Sewing Tutorial Quiet Book Pages - Rainbow, Butterfly, Hot Air Balloon

A few months ago a custom order came through my Etsy store. One of my most popular existing items is the Quiet Book that I sell through the store and one of the great things about it is that it is so easy to add extra pages to it as I join the pages together with ring binders.

The request was to add in one extra page (two-sided, so two extra designs) more suited to a smaller child. See the finished product below!

To make the rainbow, I cut the red (largest) semicircle first and then cut each next colour a little smaller. I then sewed the red semicircle onto the page and followed with each smaller one until I was done.

I overlapped two little light grey clouds over the bottom edge and cut out two identical pieces in a small butterfly shape. I sewed these together, inserting antennae and leaving a small opening on each side so that I could feed through the thin ribbon. When constructing the page and joining it to the previous one, I fastened in the ribbon between the pages. 

The cute little butterfly can be pulled along the ribbon to fly around in front of the clouds.

For the hot air balloon, I first sewed the blue felt rectangle onto the background page as the sky. Then I added two little white clouds and sewed on the main hot air balloon shape (here in the white with coloured spots). I attached four short lengths of ribbon to the base of the balloon cover (here in orange), and then sewed this felt piece at the top of the balloon. I attached the ends of each ribbon at the bottom and then hid the ends by sewing the balloon basket over them.

The doll is used in another page (the tent and sleeping bag page) in the book, so rather than add another, and in order to make it easier to handle for a small child, I attached a ribbon to the doll so that it could be used for both pages, and also couldn't be easily lost - double win!

Baby Doll Swaddle - Pattern and Tutorial - Easy DIY

You will need:

• Approx 0.5 metres/ yards of a print fabric for the main fabric.
• Approx 0.5 metres/ yards of a plain lining fabric for the inside of the swaddle. 
• Approx 0.5 metres/ yards of a light wadding, such as Pellon fleece.
• Velcro
• Small scraps of felt for heart decorations.

1. Start by printing the three pages of the pattern and cutting out the pattern pieces along the solid line. The pattern pieces for the main part of the swaddle will need to be joined together along the dotted line, by matching and then taping the two pieces together.
2. Place pattern pieces with the marked straight edge along the folded edge of the fabric and cut out one piece in each of the two fabrics (main and lining), as well as the wadding.
3. Depending on the wadding used (and following the directions for the wadding type), iron the main fabric over the wadding piece to secure.
4. Begin by sewing the darts into the separate fabrics. Fold over the fabrics along the centre line of each dart and sew along the outer line to create shape in the foot pocket and top part of the swaddle.
5. Then take the two pieces of lining fabric, right sides together, and sew together around the round bottom edge. Repeat for the outer fabric. Snip along the curved seams and turn one of the fabrics out the right way.
6. Place this piece inside the other, so that right sides are together. Now join the two fabric cases together by starting in the middle of the top seam and sewing around all of the edges, leaving a space of about 4cm (1.5in.) as you return to where you started.
7. Trim all corners and curved edges and turn the swaddle out the right way. Iron the seams flat, especially where the opening is at the top seam.
8. Top stitch around all edges, closing up the opening at the top seam.

9. Pin a strip of velcro to the position indicated on the pattern for the foot pocket. Sew this down and sew the matching velcro to the flap that you prefer to fold down first (on the inside). Then sew two small pieces of velcro onto this same flap, but on the upper side and the matching velcro to the underside of the flap that will fold down last (see picture above for velcro placement).

10. Finally, attach your felt shape (be imaginative to match your fabric, or to suit your child's preferences here!) to the top flap.

Simple Rainbow Ribbon Skirt Tutorial

Miss 5 loves rainbows. Her first drawing that resembled anything was of a rainbow. Since then, we have had rainbow beetles, rainbow birds, people wearing rainbow clothes and more feature in her drawings.

I saw a skirt somewhere online that had bias binding strips along the bottom to create a rainbow effect, but as I am always on the lookout for the most simple and effective ideas, I thought I would replace the binding with grosgrain ribbons.



To start, I measured my daughter's waist and doubled the measurement. That gives you the width of fabric needed.

I then measured the length from her waist to where I wanted the skirt to end (in her case that was just on her knee). I added around 4 - 5cm and that gave me the length of the fabric needed.

Open out the rectangle and fold over the bottom edge by about a centimetre and iron down. Pin the ribbons along the skirt. The bottom one serves as the hemline and the spacing is dependent on personal preference really and how many colors you choose to use. Sew the ribbons down by sewing along both edges as close to the edge as possible. To finish off at the ends, fold the ends under and sew down.

Fold the rectangle with right sides together and sew down the open side. Then press the top over 2cm and then another 2cm. Sew along the bottom fold as close as you can to form the elastic casing. Leave an opening of about 2 - 3 cm and feed the elastic through. Sew the ends of the elastic together and sew the casing closed.

Oh so cute!

Sewing Tutorial: Easy baby pants variation

We love the easy baby pants at our house. Mr 2 wore these bright dinosaur pants back when he was a baby. What a welcome change they make from the navy blue/khaki options in a lot of the stores here in the cooler months!



