E's First Day

E had her first day of Early Childhood this morning.  I planned for her to wear an outfit I'd made during Summer KCW, but some of you may have seen my panic yesterday on Facebook about how it was going to be too cold to wear it.  I considered sewing up something warmer, but decided in the end to go the more sane route and just add layers.  I rarely make reasonable decisions when it comes to last minute sewing, so maybe this means I've turned a corner.  Not likely.

Last week when it was 90 degrees every day, I was thinking she'd wear her yellow Ottobre tank with her bee skirt -- she loves her bee toy so much that she even has one at school for motivation, so I knew her teacher and para would think the bees on her skirt were fitting.  It was much too chilly for that this morning, though, so she wore a white Jalie tee under a RTW knit blazer, and we added some tights as well.

She's also on her third year of using the owl bag (tutorial here).  I am beyond thrilled with how well it has held up! 

KCW Day 4: Madras Plaid Capris

So these are certainly not my best work.  More Favorite Things Little Smarty Pants, but capris as drafted this time rather than made into a skirt.  I know better than to try to rush cutting out plaids, but rush I did.  Folding the fabric in half -- even relatively carefully -- and hoping for the best is not the way to get things to line up properly.  Oh well.  Maybe I'll just have E wear a tunic with them.  The leg side seams match better, at least.

I love the bias cut back waistband, although it would be a more noticeable detail if I didn't have to pull the elastic so tightly for the skinny one.

KCW Day 1: Little Smarty Pants/Tiered Skirt Hybrid

I'm super excited that there's a summer edition of Kids Clothes Week this year, because it was just the incentive I needed to clean up the sorely neglected sewing room and tackle my mental to-do list. 

First up was a skirt/skort/whatever we're calling it for the resident bee lover.  I used the Favorite Things Little Smarty Pants pattern as a starting point.  I chose it partially because it has a separate waistband and partially because she was wearing her linen bermudas from that pattern when I started.  I'm not sure I would have thought of it otherwise!  Since she is growing up but not out, they still fit her well, so I didn't even have to trace off a new size -- two years later.

I cut the shorts at the notches for the cuff fold-line and the waistband pieces as normal.  For the skirt (size 3 width, approx. size 5 length), I used two 7" strips.  The top tier was 33 3/4" and the bottom was 53 3/8".  I followed the instructions for the capris up until the waistband is attached to the legs.  At that point I gathered the top tier to fit the top of the shorts, basted it in place and then applied the waistband. Then I added the bottom tier and sewed a narrow hem.  I also narrow hemmed the shorts and added a row of shirring to make them more bloomer-ish.

Flat front

Elastic at back waist

Bloomers

I never put skirts on E because she is likely to pull her foot -- or both feet! -- up over her head at any given time, so this is perfect for her.  It went together even more quickly than I thought, so I'm sure you'll be seeing more of these.

KCWC Days 1&2

So, remember way back four days ago when I said I learned my lesson about having matching thread before starting a project?  I was totally kidding!  I'm calling my dark brown topstitching a design detail.  Yep... planned it like that.


I spent the first day of the Kids Clothes Week Challenge tracing and cutting and today sewed up some linen Favorite Things Little Smarty Pants Bermuda shorts for E.  Does it make sense for a three-year-old to have linen shorts?  I'm hoping they look good even more wrinkled that this:

I really liked the pattern. Quick to put together with some nice details.  I especially like the flat front and the way the cuffs are sewn, almost like a tuck.  I had planned to make the button tabs on the waistband too, but I did a terrible job of topstitching (very "Becky-homecky," as Michael Kors would say) and abandoned that idea.

I'm fairly certain the legs are actually the same length!