Toddler Pinafore Tutorial Sewing Instructions

A while back I bought a toddler pinafore to use as a sewing pattern. I could have bought a pattern, but they are expensive and hard to understand in my opinion.

I traced the pinafore to use in the future when I wanted to make more of them. I could have used regular paper for the pattern, but I knew I would be using this unique pinafore pattern so I used a more durable medium...office files. Laugh all you want, but it's what I had and it works perfect. It will last and last as long as I take good care of it!

What I love about it is the fact that it's a simple one piece pattern. If you add a lining, it becomes reversible. I highly suggest one puts a lining in it because it makes it look better. You do see the lining or the reversed side from the back because of the criss cross style. You can get this pinafore pattern in many places online. I haven't found it for free yet. :(

I chose an ever popular owl print for both layers of my pinafore. I then pinned them right sides together....

Both layers took a yard of fabric for me. It will yield a size 1-3 toddler. The wide variance in size is because the pinafore fits loosely...like an apron. One can wear it as a dress, pinafore, an apron (though there are much easier apron patterns out there that take far less fabric to make!)....even a tunic later on as it becomes short but fits elsewhere! I think it would be cute over a onesie or leggings.

The longest "arms" or straps will have buttonholes. The shorter "arms" or straps will have buttons. Use flat buttons NOT shank ones because that would obviously feel more comfortable against the skin....no matter how one wears it.

I chose to bolster the cotton satin fabric with interfacing on the buttonhole part of the straps. I didn't have any of the fancy kind one normally would use, so I used white wool felt....it was what I had on hand and felt doesn't wiggle around, it's sturdy, it washes well, and it's not lumpy, too thick, or ravel. Perfect!

 All I have to do is sew 1/4 inch all around this pinafore. How simple is that?! Cutting it out was a different story though. :/ That's a LOT of cutting!

Here's the end result....I left a two inch gap at the bottom to turn the dress right side out and then closed it up with my sewing machine. Did I mention how stinkin' FABULOUS my machine is???! Oh yea. It embroiders, it quilts (not sure when I will make one though....) and it overlocks the hems....why need an expensive serger when you can get the exact results from a regular machine that overlocks the hems??!

front of one side....yea, I know, I need to iron this!

front of other side....

back of one.....

and back of other....

No scary zippers, no snaps, and I just figured out how to use my buttonhole presser foot.....what a fabulous day!

Wrap Around Onesie Tutorial And FREE Pattern

I FINALLY got my new sewing machine! That's why I haven't written lately. I have been having so much fun with this awesome thing!!! I went with the Singer 7258 Stylist because I do many different things with a sewing machine, so it's capability to embroider, quilt, and regular sew was important. It also has 100 stitches and is fully automatic and computerized. I couldn't afford to get the one that plugs into your computer. I'm glad I didn't get it anyway. I am still overwhelmed a bit with this one! however, it has been relatively easy to learn and get used to.
I finished my grandsonn's romper finally. It turned out so cute....all black corduroy....but short sleeved as he will be born at the end of this month ....Texas is usually a little warmer by that time.

I also made a wrap around onesie for my new shop I will someday open. I want to take care of some family things, finish all of my dental surgeries ( I have another one tomorrow!), and have some inventory to actually put in my shop when that day comes. I am currently having a clearance/shop closing sale at my Etsy store, Far Out Sprouts.

If you want to make the cute onesie below, first download the pattern here.

I used 1/2 a yard of waffle textured jersey knnit and 2 yards of binding. I bought both at fabricfairy.com. They have the best stuff ever!

I'm not the best teacher, but maybe you can follow my train of thought on this one......

Forgive the horrible blur and over exposure on that picture! UGH. I have NO idea what happened! Anyway, I put the slightly shorter front flap marked "inside" on the pattern on the inside and the bigger (has a deep rounded part at the bottom) on the outside or on top of the inside flap. EVERYTHING IS RIGHT SIDES TOGETHER. Sew only the shoulder seams right now.

This is what you should have when you do the shoulder seams

Now add bias tape of your chose or make your own and sew it along the neckline and  around the  edges of the inside and outside flaps.

Don't do anything to the sides or bottom of the onesie yet!

