Big Girl Underwear: tutorial for girl's 2T/3T underwear

At 2 1/2 years old, I can proudly say my daughter is fully potty trained! Literally the afternoon that I posted about Haley's ghetto fabulous potty chart, she made the final step and went #2 in the potty. This day needs to be an official holiday or something. I have never been so happy about poo.

When she first started potty training, we bought my daughter a couple packages of "big girl underwear" to use. Since she's now officially potty trained, she needed more pairs than we had originally purchased. I had a lot of knit fabric laying around, so I thought it'd be fun to make her some myself!

I will say that it took me a lot longer than anticipated to make underwear, but it's fun to see my daughter running around in underwear I made myself. I think it would also be fun to involve your child in making her own Big Girl Underwear by allowing her to use a stamp and some fabric paint or fabric markers to make designs on her underwear to get her excited about potty training.

Supplies for Girl's 2T/3T Underwear:

• Download the free pattern HERE
• Knit fabric for main pieces and bias tape (I used some t-shirts I had sitting around - don't use really thin knit though! Comfy jersey shirts work well for this.)
• 1/4 inch elastic
• Ballpoint needle (helps a ton when sewing with knit fabric)
• Sewing machine and basic sewing supplies

Step 1: Cut out your pieces.

Download and cut out your pattern pieces and place them on top of your knit fabric Trace around your pattern pieces and cut out. You should now have 3 pieces (left to right): your front piece your crotch piece and your back piece.

Step 2: Sew the front and back pieces together.

Place your front piece on top of your back piece, right sides together. Match up the edges of the crotch area and pin.

Sew straight across to join. When you open your piece up, it should look like this with the line you just sewed on the inside of the underwear:

Next, take your crotch piece and iron down each end 1/4 inch. Place on top of the crotch area, ironed side down, making sure to overlap the edge of your crotch piece with the edge you just sewed on the underwear. Pin and sew both ends down.

Step 3: Add bias tape.

You can buy bias tape from the store, but I chose to make my own out of knit fabric because it's much more comfortable for little legs.

To make your own, cut strips 2 inches wide and 13 inches long from your knit fabric. Fold your piece in half wrong sides together and iron, then fold either side toward the crease in the middle and iron. That's it!

Line each leg with the bias tape by sandwiching the raw edge of your fabric inside of the bias tape. Pin and sew down the length of each leg. This is the easy way of sewing bias tape on. I won't bore you with the details of the hard (and proper) way of sewing on bias tape :)

Step 4: Finish the leg holes.

Cut 13 1/2 inches of 1/4 inch elastic for each leg and use a safety pin to thread it through one of the openings of your bias tape on each leg hole.

Let the ends of the elastic stick out the ends of the leg holes a little.

With your underwear inside out, match up the sides and pin from the waist to the top of the leg hole. Sew the sides closed, making sure you catch both ends of the elastic when you sew.

Trim off any additional fabric and elastic that still may be sticking out.

Step 5: Create your waistband.

With the underwear still inside out, fold the waistband 1/4 inch and iron, then fold down another 1/4 inch and iron. Sew your waistband closed.

Cut 19 inches of elastic and use a safety pin to thread it through your waistband.

And now you have a homemade pair of big girl underwear for your big girl!

I won't embarrass my daughter by posting pictures of her little bum in underwear all over the internet, but just know that she loves them :)

Do you have a little boy who's potty training? There's a great tutorial over at Home Sweet Homebodies on how to make your own Easy On Potty Training Pants for little boys.

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The Lena Skirt

I made a skirt for my little niece, Lena, months ago when we made a trip to Pittsburgh to visit family. I thought it'd be so cute to make a matching one for Haley too, so instead of being a responsible adult and planning ahead, I waited until several days before we were going to leave to even start the thing.

I had plans to make one of Dana's Simple Skirts, which I've made several times with success, but then I got it in my head to attempt to make my own pattern. Not only that, but I decided to make a flat front skirt with exposed ruffles which meant drafting my own pattern, doing a lot of measuring, and of course lots and lots of hemming.

I really don't know what's wrong with me sometimes. I seem to make things harder than they have to be (don't tell my husband I admitted that in cyberspace.)

The skirt is kind of "bohemian-style," and I made cute little bow pockets and did some decorative piping on the waistband. They turned out really cute. I still don't know how I managed to finish both skirts in time, I like a zombie with a needle in my hand.

I had planned on doing a tutorial on this, but being my first attempt at a flat front skirt (and trying to do it myself without ever attempting anything like it before) I hope you'll excuse this crazy lady from posting one. Instead, I'll leave you with another cute Haley picture.

I hope you all enjoy your Labor Day weekend!

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A feature and a reminder

Just popping in to say how excited I was to get an email from Summer over at Sumo's Sweet Stuff that she would be featuring my Tunic Dress in her Showcase Saturday today! I just love her blog, it really made my day to hear that she was featuring me.

