Project Run+Play (All the World’s a Stage)

First things first….thanks for your support for weeks 1&2! Excited to sew for week 3….well, with some reservations. Voting link is here, too.

I love a good cosplay. I’ve spent nearly a decade perfecting our family costumes and have really pushed my sewing abilities doing them, from my youngest son’s first halloween that was mostly glue gun to today. However, since moving to Ireland that has shifted a ton. There’s a lot less costume parades in nice sunny weather here, and the holiday is much more to it’s macabre roots and much less Disney Princess. Not to mention that it’s super cold and rainy in October, trick or treating is a little different than Florida.

This year, it’s even harder since Ireland is on full lockdown so there’s just that tiny extra added layer of apathy from me. My older two refuse to family costume anymore, so the weight of my Halloween love is on my younger two. The littlest has declared her love for Elsa, so that leaves this guy who is still OBSESSED with dress up, and I was willing to make it magical for him. His current favorite movie is Into the Spider-Verse, since what is better than one arachnid related superhero? TONs of them, so I set to work on making him the best Miles Morales I could.

Now, if you read all that you know by now that this costume needed to be one part fun but all the parts wearable beyond this slightly non-existent holiday, so my goal was to create durable, long lasting clothing more than a costume.

Let’s start with the jacket. I used stretch twill in petrol from Dress Fabrics, adding fusible fleece for some puffy loft. After fusing it, I added some subtle horizontal quilting stitches. I used the Ollie Bomber Jacket from Sew a Little Seam because it is a near identical match to the inspiration, but went up a size since I was using bulky non knit fabrics. I did the welt pockets and collar version to keep it close to the look, adding the lining fabric inside the pockets to peek out ever so slightly. For the lining, I used stretch jersey in a beige marl provided by Minerva. I love how the petrol and beige look with each other, super smart. I went ahead and fully finished all inside seams, adding a little red hanging loop as well. Now, to take it up a notch I decided to make it have a zip out lining like so many of their ready to wear jackets. I started by cutting the lining down 1.5″ to add a strip of the main fabric as a facing, then added another zip between the lining and that facing. I switched the orientation of that zip by flipping around the slider so it is ‘backwards’ from the usual. I also made sure it was shorter and was above the bottom binding. On the sleeve cuffs and back neckband, I added twill tape strips (also from Minerva) with snaps to hold the inner lining in place.

For the zip out lining, I used brushed back sweat in red from Dress Fabrics. I constructed a basic hoodie by combining a few patterns (New Horizons Designs 11th Hour Gear tee for the basic shape, shortened and sized up wit a raised adjusted neckline for a hoodie shape, Ollie Bomber hood since I wanted a 3 piece hood that was nice and full, and the kangaroo pocket from the New Horizons Tami Hoodie). I added little twill loops on the cuffs and behind the hood to attach it to the outer shell. I also used ribbing on the inside neckline of the hood to make it more finished, plus another hanging loop. The zipper was a little complicated again since it needed to be able to zip from the outside when wearing as a hoodie and the inside when it zips into the jacket, so I had my husband take apart a zipper pull and solder an extra pull to the inside of the zip I used for the hoodie. Last, I used more of the twill tape to finish the inside of the zip.

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Next up, a solid pair of twill shorts. I wanted a basic pair that he can wear again and again, and wanted lots of clean finishes. I used the Grady pattern from Sew a Little Seam for these, doing all the options–front slant pockets with facings, fitted waistband, back welt pockets, fully functional zip fly. I added a few of my own touches, changing up the belt loops a little, adding flaps with snaps over the back welts (because if you’re going to take forever making welts might as well cover them, right? haha), and I used french seams on the inseam and red bias tape on the outseam so that I could do a little roll cuff and have a tiny touch of the red show to coordinate with the rest of the look. The outer fabric is more stretch twill from Dress Fabrics, and the lining is a basic cotton I stole from my mom’s stash as it reminded me of preppy spiderman for whatever reason.

