If you are anything like me you have finally let out that breath you’ve been holding all summer. The first week of school get-togethers and half days and general first week freak-outs is behind you. Things are slowly settling down into a routine and you are breathing again. Actually starting–and possibly even finishing!–a project is in the realm of possibility.

If that project were, say, a pattern by Zonen 09. And if you sewed it up by next Sunday and added it to their flickr group (all totally possible). Well, you could win heaps of amazing prizes.

What, what? You haven’t heard of Zonen 09? They are a small Belgian pattern company that makes sewing patterns for boys (and only boys!) clothes. How amazing is that? And the patterns are so stinkin’ cute! I read a few Dutch blogs and I see the Jacob pants pop up again and again on them. The pants are always awesome. I mean just look:

1. yellow jacob pants by Griet 2.plaid jacob pants by Ik ben Vink 3. stamped jacob pants by huisje boompje boefjes 4. pink jacob pants by Enid Vandecan

I’m happy to say that the Jacob pants pattern is now available in English! The Charlie shirt is too. I have a few pairs of Jacob pants on my to do list this weekend, but sadly I cannot enter them in the contest because I am a judge. But you can!

Is this the first you’ve heard of Zonen 09? Have I convinced you of their awesomeness? Are you already eyeing your sewing machine?

the title says it all: today is the last day to buy the alphabet collection! The collection includes four patterns, for both girls and boys, for 20 bucks. Not bad! You can see everything I made from the collection here and some of my favorites from the tour are pictured below.

1. by petit a petit & family 2. by melissa esplin 3. by kojo designs 4. by shwin & shwin 5. by crafiness is not optional 6. by petit a petit & family 7. by sew a straight line 8. by elegances & elephants

See all the amazing things you can make with just a few patterns! What are you waiting for? Oh wait, you can’t wait–today is the last day to buy the alphabet collection!!

The talented women of Pattern Anthology have just released their fall line, The Alphabet Collection. I was honored when they asked me to take part in their blog tour. The coastal cargos I sewed for the spring pattern tour are still in heavy rotation around these parts, so I was excited to see what fall had in store. And it is pretty fantastic: four fall patterns, all designed for both girls and boys, and all a pleasure to sew.

Let’s start with the pants–the dancing pants! Actually they are the W pants pattern by Melissa Mora. These pants were a breeze to sew: the directions were clear, there were just enough details to keep it interesting, and I learned how to sew a zippered welt pocket! I used this lovely mocha chambray from Michel Levine that was sturdy enough for pants. The fabric definitely makes these pants a little dressy–for a night out dancing or the first day of school.

I chose the no-fly option, because honestly my son’s fly is usually down anyway :) Instead of leaving the front plain, I made a fake fly. To do this, I used the pattern for the yes-fly option.  Then I sewed up the front, tucked in the weird fly piece, and sewed a few lines of topstitching to make it look like a real fly. Volia!

I made quite a few more changes to the Study Hall pattern by Andrea Pannell. Sometimes you have a vision in your head and can’t stop thinking about it until it’s made. I wanted a simple, straight coat with a bright contrasting zipper. And really, I think it’s the bright blue zipper (from coats & clark) that makes this coat!

Ok, the changes: I lengthened the coat a bit and left out the ribbing on the bottom. I also curved the hem slightly where it meets the zipper. The ribbing on the cuffs is gone too and I added some simple contrasting cuffs in its place. I made the collar out of matching fabric and lined the whole coat with this butter soft aqua cotton from Organic Cotton Plus.

In between the layers I added flannel, so this coat will be nice and toasty on chilly fall mornings. Oh and I added an inside pocket too. Mostly I did it to practice welt pockets, which I had never done before (I made the jacket before the pants). Good thing I did too, because I somehow managed to make the pocket upside down!

This shirt was so much fun to make. The pattern is the Recess Raglan by See Kate Sew. Holy cow, is it crazy quick to sew! The fabric is from Girl Charlee, who along with Michel Levine, Organic Cotton Plus, and Coats&Clark, is a sponsor of this amazing collection. I have been a fan of Girl Charlee for a long time. They simply have great knits at great prices.

I am kind of crazy for this mint color on boys right now. But in the end, it was a little too much mint and I slapped a freezer paper stencil on it. Now my son always has a disguise.

I couldn’t leave my other kids out! So I whipped up another Raglan Recess tee for my youngest. The knits are again from Girl Charlee. I could not resist this anchor print. Paired with the stripes, he’s like a little french sailor in training.

adorable, right?

