PJ's for Little Ones

 

I love making cute PJ's for little kids.

When I hit on this kimono style pj set from Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones the other day, I knew that I needed to make them for a little, adorable girl I know. 

I pulled out fabrics that would compliment sweet Margaret's dark hair and round cheeks.

Following the sewing instructions for the pjs was all together successful. I had to use my imagination at times, but I like to sew that way anyway, so it wasn't a challenge. 

So if you're looking for pjs to make for the 1 year olds and younger in your life, I'd highly suggest this fun and cute pattern. 

They seemed to be a liked by Margaret too. Yay!

xo Abi

Darison's Tag Baby Blankies {a tutorial}

This adorable neighbor girl of mine is so sweet. 

(Some of you might recognize her as a long-time model for marie-madeline studio patterns...)

When Darison found out that her cousin and his wife were going to be having their first baby, she quickly and thoughtfully set out to make them something special for their precious little one. 

She found a tutorial on how to make these super adorable blankies and went out and found the softest, cutest fabrics and ribbons. 

I was so happy that Darison wanted to spend one of our Fridays together sewing up these sweet baby gifts. (She decided to make two blankets - one for the cousin coming and the other for a little cousin who's already here....) So between homework and cookie dough and then baked cookies, she made these blankets. 

Yes. She. Because all I did was help her out sometimes. 

Darison did a fantastic job and I'm so proud of her! 

She also graciously allowed me to take pictures of her while she worked, so we could share a little bit of our fun day and a new tutorial with you all. 

Darison's Tag Baby Blankies 

-2 squares 13 1/2" x 13 1/2" of soft fabrics (minky, fleece, flannel)

-Ribbon (silky is especially fun)  

 1. cut ribbon 5" long.

 2. fold ribbon in half and pin around the edges of your square. raw edges of ribbon even with raw edge of fabric.

 3. sew ribbon tails down at 1/4".

 4. right sides together, place squares together, with ribbons sandwiched in between.

 5. sew squares together at 1/4". make sure your second stitch is right inside your first stitch. leave 3" gap in the middle of one side.

 6. clip corners and cut off excess around edges.

 7. turn right side out through 3" gap.

 8. carefully push out corners and topstitch around edges at 1/4".

 And..... you're finished! 

Thanks, Darison!

Way to go, Dare!  So proud of you. I know your little cousins will love them!

xo Abi

Sewing Lessons & Her Perfect Play Day Dress {a tutorial}

 

 Learning to sew was super exciting for me and my three sisters. Mom and Nanny made it that way. When one of my favorite little girl people called me (on Christmas Eve, in fact!) and asked me to help her make a dress "next time you come to my house", I was so thrilled and so humbled. I got to thinking right away about what style of dress to make with her, so she wouldn't get bored with the sometimes-too-time-consuming-even-for-me-little-girl-dress-patterns. I immediately thought of this simple, but sweet, t-shirt dress. We've been making them for our little friends for years now, and every kind of little girl loves them.

When you make this dress with your own little girl, (niece, cousin, friend, etc), use this time to teach her safety around the sewing machine, iron, scissors, and pins. Let her choose her own favorite color t-shirt and the fabric she wants to use. Even if the combination is a little off, she'll be so excited with the finished dress, that you'll forget about it not matching! Just have fun!

Her Perfect Play Day Dress Tutorial

Instructions following pictures, left to right. 

1. Help her choose her t-shirt and fabric. 

2. Measure 8 1/2" -9" down from the shoulder seam.

3. Cut excess off tee.

4. At 1/4" sew bias tape around edge of raw tee.

 5. Measure your girl from the back of her neck

to where she wants her dress to finish. 

Subtract the t-shirt's 8 1/2" to find your skirt length. 

Cut that length plus 2" x 2 fabric widths.

6. Cut a few inches of excess off selvages.

7. Sew sides seams of skirt pieces right sides together (not shown). 

Run a gathering stitch around the top of your skirt piece. 

(Method used here is shown and explained

in my book, Modern Prairie Sewing!)

 8. Put t-shirt inside skirt piece, right sides together. 

Match at side seams and pin in place.

9. Gather skirt piece to match width of unstretched tee.

Disperse gathers and pin in place.

10. Use a finishing stitch (preferably, a serge stitch)

at 1/4". Make sure you didn't catch any

of her t-shirt. Trim off slight excess.

11. Finish her dress with a simple hem. Folding the raw 

edge in and over, encasing the raw skirt edge.

 

Her dress is done! She's happy and you're happy. Time well spent!

Patience and I had so much fun sewing together! And she looked absolutely

beautiful in her own little Perfect Play Day dress!

(This little dress model is going to Patience too!)

xo Abi