There are many ways to sew on bias tape. Mine always turn out bad until I stumbled upon a nifty idea to sew one side of the bias tape to the raw edge of the fabric and then fold over the bias tape and zig zag the bias tape closed....ziag zaging over the straight seam you originally made in the first step. Here is what I mean...

I am sewing a straight stitch to the bias tape I have just pinned the crap out of  along my desired route of fabric....a lot  of pinning means it won't dance away from you. :)

Here is the finished results of zig zaging the bias tape that i folded over the fabric edhe after stright stitching it. Zig zag stitching looks nice and allows the fabric to stretch and move with an active child.

You will now add bias tape to the crotch part of the main piece of fabric....NOT the two flaps...they are done with bias tape and won't have anymore added.

Here's what you should have now if opening the onesie up and spreading it out. Ignore my 10 yr old's coin collection. :/

Make three or so pieces of fabric to stabilize your future snaps that will hold the flaps to gether. Mine were just oblong-ish shapes of like 2 by 3 inches and I zig zaged around the edges to make it look more finished. Knit doesn't ravel so it doesn't matter what you do. No one will look at the flaps anyway!

one piece goes to the bigger flap....the one with a longer crotch.

two ;pieces go to the smaller or inside flap.

here is what you should have after sewing up the sides and the sleeve sides. DON'T  SEW THE CROTCH  !

 Here is what you will have when you turn everything right side out. Now, iron it and sew in those snaps and you're done!

Murphys Law Of Sewing That I Learned While The Baby Played With "Stupid Doo"

My 4 year old is playing with his "Stupid Doo" (Scooby Doo) blanket and doll, so maybe I will have time to blog post today. :)

Until I get my new sewing machine, I have been reading everything in sight on the Internet about sewing. I also have learned a lot from the old sewing machine I had. Here are some, um, funny (?) things I have learned about sewing just in the 2 years that I have been doing it.

Murphy's Law of Sewing

• Fusible interfacing ALWAYS fuses itself to the iron, particularly when you least expect it.
• There are NEVER enough of the same/identical buttons that you need for a project.
• You can generally count on seam ripping the wrong seam...especially if you are being distracted by young children making "Stupid Doo" tents in your sewing room (or wherever you sew).
• Like socks in the dryer, the pattern you want to use has a missing piece (and if you have young children, you can count on one of them making the missing pattern piece into a paper airplane....perhaps days/weeks before!).
• Only pins and needles fall on the floor.
• Only barefoot people step on the MIA pins and needles.
• Rogue gnomes and angry leprechauns eat your sewing pins in the middle of the night and you can never find sewing pins....no matter how organized you are.
• Count on the material you are working on that you forgot to preshrunk first to shrink the most.
• Why is it that when all is going so very well that the bobbin suddenly runs of thread or worse, the bobbin makes a thread nest?!
• Pinking shears have a contract with aforementioned leprechauns and gnomes and dull just by looking at them.
•  The magnitude of the mistakes made on the project are directly related to the expense of the project/fabric.
• Even perfectly cut fabric pieces with flawlessly trimmed seams will be asymmetrical (think lopsided collars and sleeves).
• The iron has a contract with the aforementioned leprechauns and gnomes too. It only scorches your project when it's complete and you're making the final press.
• The same evil iron NEVER burps gross water on fabric until you are ironing light colored silk, chiffon, etc.
• Something small like the light on your sewing machine always implodes on Sunday.
• Count on the gathering thread to break in the middle.
• You suspect that a naughty family member has "borrowed" your sewing scissors when you begin to cut your fabric. Unusual criminal trace evidence like Elmer's Glue smears, dog hair, paint, and gel from shoe insoles lightly fleck the blades.

It looks like "Stupid Doo" toys have lost their retention for entertaining 4 year olds....so I must dash off into distance to figure out why smoke is coming from the dryer......

Happy sewing!

The Grandbaby Is Coming Must Make A Romper!

It's a little known fact outside privileged family members (until now of course) that I am about to be one of the youngest grandmothers in the world. My husband just turned 32; this is what late night talk shows joke about!