And of course it made all the effort I put into trying to get Haley to pose for pictures worth it. That kid cannot be bought with anything. Chocolate, toys, nothing will make her stand still and smile for pictures. Out of the 25+ pictures I took, most of them were like this:

I guess 2-year-olds can't appreciate the time it takes for us mama's to sew a dress for them ;)

On another note, just a reminder that my Sail Away Dress Sew-Along begins Monday morning! Hope you'll join me.

Have a great weekend!

King of the Sandcastle Shirt {a Silhouette project}

After making a shirt for Haley using my Silhouette, I got brave and decided to give the Silhouette a challenge. I chose a more detailed image for an applique to see if it could cut out tiny details on fabric.

Oh yeah, it can.

On a completely unrelated note, are you loving the baby mohawk? People think we shave his head that way, but it just grows that way somehow. I tell people he was just born cool. It's a burden he'll just have to learn to bear as he gets older :)

Using the flocked heat transfer material, which Silhouette so sweetly included in my prize bundle, I ironed on some wording then used my Silhouette to cut out and iron on some fabric for a sandcastle applique.

Here's how you can make one too!

Supplies:

• White flocked heat transfer material
• Fabric for the sandcastle
• Small scrap of fabric for the flag
• Iron
• Silhouette or X-Acto knife and cutting mat
• Sewing machine and thread
• You can download the King of the Sandcastle Silhouette Studio template found HERE

Step 1: Create your wording.

You can download the Silhouette Studio file for the King of the Sandcastle Shirt HERE. If you don't have a Silhouette, no worries! Just google "sandcastle" and you can find plenty of images to print and trace onto fabric to make your sandcastle and wording.

If you want to make everything from scratch, use Silhouette Studio to create your wording. I typed "king of the sandcastle" roughly 5 1/2 inches wide and 2 1/4 inches tall. Next, I inverted the wording so when I ironed it on my shirt it would read correctly.

I positioned a square of my flocked heat transfer material on the sticky cutting mat and sent it through the Silhouette using the pink blade to cut it.

When I peeled away the negative space, this is what my wording looked like. Use tweezers to remove the little pieces inside the lettering.

Step 2: Make your sandcastle

To make the sandcastle, I used the "Echo Park Sandcastle" design from the Silhouette store and sized it to fit my shirt (approximately 4 inches tall by 4 inches wide). I wanted to cut the flag out of a different color of fabric, so I ungrouped everything by right clicking on the castle and choosing "ungroup," then I moved the flag away from the rest of the sandcastle so I could cut it out of different fabric.

Next, iron on some sewable interfacing to the back of the fabric you want to use for your sandcastle. Make sure the interfacing is an inch or so larger than you want your final image to be. For example, my sandcastle was 4"x4", so I Ironed on a 5"x5" piece of interfacing to the back of my fabric. Repeat with the fabric you're using for your flag. Cut out and remove the paper backing.

Step 3: Cut out your sandcastle and flag.

Follow the instructions for cutting out fabric on your Silhouette. Place your fabrics on the sticky carrier sheet with the right sides facing up and the interfacing down on the carrier sheet. Make sure you pay attention to the positioning of your fabrics relative to your design in Silhouette Studio. You want to make sure your fabric is lined up where your design is located in Studio so the Silhouette will cut your fabric in the correct places. I like to double cut my fabric to make sure I have clean edges.

Send your carrier sheet through the Silhouette for cutting.

Remove the negative space around your sandcastle. Use tweezers to remove those little pieces of fabric in the windows.

Step 4: Iron on your images.

Position your sandcastle and flag where you would like them on your shirt.

Follow the instructions on your interfacing to iron on your sandcastle and flag. Mine said to place a damp cloth on top of my image and iron.

Once ironed on, stitch around the perimeter of your sandcastle and flag. Usually, applique is sewed on with a zig-zag stitch, but I chose to use a straight stitch because I wanted the edges to fray a little to give it some personality.

For your wording, position your words with the shiny side up (the letters should be right reading now) on top of your shirt and using a hot iron on the "cotton" setting, place a washcloth on top of your image and iron for the amount of time indicated on the your interfacing instructions. Silhouette flocked transfer material suggests 45-60 seconds.

Tah-dah!

Every man needs to be king of some kind of castle, right?

It's a great little summer shirt, even if you don't have a beach (*sigh*)

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The (not so) Reversible Tunic (Dress)

Have I mentioned how much of a Pinterest junkie I am? Oh, it was that obvious huh? Yeah, well I'm definitely addicted. I have found so much inspiration and so many great projects just by browsing through all of the amazing eye candy every day. When I need inspiration for a project, I just go to Pinterest. It's like scrolling through Google images but with no weird pictures of cats in sweaters and stuff. Ok, there are a few of those too, but it's mostly awesome artsy pictures.