A year later, I made him another pair. This time I wanted to trim them with pockets and a cuff.

SEWING TUTORIAL

1. Cut out pant pieces from the original pattern (http://richesandroses.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/sewing-tutorial-easy-baby-pants.html).

2. Decide how big you want your pockets. I wanted pockets to be about 10cm by 10cm when finished. Double the length and cut a rectangle. My rectangle was 12cm by 22cm. (adding in a little for seam allowances). I wanted two pockets (one on each leg), so I cut out two of these from contrasting robot print cotton fabric.

3. Fold the pocket fabric in half length ways, right sides together. Sew around the edges, leaving a 2cm gap to turn the pocket out the right way.

4. Turn pockets out the right way and iron flat.

5. Pin pockets in position. I put mine in the middle of the leg piece, by folding the piece in half in one direction and then in half again the other way, finding the centre point. Sew around the side and bottom edges of the pocket, close to the edges.

6. Cut out a 10cm strip of the contrasting fabric to make the cuffs.

7. Fold the fabric in half lengthways and iron flat. Fold the edges into the centre and iron flat again. Place the bottom edge of the leg piece between the folded length of contrast fabric. Sew it down along the top edge, close to the edge.

8. Now follow the instructions on the original blog post (http://richesandroses.blogspot.com.au/2013/04/sewing-tutorial-easy-baby-pants.html) to finish the pants.

VOILA!

Sewing tutorial: Toddler Pinafore Dress Variation (Bias binding trim and pockets)

The sewing tutorial for my original pinafore dress (link here) has been my most popular blog post by far.

Cute, right?

Last year, I fell in love with this cute green and blue bird fabric and used it to make a version more suitable for winter. Miss 4 loves those pockets!

PINAFORE DRESS WITH TRIM AND POCKETS

1. Cut out the front and back pieces as per the original pattern (link above). If you are using binding on the neck and sleeves, you will not need the facing pieces. 

2. Cut out the shape you require for your pocket (I like the u-shape above). Cut it on a double thickness, along the fold. With right sides together sew together along the curved edge, leaving around 2 - 3cm for turning the pocket out. Repeat for any extra pockets.

3. Pin pockets in position and sew close to the main fabric by sewing close to the edge, along the curve.

4. Attach the front piece to the back piece.

5. Sew binding around all remaining edges. You can use a store bought binding, or make it from a matching fabric yourself. Just decide on the width you would like and cut a strip along the diagonal (fold the side edge down to the bottom edge to find the right angle) that is four times the width. Fold the strip in half length ways, with wrong sides together and iron. Then open it up and fold the edges into the centre. Close up again and iron again.

6. Finish with buttons or other trim that you require as per the original tutorial.

The easiest 10 minute stretch pants

I made these red pants recently out of some knit scrap fabric that I had in my fabric stash and they turned out so cute, that I ran up another pair last week.

Made from two pieces, as knit fabric does not fray there's no need to hem the legs or double over the waist casing. Super fast and simple! To cut out I used an existing pair of pants folded in half and cut each leg on the fold.

Too busy sewing to blog...

Life has been busy again and trying to squeeze in some winter sewing to my spare time has left little time for blogging.

I previously made a short sleeved version of this shirt from a cute dinosaur fabric using the pattern found here 

http://www.smalldreamfactory.blogspot.com.au/2011/07/free-pattern-short-sleeve-shirt-size-12.html. This long sleeved version has turned out well, although I found I needed to add to the length of the pattern for it to fit my son.

I made my son a pair of pants out of this fabric last winter and decided to make another this year as they were just so cute. I really get tired of shopping for winter clothing for boys and only having the choice of grey, black and navy blue. We need the bright colours more in winter!

This little dress is made from my toddler pinafore dress pattern, found here in my blog. Adjusted of course to fit my growing girl. I bought this cute bright green and turquoise bird fabric ages ago with such a dress in mind. She loves it, especially the pockets (where her hands now live ;)).

These little pants turned out great. Just a simple pattern cut from an existing pair of pants, but simplified by making the front and back pieces the same (just like in my baby pants pattern on the blog). Trimming with the robot fabric really brightened them up. So cute and so comfy.

I love how being able to sew clothes for my kids really brightens up their wardrobes with unique pieces.  As basic clothes are now so cheap to buy, it's lovely to be able to hand make the more special pieces and you really can save money by doing that yourself.

Summer is almost over

April has begun already, but the weather is still warm here in Brisbane. The nights are a little cooler, but Autumn is really taking its time in starting off. Luckily, because it's given me a little bit of extra time to sew some new clothes for the kids. 

Richie is the one who benefits the most - boys pants are so easy to sew. I guess dresses are too, but with our lifestyle of lots of outdoor play, Mia rarely gets the opportunity to dress up and wear pretty dresses. I'm making her a couple though.

I'm using the check fabric above to make a long sleeve, collared shirt for Richie. Last year I made him a really cute little dinosaur short sleeved version. It was a bit on the short side though, so hopefully this will fit him for longer than that one did.

I picked up this retro bird fabric a while ago on sale, already picturing it on denim as a dress for Mia. I've made quite a few metres of bias tape too, so it should really brighten up this dark denim.

