Trousers of ginormous warmth.

It's bloomin cold here. It's barely getting above freezing most days, and yesterday morning I opened the curtains to be greeted with the sight of another good few inches of snow. The novelty of winter has definitely worn off, and I'm wishing for rain, which is most unlike me.

Whilst trying to cope with the icicles and the snow flurries, I've realised how few warm 'bottom half' clothes Munchkin has. She has jumpers and tunics a-plenty, all of which can be layered, but all of her trousers and skirts seem alarmingly thin. With this in mind, a few weeks ago I set about making some lined trousers with the brushed cotton I used for her latest tunic.

I bought this pattern last month, with the intention of using it as a stash-buster. I am still a bit scared of commercial patterns, but when I was looking at the back of the envelope I could see that there wouldn't be any techniques involved that I haven't already mastered, and it would just be a case of reading the instructions carefully. I just seem to get my head in a bit of a tizz whenever I sit down with that big piece of paper and read all those technical sewing terms. And then I fold it all back up again and put it back in the packet :)

But this pattern was fine. I made the trousers up with a few alterations - I essentially made two pairs of trousers, one from denim and one from brushed cotton, and then attached them right sides together at the waistband, flipped them wrong sides together, and then topstitched. They came up quite big, but that means they'll probably last until she's about 5 :) I did a pattern review here, so you can read more about it if you want to.

They look a little bit mid-90's, but they're warm and they match lots of nice red tops that Munchkin already has in her wardrobe. I suppose in theory they're reversible, but I imagine someone would report me to social services if I made her wear them with the brushed cotton on the outside :)

I'm moving to Japan.

It must be the best place to live in the world, if their standard of sewing books is anything to go by :)

Buoyed by the success of the mushroom skirt (I'm still sorting the bow out, pictures when it's done), I started on the little bloomer / pantaloons, which looked equally as simple.


And they were! I remembered the seam allowance this time, so no hiccups. The fit on Munchkin is perfect. They're made from a bog-standard denim from the magic fabric shop, and they'd suit any other medium to heavy weight fabric. I have some nice red cord that I think I'll use for another pair.

Me and Munchkin had an outing to Skipton last week with Grandma pickledweasel, and we went to The Fent Shop to have a browse. I picked up a few bargains, including a lovely piece of babycord that was just crying out to be made into a top to go with the new pantaloons :)

I couldn't quite get munchkin to replicate the poses in the book :)

There were faults on the fabric, so I had to cut the pattern pieces carefully, but it looks pretty good. This pattern was slightly more advanced, and I did spend a long time staring at the diagrams for the sleeves before my little brain was able to make sense of how they go together. I made a size larger, as I wanted it to last til next summer, but the fit is still pretty good. It would maybe be better sewn in a fabric with a bit more stretch, as the chest is a bit tight when munchkin pulls it on over her arms / shoulders.


Three garments in two weeks is pretty good going for me, so you can tell how easy the patterns are :) I'm going to give it a rest for a while now and start on my quilt, but I'll definitely be making more from it. It goes up to 130cm (roughly age 8), so Munchkin can have a new pair of pantaloons each year for the next six years :) I bet Japan is so cool that pantaloons are standard issue school uniform.

Bib = FAIL

I finished another bib last night, and at first was very pleased with it. It's backed with the same spotty fabric that the pears are printed onto, and it's the same denim jacket as I've used before. I tried a different shape this time, and made it slightly smaller. Munchkin had gone to bed, so I had to find an alternative model (sorry Buddha).

On closer inspection I realised 2 things. a) I had forgotten to sew the velcro on. I was so fixated on getting my applique neat that I forgot all about fastenings - I didn't even cut the velcro out and forget to sew it on, I just forgot about it all together. Grandma pickledweasel is coming round today with her popper putter inner to help save the situation.

b) My topstitching hadn't closed the seam it was meant to. I left about a 3" gap at the bottom of the bib when I was sewing the front and back together, so I could turn the bib right side out. Rather than close it with invisible stitch I thought it would look nice with a line of black stitch round the edge, plus it's really good practice for me and my wayward sewing machine (I tend to go round corners a bit fast). Anyhoo, I didn't sew close enough to the edge. Pah. I'll have to invisible stitch it after all.

Never mind. Practice makes perfect, yes? I'm still liking the pears. I handprinted them with a print block I made yonks ago. I think the spotty fabric is perfect for them.

A happier bib experience

I've made another bib for lovely baby Rebecca, this time without cheap melty ribbon. I'm very pleased with it, mainly because the little bird works really well, but also because it is considerably less wonky than my last attempt.

I bought a nice soft denim shirt from a charity shop today, so I'll be whipping up some more soon, probably to sell. A question for you all*, if I may: Would you buy a bib with a button on it? Not a button as a fixing, a button as embellishment. I nearly put one on the little bird, but then thought some moms might be a bit worried about baby chewing it off and swallowing it.

I'm not one of those moms, (when gardening the other day I was very pleased that Munchkin only managed to eat soil twice) but I'd appreciate some other opinions. Thanks!

* by 'all', I mean Kitschy Coo, Nifty, and the other couple of people who read my blog :D

A lesson learnt

This is a bib I've made for a lovely new baby called Rebecca, who arrived in the world last week. The denim is from an old jacket I bought from a charity shop, and the pink polka fabric was a cheap piece from my old favourite Abakhan's. It's a little bit wonky, but it's made with love :)

I took the photo this morning before I put the velcro on the tabs at the top. Do you like it? It's pretty, isn't it? Do you like the polka dot ribbon? 'Very cute,' I'm thinking to myself as I give it one last iron before I gift wrap it. 'Oooh, I'll make more with this ribbon, it's really OH MY GOD WHY IS IT SMUDGING???!!'

Don't iron cheap ribbon. Your polka dots will melt :(