In case you notice, yes, she is maybe 105 pounds soaking wet and only 4 foot 8 inches. The baby is already over 4 pounds. She is expecting a boy. 

I searched all over the internet for a boy romper pattern. I didn't really want to buy one. I don't like paper ones anyway. They are so complicated! there are A LOT of girl rompers patterns out there (free and sold)...but I wasn't able to find a boy romper I liked. Young babies don't like straps and buttons and zippers. Straps equal nightmare for parents because they don't stay put either! (straps are better for toddlers post potty-trained).

Finally, I decided to make my own. I don't suggest doing this if you are a novice sewer like me. However, money is tight and I need a romper pattern NOW. I wanted one that had a high neckline but was easy to get in and out of. I thought about raglan sleeves, but that required knit. I have that material laying around, but I didn't want to use it. I have my heart set on black corduroy that I plan to embroider the logo of my daughter's favorite band on the front. You can't embroider on knit! (unless, of course, you iron/sew a TON of interfacing on the back....again, uncomfortable for a young baby!).

I'm going to show you my first go round of making the top part of the romper...it's called a bodice if you are wondering. Feel free to laugh. I'm okay with it. I know it's ridiculously too large and would fit maybe a 4 year old!

Sizing it down from the original size 2 only made it worse and freakish! I guess I'm a moron when it comes to computers.....

Here was the "final" compilation of different patterns I liked, chopping them up and using what I want my romper to eventually look like.....

For some reason the pants part makes me giggle because they look deformed and weird. However, when cut and sewn together, it won't be so weird....I hope. I have sewn baby pants before ;P .

I barely had enough of the black corduroy to make the outfit. I actually wasn't able to make the 2nd pants piece on the fold. I had to cut it in two pieces. I think I know how to make it work. I am just going to sew it and pretend it's a solid piece. That piece can have a decorative edging or trim...who knows what I will feel like at that point.

Until I get my sewing machine I have been promised with an undefined time frame :( I am going to hit my embroidery hoop again and embroider the Black Veil Brides band logo on the romper. I have a low regard to her favorite band....I hope my romper, computer, and future sewing machine don't self imploded or self combust into flames! Ugh. However, I am sure my mom felt the same one year when she bought me a Guns N' Roses CD. This is a woman who listens to Ray Stevens. Boy was she wanting to gag!

With what is left over of that corduroy, I plan to make a 16 inch by 16 inch pillow. One side will have the corduroy, the other this colorful print from cotton duck. I have already completed the embroidery for the front (corduroy side). See below. When I get my sewing machine, I will put it together and put handmade pretty black organza flowers all around the edges of the embroidery piece. I am too excited!

The wonky purple arrow is showing where my printer printed the  embroidery pattern I made on m y computer.
I left it unfinished in that spot because I wanted to show the progress and what one can do
with their printer and a bit of creativity and imagination.

There are so many details and texture with this particular design I made!
And yes, when ironed (after this picture was taken) the design laid completely flat with no wrinkles or puckers!

Forgive the blur in this photo. :( Think about the organza flowers that will trim this design!

Have a fabulous and creative day!

Best Online Fabric Stores For 2013

I have a confession: I am  total nerd when it comes to looking at fashionable fabric. I can stand there in the store or go online and get lost for hours looking at pretty fabric wondering what I would do with it, what awesome outfit or home decor project I would weave in my craft lair. There, I said it. My kids, mostly boys, HATE it when I say, let's go to the fabric store! We only have two in this honky town anyways. And there isn't much selection in either. Still, I enjoy dreaming about the mythical, magical day I can live in a city and sell my sewing wares. Realistically, that day will never happen because my divorce decree forbids me to move and my current (last!) husband may have a major heart attack if he even sticks a pinky toe into a town more than 50K! Ha!

I'm sure I am not the only one stuck in a small town one is not thrilled to live in. For us "country bumpkins" we can only do one of two things: secretly escape (for a day) with a female friend to the city after we duck tape the kids to a responsible adult over age 18; shop online and hope the hubby doesn't find the bill.

The latter seems more feasible to me. Thus, I came across this fabulous article on online fabric stores and who is best. Check it out! The Best Online Fabric Stores For 2013.

