KCW Spring 2013 Day 2

Woo hoo!  I finished a pair of shorts!!  I did cheat a little by cutting out my fabric over the weekend, but that's not what counts, right?  ;)

This is the 4th time that I have used this pattern and I still love it!  You can check out my other creations here, here and here.  For these shorts I decided to leave off the cargo pockets and the back pockets, I thought the madras print had a lot going on already.

When I showed Nik his new shorts he grabbed my arm and lifted his leg so he could step into them...silly baby.  After I removed the shorts he was wearing so he could try on his new ones, he immediately stuck his hand inside his pocket.  Pockets are his newest discovery so he enjoys looking in my husband's pockets to see what he can find.  I still have a lot of fabric left over so I'll be making my husband a pair of matching shorts.

For day 2 I'm planning on making a little fur vest for the baby using Kate's pattern and tutorial.  I know it's not really spring/summer clothing, but I couldn't help myself!  :)

Project of the Moment - Spiderman

During one of my frequent visits to JoAnn's I ran across some Spiderman fabric and I thought it would make a cute outfit for my cousin's little boy (for as long as I can remember my cousin has collected all things related to Spiderman).  I didn't really know what I was going to make with the fabric so I bought a yard and kept it in my stash.

After thinking about all the possible uses for the Spiderman fabric I decided to make shorts and a hat.  I used  a scrap of red fabric (I had bought for a different project) to make the reversible side of the bucket hat as well as accent strips for the inside pockets on the shorts (recognize the inside or outside pocket pants pattern?).  I really love the little pockets!  Although I'm not sure what an 18 month old will put into them....

I was thrilled with the outcome of the shorts and the hat, I hope my cousin's little guy will love them. 

Patterns used:
Shorts - Inside or Outside Pocket Pants
Hat Pattern - Oliver + S Reversible Bucket Hat

Project of the Moment - Fishsticks Designs Pants

I am pretty open about my love for Hawthorne Threads, there's just something about them...maybe it's their awesome website, wonderful blog/newsletter or their great customer service (no, they didn't pay me to say any of that...).  Anyway, a while back I received my email newsletter with their announcement of Riley Blake's Puppy Park Collection.  Often their newsletters include pictures of projects to give you inspiration, and in this newsletter edition they showed a pair of cute little guy pants made with the puppy park crosshatch print in black, the outside pockets and cargo pockets were made with puppy print and a contrasting trim (of bone print fabric).  I searched and searched to try and find the pattern to make the same exact pants for my little guy (because dogs fascinate him right now), but I couldn't find the pattern anywhere or even a picture of the same pants online so I contacted Hawthorne Threads.  They informed me they couldn't find the exact pattern either and they forwarded me the link for a similar pattern (but I wanted to make the exact same ones in Riley Blake's picture!  I can be a little neurotic when I see something I like, because I want to make the same exact thing (am I the only one like that?). 

After I received their email I decided to look a second time on Etsy to see if I might be able to find the pattern and I did!  I jumped up and down with joy and bought the pattern.  I only used 2 of the 3 fabric that were shown in the Riley Blake example.  In retrospect I should have ordered the bone print fabric to use for the trim and make the pockets "pop".  Since I made the trim the same as the main fabric, the edge of the pockets blends into the pants.  Oh well...next time I know 3 fabrics are better than 2.

Front Pocket

Front View of Pants

My label and new size label!

Back View

I rolled up the cuffs so you can see that the legs aren't super skinny.

Back Pocket

Elastic Waist View

Now let's talk about the inside or outside pocket pants pattern by Fishstick Designs...

I really liked the pattern and I thought it was easy to read and follow the instructions.  I used my newly acquired 1/4" patchwork foot a few times while sewing (for the sake of ease), you don't need to have that foot to sew this pattern.  From cutting to sewing, the pants came together fairly quick (even my husband noticed I finished in record time!).  I cut these out in a 3T and left the hem undone so I can hem then when Nik grow into them  (I'm trying to sew most of Nik clothes now so I can use the fabric stash I accumulated this last month...yes, it's a massive amount).  This pattern is very versatile, it can be used for boys and girls...and as the pattern says, the pockets can be cut for the inside or outside of the pants (this means there will be plenty more pants in the future!).