I made a super quick belt out of some cotton webbing (thanks, Sarah!), adding eyelets for holes. I had the husband help by 3d printing a belt buckle that I spray painted in silver and riveted on to the webbing.

Now those are my super tailored touches, but it was still a super hero costume deep down so I had to break out some spandex. I used black and red sports lycra from Dress Fabrics to make the undersuit. Let’s start with the leggings since those were the fastest part of this costume. I started with Jalie 3242 as it’s my go to for his top drawer, with some slight mods that I do like using a dart instead of a full seam on the front panel. I lengthened them to leggings length by laying them over a legging pattern (I don’t even remember which…) and then added a basic yoga waist rather than exposed elastic that I’d usually use. He got a hint of htv spider webs on the thighs too to make them a little more exciting. They will get lots of use as a base layer for outside play on a cold day or weekly cold Saturday Morning Soccer. For the top, I started with a basic raglan (streamline tee from New Horizons) and raised the neckline and added a mock turtleneck, plus some colorblocking to match the inspiration, and of course lots of htv webs and the iconic red spider.

BTW. I HATE spiders. It had to be said.

The top can serve double duty, both as a base layer like the leggings and as a rash guard for summer. Oh triple duty, since he can wear it for saving the city and all.

Last, the absolute least useful parts but the ones that were just totally necessary to make this guy’s day. Gloves were simple, I traced his hand, added seam allowance and a colorblock line, and made them out of scrap lycra. The mask, I took circumference measurements of his head and neck in a few places, and height measures, transferred it to paper to get a basic head shape, added seam allowance and darts for shaping. I cut a little bit of web vinyl for the front, then started on those eyes. I had the hubby step in again with his 3d printer obsession hobby and made the lenses. Those got a coat of red paint and then I sandwiched some white mesh between them and the mask with lots of different glues. When he tried it on he expressed distaste for the amount of glue so I of course added more glue to attach some craft foam on the inside for comfort. Last, it got a zipper up the back to make it easier to get on and off. Now, I am not pretending these pieces are for anything other than dress up purposes but they really do help complete the look.

note, the amount of time devoted to a piece is equal to the amount of wear I expect it to get….

So there you have it. If I had my way, and we were back in Florida I’d be making myself into Dr. Octavius….forcing the littlest into a a Spider-Ham and big sis into a SpiderGwen….making the oldest be out-of-shape SpiderMan, and then the husband could be Kingpin….but alas. Just Miles this year. So enjoy some costumes from year’s past since this era has come to an end for our family….and then don’t forget to vote!!

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also, please vote

Project Run+Play (Week 2 Cut it Up)

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 😉

Sewing for the Boy – P51

Yeah, I’ll admit it. I love sewing for my little girl. It’s easy, she enjoys it, and she absolutely loves that I custom make her clothes. She treats them like treasures. Her older brother?Destroys every piece of clothing. I still consider putting him in bibs to eat. I worry if he’s color blind when he gets dressed in the morning. When planning her capsule wardrobe, I started to plan his….then realized that would be ridiculous because I would cry when he destroyed it all.

I bought him clothes at Penney’s*  for as cheaply as possible, making sure it was all the darkest colors I could get.

But occasionally, he does want something just for him. I let him search through patterns and he asked, maybe begged, for a P51 Flyer Jacket from New Horizons. I tried to talk him into something simpler but he thought it looked really hip and cozy. I gave in, let him search my fabric, and got to work.

I went with a coated denim for the main fabric because it’s waterproof, and I thought it would be easier than pleather for my first try at the pattern. To line it, I used super soft acrylic plaid from Joanns.  It feels like really silky flannel.

My only complaint? He looks a little too grown up strutting around in it. Like way too old. When did he grow up?!? It does a great job keeping him warm though and also survived the rain test a few times so far.

I love all the little details on it. It’s not a beginner pattern for sure, but well worth the effort put in to make a quality one-of-a-kind piece. He wore it around Paris, during Paris Fashion Week. I think he felt pretty fancy.