How many of you have seen this awesome Reversible Tunic by Kelly from Sewing in No Man's Land floating around in Pinterestland (and all over the blogosphere for that matter)?

I was practically drooling when I saw this tunic appear on my Pinterest screen, and I was pretty sure I could make one for myself.

Wait...did I just decide to make something for myself? I should have just stopped there. Embellishing an existing piece of clothing I can do, but I decided to go ahead and make myself something from scratch. Can anyone tell me how I got it in my head that I could venture away from children's clothing and actually make myself something? The minute I began the project, it was almost as if everything I knew about sewing completely left my head and I became a madwoman with a needle stabbing wildly at a pile of fabric.

Firstoff, I chose a very busy pattern that, while cute on Haley, looked more like hospital scrubs on me. Next, I made the mistake of not using one of my own shirts as a guide when cutting the fabric - this is something I do EVERY TIME when making clothes for both of the kids. I don't know what I was thinking. I ended up with a mumu/hospital scrub shirt that was wayyyy too narrow at the top. Luckily, since I have a daughter, I was able to alter it to make a cute tunic dress for Haley.

I didn't want to make it reversible like in the tutorial so I only used one fabric. I also made the tunic long enough to hit right above my daughter's knees so it became a dress. Because I decided not to make the dress reversible, I had to make the slit in the front differently. I used THIS method that I used when making the button closure in The Haley Dress.

Rather than making a casing for the elastic, I did things the lazy way and cut a piece of 1/2 inch wide elastic 1 inch smaller than my daughter's waist. Then using a zig-zag stitch, I stitched the elastic around the inside of the dress while stretching the elastic as I sewed.

The tutorial was actually really easy had I actually made it right the first time, and I have tenative plans to try again at making myself a tunic. But maybe I should just stick to what I know. I'm kind of glad things worked out the way they did though, I think the dress looks really adorable on Haley.

See how excited she was to model her new dress for me?

The thing I love about this tunic is that it's flowy and breatheable - which is perfect for wiggly little girls who love to jump and spin like my little ball of energy.

Here's where you can find Kelly's tutorial for the Reversible Tunic. Or in my case the Not-So-Reversible-Tunic-Dress :)

Happy sewing!

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Monogrammed Baby Snuggle Squares

**In case you missed it, I posted over at Nature's Heirloom on July 21st.
Here's the project I shared!**

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When my daughter was a few months old, a family member sent her 2 silky lovies as a gift. We gave them to her at naps and bedtime, and 2 years later she won't go to sleep without at least one of her favorite blankies. When my son was born, I knew I wanted him to have a couple of his own too.

These snuggle squares are made of flannel on one side and soft satin material on the other, so they're the perfect little lovies for cuddling and comforting little ones. Best of all, they're super easy to make.

Supplies for 1 Snuggle Square:

• 1/2 yard flannel
• 1/2 yard coordinating satin fabric
• Sewable interfacing
• Scissors
• Disappearing ink marker
• Printer and paper
• Sewing machine and coordinating thread
• Rotary cutter and mat

Step 1: Cut out your fabrics.

1. Wash your fabrics before use to make sure they don't shrink later.

2. Cut out a 19"x19" square from both your flannel and your satin material using your rotary cutter and mat.

Step 2: Make your monogram.

1. From your leftover flannel, cut out a piece of fabric 1 inch larger than you want your letter to be. Iron a slightly smaller piece of sewable interfacing to the back (the wrong side) of the fabric according to the interfacing directions. Remove paper backing.

2. In Microsoft Word, type up and print out your monogram letter, then carefully cut out with scissors. My letter was roughly 3"x3". Place it on the back of your fabric, making sure the letter is facing backwards when you trace.

3. Trace around your letter using a disappearing ink marker.

4. Cut out your letter.

Step 3: Attach your monogram.

1. With your iron on a low setting, iron your monogram onto a corner of your satin fabric on the top (or right side) of the fabric. If you're having a hard time ironing your monogram on, try placing a cloth on top of the fabric and ironing on a higher heat setting.

2. Set your sewing machine to a zig-zag stitch. Stitch around the entire perimeter of your letter, making sure to backstitch some at the beginning and end to secure.

3. This is how your finished monogram should look.


Step 4: Join your two fabrics.

1. With the right sides together, place your satin fabric on top of your flannel and match up the edges.

2. Pin and stitch around the perimeter of your fabric about 1/4 inch from the edge, leaving a space about 4 inches long unsewn for turning. (Make sure you use lots of pins when you pin the fabric because the satin is slippery and you don't want it to slide around as you sew.)

3. Clip your corners close to the stitching (but not too close!) Turn your blanket inside out and press with a hot iron on the flannel side. Make sure you press the edges of your opening inside so it matches up with the rest of your blanket.

4. Top stitch around the perimeter of your blanket 1/4 inch from the edge.

Done!

Let the snuggling begin!

I hope your little ones enjoy their snuggle squares as much as mine do.

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