VOTING IS HERE

Thanks for all the support for week 1!! Glad to sew for week 2 (even if it is by default) and so so excited to share this little guy and his new duds!

That’s a Galway Hooker in the background, little lesson on ships for you.

I am so not a quilter. I tried it once, and learned I do not have the stamina for sewing tiny pieces together. I imagine I will become a quilter in my old age for some reason as by then I will have so much fabric that massive quilts will be the only answer, but for now, not my thing.

I started with the jeans because when I heard the theme, it reminded me of patchwork jeans I was obsessed with as a teen (probably something like these-cringe). I wanted it to be subtle and geometric, so started with two pairs of jeans of my own that no longer fit well and are not in style, but are near the same shade. I painstakingly cut them both into 4″ squares, then took about half those squares to make isosceles triangles. Next, I stitched all the triangles into new squares, sometimes using matching pairs, sometimes rotating wefts, some wrong side out, etc. Then I stitched squares together to make the textile I used. Each stitchline also got topstitched of course. I used the hammer A LOT to pound down seams to be as flat as I could, and offset rows of squares to help too. I really wanted a random and subtle feel and think I achieved it.

I cut my patchwork denim into Grady Jeans from Sew A Little Seam, lining them completely with cotton jersey (from So Sew English) for comfort and warmth. I used the method from the Cpt. Comfort Jeans from Patterns for Pirates for this, topstitching the inseam together so the lining does not shift. I love the clean inside finish.

I also gave them a ribbing and elastic waistband for comfort, adding a faux drawstring from scraps as well to tie in the lining. I did a cuffed hem for the bottom so he could let them out when he grows taller.

For the back pockets, I stitch ripped them off the original pair of jeans and added some freehand decorative stitching. He chose the design of course (I was voting robot, in case you were wondering). I went ahead and did lots of traditional jean stitching in the same chartreuse as the lining because green is his favorite. I skipped the flatfell seams I’d usually use for jeans because of the bulk, choosing instead to stitch as normal, serge edges, and topstitch the seams. Going over some of those seams had my machine wishing for a break for sure!!

Next, I made him a colorful top. He has been asking for a rainbow top for awhile, and even drew me this picture.

anyone else see the most fab choir robe ever?

I decided to tone it down just a bit and went with a more subtle rainbow, in muted colors (colorful jersey here is all from Mibs fabrics and Little Legs Fabrics, solid charcoal and aubergine from Dress Fabrics). I used the Dia Sweater from Misusu to start, cutting apart the plain front panel to create my own colorblock lines. He saw the drawing I had made to plan out the top and insisted on MORE COLOR (channeling his inner Christopher Walken from that cowbell SNL sketch, as I don’t think there could ever be enough color for him) so I used the shoulder seam line on the sleeve pattern to cut the sleeves in half and add a folded strip of fabric, topstitching the seam allowance and folded edge after constructing. I topstitched each panel on the front using the neighboring color, and also added contrast topstitching along the shoulder seams.

For the neckband, I wanted to do a clean finish inside so I added some bias tape made from the same fabric as the jeans pockets (Michael Miller Birds of a Feather from QuiltYarnStitch, it seems to capture most of the colors I used here). I went ahead and did the high low hem as well because it is just such a cool shape.

He has also frequently been jealous of his sister’s ability to carry all her things in a purse when we go to town, so a shoulder sling bag seemed like a great solution. His wallet never fits in his pocket and he likes to carry snacks (we bring snacks EVERYWHERE and not just because young kids never stop eating, this guy is celiac and can rarely trust food out and about)…he also excitedly told me that he can bring his own hand sanitizer and mask now….kids these days….so I set to work on my first bum bag.

I should mention that like I’m not a quilter, I’m also most definitely not a bag maker either. That is a whole other skill and I am in awe of the bag makers I follow. I made my own textile again, using selvages that I stitched together and then fused onto fleece interfacing for structure. I cut the pattern pieces for the bag on a diagonal for the textile to really shine, and added navy piping between panels to highlight the shape.

For the zipper, I wanted one with an interesting bronze pull to tie in the metal I used elsewhere and not just a basic navy dress zip, so I zipped the pull off of one of those decorative lace zips and added it onto my basic navy one. I made the strap to be the purple leatherette of the back of the bag on one side and the birds of a feather fabric from the lining on the other (same fabric as that bias and the jeans pockets). Thankfully, the bag made it to photos as he stole it the second I finished it and it was hard to wrestle back.

Last but not least, he needed to be warm as well since fall in Ireland is no joke for us Floridians, so a convertible scarf to the rescue. I started by determining the width and length that would make a good place to stick his cold little hands inside (all done through the highly technical ‘hold still while I measure you’ method) and then cut lots more squares (and triangles) to make sawtooth star panels out of marled grey jersey (more So Sew English), using this Flying Geese method since it seemed fitting at the moment. You know, the sleep deprived moment.

I added invisible zips at the top of the last panels and pockets from the same reverse french terry (stash fabric, think it was from Love Adore?) that’s on the back for a place for him to keep his hands nice and cozy. We learned during the photo shoot that he can easily hold hands with me without taking them out of the scarf pockets, and if he puts his bag of treats in there he can eat while maintaining the hand hold as well. Clutch. I used zips with the colors of his top for a little more fun, even if you only see a teeeensy bit of them. Next, I added snaps along the bottom edges so that it can turn into an infinity scarf if he’s moving around a lot, another reason I used zips on the pockets instead of just open pockets so that any tiny treasures don’t go flying.

My husband pointed out that I made him look fairly European….but….I mean…how cool is this kid? I assume that it was a compliment.

Don’t forget to vote for this week and if you made it all the way to here reading, congrats to you!!! Bonus pic of my cool six year old for you! Also, don’t forget to vote if you want to see me compete next week 😉