AND it’s still in one piece and not stained. Bonus.

*Penney’s is a discount chain here….I think it’s called Primark in the UK? Not to be confused with JC Penney’s…

 

Any affiliate links are to help fund further fabric and patterns so that I can keep on creating, but all opinions are always my own.

Obligatory Sewing

Easter is just one of those times a year when I feel obligated as a mother to sew.

Aww! Look at Amanda’s mom! And she makes such sweet dresses too.

I blame my own upbringing, when my mom would sew me some super ruffle dress with pinafore and bows and hat and gloves….maybe I am exaggerating a little.

Love the skinny legs in the tights! Or is it big tights in regular legs?

Or not. In years past I got away with minimal sewing….a bow-tie or two

Hee hee. Incidental egg dropage!

I think Char is missing some gloves here.

but this year I aimed to go above and beyond (and in turn, make life more difficult in years to come since I can no longer get away with just a bow-tie). Oh, and of course I started sewing the Tuesday before Easter. Gotta love a deadline.

Hmm, I also bought this pattern months ago. Great minds…

I decided to go with simplicity 2265 from their project runway line.

I bought the pattern over a year ago because I really loved the petal bodice. I had yards of this plaid stretch twill from the clearance rack at Joann’s. I had already sewn some basic shorts for D and a top for C for it, but both are long outgrown. I do like sewing with it though….perfect amount of stretch, sews up nicely, no interfacing needed because it is fairly sturdy and doesn’t wrinkle too easily. I also had some white denim that I stole from my moms fabric bin for the trim. C measured a size 1/2 but I cut out a size 1 anyway. I would rather it be too big than too small.

Look at those cheeks! I know Char won’t drop any eggs :).

The dress came together pretty easily, except the ridiculous amount of hand stitching (the bodice to the waistband on the inside).

Hand stitching is pretty horrible. But have you cut off those fly away threads yet?

I only did three buttons on the back because I chose to use bigger ones than the pattern called for, and did the bottom band differently (I prefer it to attach like giant bias tape, instead of finishing multiple seams. I just really hate the look of seeing a hem on a bottom band…weird pet peeve).

“Mom, I can’t eat this. C’mon!”

I also changed up how the flower was supposed to go. I just used a strip from the selvage, gathered it, and hand stitched it into a circle. Then I hand stitched it to the dress with a button to cover the center.

Amanda dislikes ironing almost as much as hand stitching, almost.

Then it was time to figure out what to make Dexter. Our family does a ton of matching outfits. Because we can, because we like to hear gagging, because we want to have embarrassing pictures to show dates that come to the house when the kids are teens….

Is Doug pretend eating?

Very matchy matchy. Love it!

I was deciding whether to do solid plaid pants (silly golfer style) or a solid color with plaid accents, but when I got my pattern pieces out it was going to be a really tight fit to make solid plaid, and that was without matching the pattern. So solid it was.

Cute!

The hubby had generously cleaned out his closet and left me a giant bin of upcycling fabric, so I chose a pair of linen khakis to destroy. I used the Heartbreaker Pants pattern from Sewing for Boys. The reviews I read said the pants are pretty wide, especially in larger sizes, and I prefer a slimmer fit on my skinny man, so I put a pair of pants that fit well on the patterns pieces and decided to risk it and cut out an 18month width with a 4/5 length. The fit is actually really nice.

Char: “I dare you to put this in your belly button!”

The only other change I made was to not use button hole elastic and just use regular, but that was only because I didn’t have any, didn’t want to make any, and didn’t want to run to the store for the very last step.

Dex: “Mom, really, more pictures?”

I really love how they turned out!! Anyone else do coordinating Easter outfits? You don’t see that hubby and I matched too (no plaid, but complimentary colors). Did you allow yourself less than a week to sew for two kids, too?

I’ll do anything for a baby chick!

~ Amanda