Yes, I know, KCW is over–very much over. But hey I went in cold and started too many things (as per always) so I needed another week to finish things. Plus, dear Lord! the cold! and the sickness! Will winter ever end?!

No, it won’t. At least not for 2 more long months, which is why I made these warm pants for my son. They look like wool, but are actually polyester, and they’re lined with flannel. I used the Jacob pattern by Zonen 09 and some lady’s very stylish slacks from the 70s to make these cozy dancing pants. She must have been a very tiny lady, because the waistband practically fit my 7 year old!

I had to reuse the waistband, because I barely had enough fabric to eek out the rest of the pants. It looks a little weird with the [fake] fly opening one way and the [fake] closure opening the other. But I’m 99% sure no one is going to notice.

I had a different top planned for this outfit, but then I found this striped sweater I had cut out already. I realize he looks a little crazy…

…but he loves it (the crazy and the shirt). The shirt is upcycled from a ladies sweater and made with the Flashback Tee pattern. Both the pants and the sweater came from this crazy thrift store called the Dig&Save. All the thrift store rejects go there. You have to dig around in giant bins to find anything and everything is priced by the pound.

It’s an odd place, but a treasure trove of fabric. You really have to dive in (almost literally) and trust your instincts. I was drawn to these polyester pants, but as I was sewing them I had a moment of fear: Is he going to be teased because his mom so obviously made his pants.

Do you worry about this? Cherie from You & Mie started a great conversation on instagram about kids dressing themselves–do you let them? do you edit the craziness? do you encourage it? do you feel pressure to dress them just right? I think the hashtag was #realkidsrealclothes if you want to join the conversation.

I obviously encourage the crazy, but maybe it’s time I pulled back. Grade school is tough. As a parent, it’s hard to know when to lead and when to let your kids figure it out on their own. They are little, but they’re big, but really they’re little. Agh! All of this from a pair of polyester pants.

We have had a very chilly spring here is Wisconsin this year. Thank goodness too, because this sweater dress has been on the to sew list since the fall! You know how it is: all the new, exciting projects always budge in line.

the pattern: Rae’s Flashback Skinny Tee , size 7. Obviously, I lengthened it. I also created more of an A-line shape by drawing an angled line from the armpit to the hem. Kristin explained how to transform the pattern into a summer dress for last spring’s KCW. Speaking of, did you see we kicked off a week of guest post-ers on the new kcw blog?

the fabric: an odd bit of sweater-y fabric I found in a thrift store in northern Wisconsin + a bit of a purple sweater (the one I used to make this cardigan).

the sewing: The main part of the dress came together super quick. The neckline tripped me up a bit. Mostly because I tried to use the neckline from the purple sweater. I had to rip it up and start again over. I also used the cuffs from the purple sweater, which I don’t like, but they aren’t awful so I skipped redoing them.

the fit: spot on! The last flashback skinny dress I made, I sized it up myself. It worked, but it wasn’t perfect. Rae has since sized the pattern up for bigger kids. The skinny tee is such a wardrobe staple, I know this pattern will get used for a long time.

The dress is getting worn–caught on film a few times, too! Paired with a polka dot tights, wellies, and a stocking cap one time. Another time she even matched her mama!

1. cardi 2. kcwc pants 3. wings for my little girl 4. glitter dot dress

I know I express my sheer amazement at your sewing ability every year, but seriously! do you see those clothes up there? It’s like art. You guys are amazing! Amazing!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I am not so amazing today, as my youngest–mr. big belly pictured here–woke up at 2am throwing up. Why do children only get sick in the middle of the night? Argh. Blerg. I am mostly incomprehensible because of it, so we’ll keep this short and sweet.

the sweater

the pattern: Rae’s Flashback Skinny Tee! I made it a little wider in the body (i.e. not so skinny) because the fabric didn’t have a ton of stretch.

the fabric: a shrunken cashmere sweater that was once my Nana’s.

the sewing: There is nothing easier than sewing with felted sweaters. I was going to add a blue pocket and maybe blue cuffs, but it was looking too trendy and really there’s nothing wrong with a basic cashmere sweater. I wish I had one.

the pattern: the pattern I always use from Happy Homemade Vol. 2 and to be honest, I think getting a little sick of it. I did change it up a bit this time with a long pintuck down the front of each leg–you can see it in the first picture. It makes for nice “little man” pants.

the fabric: I think it’s called no-wale corduroy–the weight of corduroy without the bumps. Purple, obviously.

the sewing: Easy peasy, except the back pockets are totally uneven. Little boys move so fast, that no one will notice, I’m sure (I hope).

When I started KCWC my kids were much smaller and their clothes did only take an hour to make. Now it’s pockets and more pockets and buttonhole elastic and nice, sturdy seam finishes (i.e. lots more time for one stupid pair of pants). I made some baby clothes for a new(ish) baby and wow! you can just crank those teeny things out! The pants came from the sleeves of a felted cashmere sweater and they came together so quickly I did a bias bound seam finish along the crotch seam, because I felt like they couldn’t be done already.

I still had more of the hour left, so I made a hat to match. The pattern is from Martha Stewart. Originally, the hat is made from felt and the seams are zigzagged together so they lie flat. I made two hats with normal seams and then sewed them together: cashmere on one side, jersey on the other. I’ve made this hat many, many times. I like how the orange tag on this one make the hat look like a skate punk blue bird.

I finished both things in about 45 minutes, so I thought what they hell, I’ll make a ball with the scraps. Well, the ball took longer than both. The pattern is for a paper pieced, hand stitched pentagon ball. Hand stitching isn’t really my favorite thing, but when you do it with your best friends on a beautiful fall day and a hot cup of coffee it’s not all that bad.

The flickr group is really starting to fill up. One day and you guys are already on a roll! I already mentioned this on twitter, but one of my sponsors, Too Sweets, is offering my readers a 15% discount on her patterns (they are in pdf form, so you could use them today!) just enter KCWC15 when you check out. And while you are at it, check out my other lovely sponsors–many of whom sell very stylish children’s clothes patterns.

1. button fly skirt
2. fake fly pants
3. baby leg warmers
4. tunic or vest from scarf

Happy KCWC!

a little pair of baby shoes for a new little boy.  These are quick to make, which is good because I had to make four in order for two to be the same size.  It would be sweet to make a pair and fill them with treats for St. Nicholas day (december 6th–does anyone celebrate this anymore?), or tie them together and hang on the tree, or just make them for all the babies on your list–which is what I am going to do.  I followed the tutorial for Heather Bailey’s bitty booties and you can too.