Emilie makes strikingly beautiful clothes. Her story is amazing, as is her shop. So I won’t waste your time blathering on. I’ll just let you see for yourself…

5. Do you also sew clothes for yourself?
Strangely, i don’t sew for myself but i make my own flamenco costumes, including sophisticated skirts with ruffles, fabric flowers and tops that i use in my dance tours and on stage. Here too i praise simplicity and unexpected combinations of colors but always in plain shades. I think the human body is so beautiful in movement that too much colors or patterned fabrics don’t serve the eyes.
I am also exploring natural herbal dyeing of fabrics and wear all the cotton dresses or accessories that i dye. I mostly dye with spices or fresh herbs gathered in my garden. My next professional step is to create a line of children clothes that are hand dyed with plants in my studio. Maybe this will happen if i find a way to have 3 lives instead of one…

6. What children’s clothes designers do you admire?
Not long ago i came across the work of Marylin Tov, a parisian designer working in NYC. Her clothes are amazingly beautiful and my first impulse was to wish i could feel the fabrics of her clothes and contemplate them for a long time. Her work has a great artistic value. I also admire one french pattern maker, Sister Alma who lives and creates from a convent. Her patterns are exquisite and designed with a great sense of elegance.  Her line of patterns is called “C’est dimanche”, “It is Sunday” in English. The children clothes line “Neige” also inspires me.If you are searching for imaginative and highly inspired children clothes, go visit the world of Mishalulu.
My greatest source of inspiration are our kids from all over the world, they deserve our hardest work to wrap them around clothes made with LOVE !!!

Thank you Emilie for sharing your amazing story with us and leading us to some new and fantastic children’s clothes makers! Please check out Emilie’s shop for all her patterns and her handmade children’s clothes as well!

You might not have heard of Sepa Designs yet, but you will be happy that you now do!  Hagar is a professional pattern designer who started a small children’s line on etsy. She is a mother to three lovely children and lives in Israel.  Her designs are simple, but with just the right amount of detail to make them interesting to sew and beautiful to look at. So let me introduce you to Hagar:

1. How did you get into designing patterns for children’s clothes?

I’ve been designing children’s clothing for 9 years now for large Israeli companies. As a freelance designer, I sit behind the computer all day and send production files to be manufactured in China. During the past few years I have been loosing the excitement of designing and seeing kids wear my clothes because I didn’t feel a connection with the process. I am designing for a certain client (not my own style necessarily), behind a computer all day, rushing to get things done, didn’t feel the fabric at all…

When my daughter was born (almost 6 years ago), I spent a lot of time looking for inspiration to decorate or sew unique stuff for her. I came across this amazing community of people that I felt so connected to (even if they didn’t know of my existence…) on the internet: blogs, etsy, DIY tutorials, Martha Stewart… They were (and still are) so talented and I felt like I was learning so much from them.  I knew that some day I will try it for myself.  After my twin boys were born, and I was consumed with kids (literally, ah) I realized that designing for kids gives me a sense of fulfillment but I also wanted to design for myself, sew on my machine again and touch fabric! Thinking of a way to combine my strengths and my passion, I decided to make sewing patterns for kids.  It combines technical skills, sewing, graphic design, passing on of information and of-course designing. In my patterns I try to let the sewer become part of the design process themselves and give ideas to use the pattern in different ways.

Even though it is still not me who is making the actual jacket/skirt/pants, I feel so connected. I love the hand made process and the feeling of accomplishment that you get.

2. Do you have a specific kind of child in mind when you are working on your designs?

I do think that my kids influence my designs.  They will not wear anything that is not comfortable for them but they do want to wear: “jeans, like Daddy!” or to “look awesome/festive/groovy” (their words, not mine) like us.  However I am still is search of a unique “handwriting” and style that is my own.  It will take some time for me to find it, but I’m having fun in the meantime…

3. How do you think children should dress?

First of all I think that they need to feel comfortable.  But this means different things. My daughter would be the happiest child in the world if she could wear head to toe pink-fluffy-sequined-tulle-gathered-princess-gowns all day and everyday, but that would make my comfort level drop…

I think that children should still look like children and not style-iconic-fashionistas, but there are elements in grown-up clothing that fits them too. I do love bright colors on children and happy graphics that they can relate too.

4. Do you think what you wear influences how you dress your kids or design your patterns?

My kids usually wear what their grandparents and aunts buy them (I don’t have time to go shopping, and they get great stuff). But in creating my patterns I do try to keep a balance of different factors aside from the design aspect.  I want them to be accessible to as many people as possible by keeping the instructions clear and detailed, the fit a bit on the roomy side, the sewing difficulty to a minimum and an added value of a template/stencil and styling options. This usually sets the tone of the design more than the way I dress. Did that make any sense? Well, to tell you the truth, I’m usually in my pajamas most of the day anyways…

5. Do you also sew clothes for yourself?

I used to. A great deal actually, but as time passes I have less and less time to do that. I’m sure that in a few years I will get back to that. It was fun.