Richie's favourite pants of this time last year were a bright pair of easy dinosaur pants. I picked up some more of the fabric on sale a while back, so I'm making him another pair for this year. They make a nice change from the navy blue and greys pants that are standard for boys in winter.

I wasn't sure about the red, but  I had a few scraps left over and thought I'd make them up. They look so cute on Richie! They're the perfect park or child care pant. So comfy and easily washed.

The denim and robot combo are going into some more pants for Richie. I totally underestimated how cute these would turn out (I'll post some more up to date pictures soon). I put the robot strips along the bottom hems and have also put on robot pockets. The denim is a lighter weight fabric picked up on a half price sale, the lighter weight is perfect for our Brisbane winters where the sun still keeps the days quite warm.

Mia's second dress is made out of this cute zakka fabric with a Parisian print. I picked it up on sale with no idea what to make out of it (and still the pattern is mostly on my head). So far I've got a bodice, but the plan is to pleat the skirt part. I've made it loose fitting so we can fit long sleeves and leggings underneath.

So happy to be sewing again!

What have you made recently?

Upcycle: Toddler girl's top and skirt from a business shirt

When my husband cleaned out some of his old work shirts, I picked a few that I thought would make cute girls' clothes. This one stood out the most. 

I decided to make a dress for my daughter, so I measured her chest and waist and added in a little to get my width. I also measured from the top of her shoulder down to where I wanted the length and added in enough for hems and seams to get my length. 

This was my first go and I was a bit quick to cut the collar out, making the neck hole too large for my daughter. In the most recent upcycle I just unpicked the collar and removed it, sewing the casing back together.

I also cut out two belt loops and a long strip to make a tie belt from. 

After hemming all openings, I discovered that the neck was too large, so I gathered through the neckline and as well as solving that problem, it pulled the top of the dress into an altogether better shape - win win!

Sewing tutorial: Boys Romper (6-12 months/Size 0)

1. Print and cut out the paper pattern pieces, joining symbols and taping pieces together.

2. Place along the fold and cut out two romper pieces and two neck facing pieces.


3. With right sides together, sew the two sides of the romper together down the middle front and middle back. Iron the seams open.








4. Prepare the neck facing. If using a light fabric, you may want to use a light iron on interfacing to make the fabric heavier. With right sides together, sew the top facing pieces together down the middle front and middle back. Overlock or do a zig zag stitch along the bottom edge.

5. Attach the neck facing. Pin onto the romper with right sides together, matching seams. Sew around the top edge to attach the facing to the romper. Trim seams and corners. Turn out the right way and iron flat.

6. Hem the legs. Fold over 0.5cm and iron flat. Fold again another 1 cm and iron flat again. Sew along the top fold to hem.

6. Prepare the inner legs for attaching the snap fasteners. Fold over 0.5cm and iron flat. Pin cotton herringbone tape along insides of the leg openings. Sew close to both edges to fasten the tape to the romper.

 
 7. Attach snap fasteners evenly along the leg openings. For a romper of this size attach up to 8 snap fasteners.

 7. Sew button holes on the back shoulder flaps where marked on the pattern and sew buttons on the front flaps where marked on the pattern.

Sewing tutorial: Pre-walker boots

1. Print and cut out pattern.
2. For each shoe cut sole, top and side in main fabric, lining fabric and interfacing.
3. Iron interfacing onto the wrong side of the main fabric.







4. With wrong sides together, baste the sole main and lining pieces together.

5. With right sides together sew around the curved edge of the side and flat edge of the top.


6. Turn the side out the right way and top stitch along the curved edge. Sew 1cm in from the edge.

7. Turn the top out the right way and top stitch along the straight edge.




8. Put the shoe together. With the main fabric together, line up the centre back of the sole and centre bottom of the sides. Sew from the centre back in one direction, then starting again at the centre back, sew the other direction.







9. Match the centre of the top flap with the front centre of the sole and attache, sewing from the centre out in one direction, then in the other.







10. Turn the shoe out the right way. Attach eyelets evenly to the inner edges of the sides. Thread with short length of ribbon or cord.

Sewing tutorial: Toddler pinafore dress

1. Print pattern . Match up the numbers and join with tape. Place along the folded edge of the fabric and cut out. You should have two dress pieces and two facing pieces from the fabric. If using a light fabric, you could also cut two facing pieces from a light iron-on interfacing and iron these to the wrong sides of the facing fabric before sewing.








2. With right sides of the dress pieces together, sew down the side seams of the dress, leaving a 1cm seam allowance. Press seams open.








3. With right sides of the facing pieces together sew down the sides with a 1cm seam allowance. Press seams open.


4. Use a zig zag stitch or serger to sew along the bottom edge of the facing, to prevent fraying.






5. Place the dress inside the facing, so that right sides are together. Sew right around the arm holes, shoulders and neck, joining these two pieces. Trim corners and turn out the right way. Press.









6. Fold over the hem 1cm and press. Fold over again 2cm and press again. Sew along the hem.

7. Sew buttonholes in place on the back shoulder flap and buttons in place on the front shoulder flap. Check positioning by trying the dress on before sewing.