The last pattern in the Alphabet Collection is the BBC Vest by Shwin Designs. This pattern was so much fun to sew. I love it when a pattern is like a puzzle and looks likes gobble de gook until the last step. Then, suddenly, you have a beautiful finished garment. And this is a beautiful garment. The curved hem in front, the box pleats in back, the shawl collar, and the racerback all make this vest a stunner!

My daughter is way into accessorizing these day, so a vest is perfect for her. When I saw this ikat fabric at Michel Levine, I knew immediately it would become the vest. I like the grown up vibe of the ikat and the kid vibe of the polka dot-ness. Just right for my almost 8 year old, who wants to be a grown up, but is still very much a kid.

That’s it! Four patterns and so many possibilities! The Alphabet Collection will be on tour for another week. All of these patterns can go so many different ways. I can’t wait to see what everyone makes!

Join us along the Alphabet Collection blog tour to see just how versatile these patterns are. Bloggers will be sewing up all 4 pieces from the collection at girl. Inspired., Shwin & Shwin, Sew a Straight Line, elsie marley, Melly Sews, Happy Together, see kate sew, Elegance & Elephants, I Still Love You, kojo designs, Petit a Petit and Family, The Train to Crazy, Delia Creates and Craftiness is Not Optional

The patterns, fabric, and notions were provided to me for this post. I am also a Pattern Anthology affliate, so clicking the Alphabet Collection links will support me and my blog. Thank you! 

This shorts sew-a-long came right at the perfect time. My children were pretty much shortless before Carla asked me to be a part of this amazing event. Now I’ve got a few made and more cut out. Carla and Rachel have even lined up some awesome prizes from Jo-Ann, Pretty Prudent/Pellon®, and Hawthorne Threads this year and all you have to do is sew some (much needed) shorts!

Here are my shorts I made for my daughter, and on the line to boot! The pattern I used comes from the Japanese book, Happy Homemade vol. 5

The actual pattern for both pairs of shorts is the same, only one is longer and one is shorter with added cuffs.

They are both of the super skinny variety. The pattern is nicely tailored with a simple elastic waist, two rounded pockets in the front, and two typical jean pockets in the back.

I call these her Fruit Stripe shorts. If I was a more organized mom, I would have put a pack of fruit stripe gum in the tiny pocket!

The fabric is by HGTV I think? It is an outdoor fabric I got at Joann’s and I knew it would become fruit stripe shorts the moment I saw it.

What I didn’t think about was matching all those fruit stripes: four patch pockets and separate cuffs. After much sweat and swearing, they [almost] match! Woo Hoo!

The second pair is made from a striped fabric too (I never learn). I scored a yard of this railroad striped denim at the thrift store. I’m usually not a fan of the jean short, but I think these work.

I made these shorts for my daughter last year (paired them with wellies then too!). They got a lot of wear and no wonder–they are comfortable and durable. She is a rough and tumble gal and needs shorts that can keep up.

Those are my shorts on the line! Check out all these amazing sewers to see more:

I said I would and look! I actually did: I made summer pajamas from a bunch of thrifted tees.

And the kids actually like them! There is no Iron Man or Perry the Platypus or Elmo or whatever character they’re into this minute in sight. I’m not against the odd licensed character, but I cannot deal with the weird, plastic, pajama fabric they are printed on. When they’re new the fabric feels like slimy alien skin, and after a few washes it turns into pill-y, old, molted alien skin.

Obviously I have some issues with kids’ pajamas. Not these suckers though! They are all 100% handmade from 100% second hand clothes.

Here are all the sewing details:

fabric: thrifted tees pictured here

pattern: For the shorts I used the sleeping johns pattern from Growing Up Sew Liberated. I made the sleeping johns a few years ago and they still fit my daughter. So the fit is obviously pretty generous. My 7 year old daughter is wearing a size 5T, my 6 year old son is wearing a 4T, and my 3 year old son is wearing a 3T

The shirts are made with Rae’s Flashback Skinny Tee pattern. The only time I actually followed the pattern was for the gray shirt in the middle. For the other two shirts I used the pattern more as a guide. The tank top is far from perfect, but it works for pjs.

sewing: The shorts went super fast and were not a problem at all. The shirts were a bit more fiddle-y, because I chose super soft, super thin material. My sewing machine prefers to eat material like that rather than sew it. Arg!

The plan was to have two pairs of pjs for each kid, but only the youngest got two (the second pair is pictured above). For that gray striped top, I used Kristen’s Flashback Tee –> Tank Top tutorial and blatantly copied her style while I was at it. There are two more pairs of pjs in the works. Both are half done, but I think I hit a pajama making wall. Maybe I’ll climb over it this weekend :)