6. What children’s clothes designers do you admire?

There are many clothing labels that I love. Not necessarily for kids but that have a handmade look, sense of humor or somehow seem like they have an effortless chic to them. In no particular order these are just a few:

• bobo choses
• keti keta
• diesel
• queteen cante
• bonpoint

But there are so many gifted crafters, designers and makers of things on the web that have been such a big inspiration to my life these past few years.

I owe them and you a big thank you.

So thank you.

And thank you, Hagar! Check out Hagar’s shop on etsy and maybe add a pattern or two of hers to your KCWC list!

My mother didn’t care for halloween, to put it mildly, and really I don’t blame her: whining for expensive costumes that last for one night, demanding different ones at the last minute, coming home with a pillowcase full of candy and then belly aches and sugar melt downs for days.  I can feel the hate for halloween in my genes, but I try to fight it. As long as I treat halloween costumes as quick and dirty projects then I’m not mad when they are rejected or ripped or ugly or whatever.  A lot of people love halloween though and thank goodness because they make awesome costumes for us to ogle.

amazing and creative handmade halloween costumes

1. Baby Woodpecker, 2. Devil(ed) Egg, 3. Jedi Robe, 4. lace crown, 5. Star wars birthday courtesy of oliver and s and ottobre, 6. angry/suprised owl, 7. Infant Elvis Costume, 8. week 9.2, 9. in lieu

This is just a small selection of the fantastic tutorials out there for kids’ halloween costumes. The creativity and the construction of these costumes blows me away. If you know of any good tutorials (or have made some yourself) please leave a comment linking to it.  And get ready because the challenge starts on Monday!

hilarious halloween costume tutorials

1. strong man 2. freezer paper skeleton costume 3. sock monkey 4. pukka costume 5. care bear costume 6. frankenstein 7. happy mutant three armed baby 8. last minute kids owl costume 9. daisy costume

Oops! a little late today with the round up of tutorials and pretty things. You probably don’t need any inspiration for baby things.–they are so little and cute and ridiculously fun to make. Be sure to add your favorite baby tutorial (not how to make one, silly, things to make for one) in the comments.

amazing handmade things for cute winter babies

1. Swing Coat, 2. Buttery Alpine Pixie Longie and Hat set made from two different wool sweaters, 3. Felted Wool Slippers – Size 18-24 months, 4. Modified and sewn in knit from Lotta Jansdotter’s Simple Sewing for Baby., 5. Sold 6-12 month Royal Purple Wool Romper with Flower Buttons, 6. Handmade, 7. little winter hats, 8. the sneeze., 9. log cabin baby blanket (folded)

fantastic tutorials for things to keep your baby warm

1. baby legs 2. pompom hat 3. easy peasy swaddle sheet 4. heirloom cut chenille baby blanket 5. hooded baby towel and washcloth set 6. baby bonnet 7. baby booties 8. winter buggie bag 9. baby snuggler

Wow, tutorials for coats are hard to find–understandably so–but honestly after making a few I can say that really they are not as hard as you think they are. I think a wool kimono top–ooo, like this–lined in something soft would be a beautiful fall jacket and simple to make (here is a kimono pattern for 6m0-8yrs).  On the other hand, inspiring images of handmade coats are everywhere! Oliver + S has a beautiful pattern for a toggle coat with a removable lining called the school days jacket + coat. And really you can’t go wrong with Liesl’s patterns; they are timeless, but somehow modern too and cute as all get out.

amazing handmade coats, capes and sweaters

1. QTPI Hoodie, 2. Swallow Cape, 3. New Fleece Vest, 4. duffle coat, 5. Sweet Pea, 6. Olive Shirt Coat, 7. Vintage Simplicity 5536 pattern, 8. hoodies, 9. St. Chickn

awesome tutorials for coats, capes, vests, sweaters and a skirt

storybook cape and muff, reversible vest, flutter cape, jacket placket, reporposed sweater tutorial, the smartigan, draft your own coat, lengthen coat sleeves, reversible patchwork scribble skirt tutorial

I know the last one isn’t really a coat (well it’s kind of a coat for your bottom half), but I somehow forgot it yesterday and was kicking myself for it because it’s the perfect fall skirt for us to make and for kids to wear:  patchwork (I’m looking at you scrap basket about to take over the world), quilted, wrap around and reversible. Doesn’t get any better than that. So go over to Nan’s house and tell her just how much you love it.