One thing I would change about this list...okay, maybe more than one. I no longer like fabric.com even though they have the greatest prices. I have heard waaaay too many complaints about them filling orders incorrectly or the shipping service being slow, late, or lost. Then, there's the promise of fabric that, sadly, is out stock so one has to discover said disappointment only AFTER the purchase. (GRRRRR). I am glad I have only ordered from them once.

I would have also added fabricworm.com to the list. I absolutely LOVE them. They have great customer service, prices, and selection! They even have cheater quilt fabric! ;P

I am personally in love with Spoonflower.....but, I can't afford them at this time. If I ordered their fabulous fabric, I may be the one duck taped to something.....as my husband would be very unhappy with that bill!

I am still looking longingly at sewing machines. I am still not permitted to get one. :( But I have fresh hope everyday. I know my hubby would get me one if he could. I have this one model in my sight. It can do EVERYTHING and is amazingly UNDER $200! What a steal!

I am currently making some embroidering fabric canvas art....(which one can obviously do without a sewing machine). I toyed with different bird patterns that I plan to implement with a snippet from a Beatles song that references a bird. The above pattern was a heavy contender.....so was this one.....

But neither was giving me the 60's vibe that went with a Beatles song. The one below was almost perfect...it even had musical notes in the background....perfect for Beatles' lyrics! However, it was also Christmas-y. :(

I guess I could tinker around and Photoshop the boughs of holly out of it...but that would be too much work. I don't encompass that sort of patience.....just ask my mom and husband!

This one spoke to me. I love hearts and flowers. But I DON'T like girly and frilly. (I also don't like birds....but that's beside the point). This image is suggestive of flowers and hearts without puking unicorns, My Little Pony, and little girls' rooms onto the viewer(s). :)

Now off to Photoshop where I will insert the Beatles' song lyrics creatively into the above image! I'll update you of the progress soon. The finished project will be on a 7in. X 14in. stretch canvas. What a lovely and unique size!

It Started With An Unexpected Gift....

It was around 5 years ago when mom and daddy bought me a sewing machine for my birthday. At the time I had no clue what to do with it. I wasn't much of a domestic goddess like my mom and younger sisters.
A fun afternoon for me (if resources permitted) would involve skeet shooting (emphasis on inanimate objects...not cute,fluffy,living objects...that's the girl in me!) , making small wooden home decor (like shelves...) and the like. I've made many wooden shelves with raw lumber and a scroll saw. They are so exquisite that they were one of the many items contentiously fought over in my divorce...and my ex lost.

So, the sewing machine sat in my closet for several years or so and I tip toed around it like it was a bomb. It intimidated me much more than a rifle!

Fast forward to a year and a half ago. I was released from the tyranny of my previous marriage and in a much better place in my life. The sewing machine came out of the closet and I decided to master it's beguiling  presence. 

My mom has been a professional tailor and owned her own business all of her life. However, she was not nearby to teach me with her vast knowledge. The second option would have been to hit up an elderly lady in the church who would hopefully have the fortitude and patience to teach me how to sew. But, that too wasn't an option. I hadn't gone to church in years due to my oppressive former marriage.

My daddy passed away prematurely from an illness caused by Agent Orange about that time. I really needed a stress relieving outlet!   So, I gravitated to the only source of knowledge I knew was readily available....YouTube.

And, that's how I learned how to sew. I would still prefer to be shooting a gun or making something awesome out of wood. But sewing is relatively cheap and can be done almost anytime of the day or night. The sewing bug bit me and I started to really enjoy it too. I created an online clothing shop after sewing for a year or more.

When looking for sewing patterns for Father's Day, I ran across the following article, The Guys Guide To Sewing Machines. What I would have give if this article had been around when I was first learning how to sew! The guy who wrote it is HILARIOUS. I don't know what I enjoyed more....the sky high stack of Xboxes in the background (I'm sure it was an accident)....the really awful/non-technical jargon he uses to describe parts of the sewing machine....or the incredibly awesome crotch shot in one of the photos....

My love for sewing all started with an unexpected gift. If you are facing the same bewilderment for sewing as I did, just jog on over to The Guys Guide To Sewing Machines. If nothing else, you will find it very amusing!