the pattern can easily be adjusted to fit bigger toddlers. 

I don't have a whole lot of pictures of this one because I didn't do anything new except the inset pocket. I may address that in another post if anyone wants me to. 

And here the shorts are with the band flipped up!

And here they are with the band flipped down (and the fabric showing truer color). 

The pants/shorts offer lots of extra bum room for the cloth diaper bums, and with as soft knit, they can be so comfy for babies and toddlers as they learn to work their little bodies. 

If you think these pants are darling, you can order the pattern from the AimerLae and Finn Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/194840875/aimerlae-finn-playtime-pocket?ref=shop_home_active_1

There is a coupon code for a discount until Thursday: PPPSALE. 

I thought I should mention that I tested this pattern and so it was free for me, but my opinions are still my own. I really do think these shorts are cute!!

Mo's Lounge Gown, Lettuce Hems, and Knit Necklines

I sewed up the 6-12 month version of Mo's Lounge gown by Katrina Boin of MoBowtique! The gown goes all the way up to a size 10 though!!

It is a lovely little pattern with raglan sleeves and lettuce hems! 

I am in love with this little pattern and plan to make more! 

It came together so quickly and easily! 

I used a lightweight interlock (the same as I used in the Uptown/Downtown Dress- http://babystepstocouture.blogspot.com/2014/06/uptowndowntown-dress-sewing-knits.html).

So, here are my pictures of the dress. 

This one is before I finished, but it shows the lettuce hem so well!

And here is the dress with the neckline. On this pattern, I had to do some stretching to get the sleeves and neckline in. (Completely new concept to me. Lol)

And here is the dress on the baby. 

And I couldn't find a tutorial on how to do the lettuce hem the way I did so I will just describe it. First, I zigzagged around the edge of the entire dress with a medium sized zigzag stitch. Next, I took the dress to the ironing board, and I folded the zigzag stitch under and pressed, easing in the excess. Finally I took my dress to the sewing machine and sewed the hem down. I sewed with a straight stitch, stretching the fabric as much as I could as I sewed. I am not sure if the straight stitch was the best choice, but it worked for me. 

If you think this little gown is as cute as a button, you can purchase the dress from the Etsy shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/196445409/mos-lounge-gown-nightgown-pattern-size?ref=listing-shop-header-0

Use this coupon code until Friday to get a 25 percent discount: RELEASE. 

I thought I should mention that I tested this pattern and so it was free for me, but my opinions are still my own. I really do think this dress/nightgown is cute!!

UPDATE: 

Here is some information on drafting and sewing knit neckbands: http://www.itsseweasytv.com/projects/series_300/307/ISE_307-1_INST.pdf

http://www.threadsmagazine.com/item/3839/video-a-neckline-binding-for-knits

http://www.made-by-rae.com/2014/02/knit-necklines-part-i-adding-a-neckband-to-a-tee/

Uptown/Downtown Dress, Sewing Knits Without a Walking Foot, and a Little Known Tip from a Facebook Friend

I never sew anything that doesn't present an opportunity to learn something new! I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed and came across a pattern testing call from a wonderful designer, Terri Olson of TerriLin Collections. She just made her first pattern, the sweet little Uptown/Downtown dress! 

I felt this was a perfect dress to help me try out knits. I didn't get it perfect, but I think the dress still turned out great. Read to the end for some little known tips I learned in sewing groups that I will employ next time. 

So here is what I did!

First of all, I laid out my fabric. Her fabric layout requires that you fold both selvedges in toward the center. I am a grainline freak because I have worn lots of twisty clothes and refuse to sew any! So I painstakingly measured from the fold to the selvedge in several places to make sure that they were parallel. And laid out my pattern to cut. Then I was frustrated so I left the rest for the next day. 

So.... The next day...

I started pinning to sew. I practiced lots on my scraps. I tried running the fabric through the machine all willy nilly. It didn't work. The seam curled. I put tissue paper beneath, but I had bunching in front of the presser foot and that caused stretching and puckers. All bad!! 

So, I lined up my fabric evenly with as little stretching as possible. 

I cut a piece of tissue paper big enough to cover the seam. 

I put tissue paper on top and bottom of each seam. I sandwiched my fabric right between two pieces of tissue paper. 

I trimmed the tissue paper to the edge of the fabric so I had a nice even edge to line up with the lines on my sewing machine.  (Notice I pushed the pins down.)

After finishing all the shoulder seams (these are shoulder seams), I took the fabric (and tissue paper) to the sewing machine and sewed. The fabric didn't bunch up or pucker at all! And without a concerted effort and exerted strength (that would have probably broken my needle), that fabric wasn't stretching while I sewed!!

Et voila!!

I took off the tissue paper. 

Perfect seams, no walking foot!

Just in an effort to be honest, it is simple but time consuming. Check out the neckline! Looks like a medieval instrument of torture!! But I did the exact same thing. I laid the tissue over and under the fabric flat. I cut the tissue to the curve. 

But it turned out fairly nicely. It could have been better, but more on that later. 

The dress is nearly done. I am glad that I didn't hem it as my niece is quite tall and I will be adding a panel to the bottom of this dress to make it longer. It will be something like View A of this McCall's pattern I have been wanting to make forever!

Anyway, here is the almost finished dress!

It hit the knee on my niece unhemmed, but my sister wants it longer so I will be doing a brown contrast band at the bottom. 

WHAT I WILL DO DIFFERENTLY NEXT TIME:

Next time, I will let my fabric rest between the folding and pinning, and between the pinning and cutting. This is like working with bias fabric because it stretches. Handle it as little as possible. 

I had some issues in my cutting. So I pleated out the extra.

I have lots of bulk in the shoulders. Any tips on reducing it will be greatly appreciated!

Stay tuned for how I go about adding the contrast panel at the bottom and how I go about hemming. 

If you love the TerriLinn Collections Uptown/Downtown Dress, you can buy the pattern here in her Etsy Store: https://www.etsy.com/listing/194744430/the-uptowndowntown-dress-pdf-digital?ref=shop_home_active_1

The pattern is available in sizes 2T through 10. This pattern can go from play dress to formal dress by simply changing the fabric! I will be making many more of these in my future!! 

I thought I should mention that I tested this pattern and so it was free for me, but my opinions are still my own. I really do think this dress is cute!!

Update: Here are some more tips on sewing knit fabric. http://youtu.be/GARmdK1IWgk

Second Update (7/24/14): The name and link to the Etsy shop have changed. Here is the new link: https://www.etsy.com/shop/SewStraightPatterns?ref=hdr_shop_menu

Drafting, Modifying, and Embellishing the Basic Tee

I was watching Sewing with Nancy few weeks ago, and I saw her doing some wonderful embellishments to a knit top. She did things like adding ruffles and flowers to just jazz it up a bit.  I thought a little about trying to figure out how to get a good fitting knit shirt pattern.

Then a few weeks later, I was watching It's Sew Easy, and she used a basic t-shirt pattern to make cardigan sets, cowl neck tops, tunics and so on!  I decided to immediately find out how to make a well fit knit pattern.  The best part is that knit fabric stretches and is rather forgiving as far as fit goes. 

So here, in this post, I am linking to the sloper drafting tutorial, the modifications for the various looks, and the embellishments!  I can't wait to try it!