Exciting Announcement: Magic Little Monsters

I am so excited to share this post with you as it's something I have been working on for a little while now and I have finally got to a point where I feel I can legitimately spill the beans.

As you know I've become a become a bit obsessed with clothes sewing, especially for Master Fox so I have been working on a self designed pair of baby/toddler trousers... Yes, you got it, Fox trousers!

These adorable little joggers are made from cotton sweat shirt fabric so are really comfy and warm. They are a lovely relaxed fit to make sure the nappy fits in there and there is a good ease of movement. Finally they are finished off with an elasticated waist so they are easy to get on an off that wriggly toddler (especially at bottom changing time!).

My favourite thing about these trousers though is that the fox face is on the back. This might seem weird when you look at these on a hanger but when those little ones start to crawl and roll around that little bottom in the air makes these the cutest item of clothing ever. Look at little Master Fox demonstrating this perfectly :)

The even more exciting news is that I have launched a new Etsy shop: Magic Little Monsters where you can get your very own pair of Foxy baby pants. The plan is that these will be made to order, but I will from time to time put listings up there for ready made items and hope to be able to launch exiting new designs in the future. I hope you go and check it out, and recommend it to all your friends!

I really hope you love these trousers as much as I do, I can't wait to get started on drafting up my next design. Please feel free to leave me a lovely comment, and if you have any inspiring ideas from seeing this and want to leave a comment to make suggestions of what I can look to designing please do so.

xxx

Boys Jersey Pants

 

How cute are these for cruising around the house in. Soft, warm, comfy and easy to move in. I love Jersey for kids clothes for all these reasons and having a little boy I much prefer him in a pair of joggers than jeans for his own comfort, especially as his comfort is my sanity!

I mentioned on my Jack skellington costume post about discovering the wonders of the Finnish magazine Ottobre which specialise in clothing patterns for kids. I love this magazine, I purchased a copy of issue 04/2015 and it has some lovely patterns in it. They are so good I am even contemplating getting into making and selling children's clothes (I think I need to sort time out first though). 

I used the Baggy Bottoms sweatpants pattern to make the pumpkins king costume and it was so good I decided to make another pair in sweat shirting fabric for master Foxs wardrobe. I bought the gorgeous star print from the Ottobre Etsy shop and the plain black from Kitschy Coo. I love the feel of sweat shirting its so soft on the inside I think I need much more of it in my life! I made a test version in the black first so as not to waste the expensive star print and they came out so nice I immediately started on the star print version but in the next size up to get a bit more wear out of them.

 

I have made a slight adjustment to the pattern which was to add the ankle cuffs as I much prefer the look of joggers with a cuff and also it helps to stop them riding up his leg as he's clambering about. I actually took the piece off another pattern but you can draft a cuff by loosely measuring the ankle, adding a seam allowance and then cutting it twice as high as you want the finished cuff.

What I have really enjoyed about making kids clothes lately is how much more improved I am getting on the over locker. I have learnt how to manage curves much better and the finish is really coming up great. I think that's what I'm most proud of with these pants is that the finished article is very professional and just as good quality as store bought. It does help that fit is less of an issue for kids clothes!!  

I hope you like them as much as I do I can't wait to make more pairs of these, and if you haven't checked out the Ottobre website yet you really should. I'm currently battling with my mind on whether to spend my Xmas money on a subscription or more fabric, the dilemmas . What would you choose?

DIY baby pants tutorial

With the GBSB starting again this week its the perfect opportunity for me to show you how to make a pair of fabulous little boy (or girl) pants from an old t-shirt (or some new jersey fabric, we aren't fussy).

You will need:
A old jersey shirt or fabric
Paper and Pen
Fabric Scissors
Overlocker or Sewing machine with zigzag stitch
A pair of baby trousers to use as a template (I have included my pattern for 0-3m which you can download for free here).

Start by washing an ironing your old shirt, we don't want the pants to include any sweaty pits, or left over baked beans do we.

Take a pair of trousers that you already own for your little monkey and fold them in half. Lay the half on top of a piece of paper and draw around the outside but stop where the waistband and ankle sections are as we need to make separate pieces for these. you will need to add seam allowance to all sides except the outside leg which you will cut on the fold so no seam is required here.

Do the same thing again for the waistband and ankle sections. You will then need to double the height of these pieces as they will be folded in half. For the waist section add a seam allowance to all sides once you have doubled it. For the ankle sections add a seam allowance to the top, bottom and right sides but not the left, you will cut the left piece on the fold.

Cut your t-shirt open along the seam lines so you have a flat section of fabric. Cut 2 leg sections on the fold, 2 ankle bands on the fold and then cut 2 waistbands. The waistband is not cut on the fold because I found that a t-shirt did not have enough fabric left to enable you to do this. Instead cut two and we will join at both sides.

Open up the two leg pieces and with right sides together. Pin the outer top sections only and sew these together. I used an overlocker for neat edges but you can do this just as easily on a regular sewing machine, just make sure to use a zigzag stitch to allow for some stretch when you pull these on and off your baby.

Open up the leg sections again and lay right sides together with the two seams on top of each other in the centre, they should now look like a pair of trousers. Pin the inside leg sections and sew a continuous line from the bottom of one leg to the bottom of the other.

Now you are going to make the waist and ankle sections. With right sides together place the two waistband sections together and pin at either end, sew the two ends together. For the ankle sections, with the fabric still folded as cut sew the open edge together as you did with the waistband.

Now fold all these sections in half hight wise with the wrong sides together so the join seams are on the inside and press.

With the leg sections still right side together place the waistband section inside the top of the leg section with the raw edge at the top and pin all the way around. Sew round this top raw edge making sure you have placed your side seams sensibly and be careful not to get the bottom of the band stuck in the machine. I placed my seams at the sides, but you can line them up with the seams on the leg sections if you prefer.

Using the same technique as for the waistband do the same for the ankle sections.

Now you can turn you pants the right side out and press.

And your done :) These awesome little pants only take about 30 minutes if not less once you have the hang of them. Your little ones will have a new wardrobe in no time!

Jersey Baby Trousers

Introducing... Master Fox. This handsome little man really has changed my whole world but he is totally worth it. So to celebrate his arrival my first make of 2015 is this dapper little pair of Jersey trousers which I made from an old tshirt.

Baby's end up with lots of legless body baby grows, which are great, but in winter you need to keep those chubby little legs warm. However you don't get multipacks of trousers like you do babygrows and as any parent knows you need a million pairs of everything due to the amount of washing a baby generates!

To get the pattern for these trousers I just drew round a folded pair he already owned and added a seem allowance. I then cut the pieces from an old tshirt and whipped them together on the overlocker. They really were incredibly easy to make. I mad these as a prototype before cutting up some nicer fabric so I will do a quick tutorial for you when I make up the next pair. 

I hope you like this quick little make, and the picture of our new little cutie. He was a little bit jaundice at birth so he looks super tanned in this piccie. He is all fine now though :) I can't wait to think up all the other little things to make for the monkey. Watch this space!