Project Run and Play Week 2: Stripes and Polka Dots

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The Collegiate Cool Look:

(aka the 'Hey MOM' meme look)

Ok, ever since this theme was announced, I've been singing 'You put the line in the polka dot and mix them all up...' (a la 'Lime in the Coconut')  I'm just kooky like that ;op

I knew immediately that I was doing a look for my boy 'A'.  And not a simple play look, but an all out layered look of STYLE.

I think of this as a modern collegiate look, but I think it also fits the vibe of current actors and boy bands (why do I know anything about boy bands???? Oh yeah, I read People while running on the treadmill!)

(a bit of my inspiration: click on the pictures for links)

On Top:
I started with the Blazer, wanting to capture 'classic' in a modern way.  When I stumbled upon this gorgeous black and white teeny tiny stripe at my mom's house I knew it was the right fabric.

The lining was where I had fun.  With a very interesting polka dot and stripe fabric (yep this is one of those fabrics for little girl dresses with the pre-gathered top and border bottom), I set to work laying out how to create a lining that incorporated the lines and dots - well why not put the 'line in the polka dot....and mix them all up'.  Gahhhhh, make the song stop!!!

I made two linings because I was not happy with the first.  VERY happy with the second!!!
The back of the lining is three sections that I created by modifying the original pattern peices.
I added an extra welt pocket inside the lapel... 'cause those cool collegiate/boy band/actors never leave home without their smart phone.

The welt pockets and trim bring in another dot.  The dark grey on grey brought in pattern in a clean way that I feel grounds the jacket.

Next up is The Shirt.  A white on white square dot - does that still count as a dot... yep, in my book it does!

 My boys have plain white shirts, so I wanted to do something to this to make it feel a little edgy without doing too much.  I decided to take a risk and sew my white shirt with grey thread.  Wow, it feels COOL - I was sold when I stumbled upon these dark grey/silver buttons on a men's button up in my re-purpose pile.  The grey buttons not only tie in perfectly with the stitching, they also tie back to the grey on grey dot fabric.  This shirt is certainly made for this outfit, but it is still something that the boys can wear with a pair of jeans or other dress slacks for different looks.

I used a free French pattern for this shirt... and I just can't recommend it.  I mean, I am happy with my shirt, but I had to fenagle quite a few things.  Essentially I took the front, back and collar pattern pieces for sizing and then made up how to put it all together... and created my own cuff pattern because there wasn't one.  I am incredibly happy seeing as this is the first dress shirt I have ever made and the first button holes I have sewn since COLLEGE.

Moving on... The Tie... Oh the tie, I am so in love with the tie!!! I think I could make ties all day and be oh so happy.  Ok, maybe I would get bored... but these go together so quickly and you can mix and match fabrics and the elastic band makes them very practical for little boys.

I used the grey on grey dot for the outer fabric.  And a red & white dot as the lining (this plays as a reverse of the white and red dot fabric in the blazer lining).

I used a tutorial from Sharing the Wealth.  I narrowed down the width to get closer to a skinny tie look.

The Sweater.  This is the first recycled piece of the look,  This was a men's polo sweater I picked up on sale at the Goodwill for 83cents.  I love the heathering.  I love that it is grey.  It is neither a stripe or a polka dot, but in a layered look like this, you need the one calm piece that holds everything else together.  I went with a simple V neck to show off the collar of the shirt and top of the tie.  This is such a wonderful staple for my boys closet.  It will get tons of use through the winter months ahead, which makes this mama happy!
This pattern is modified from a long sleeve T pattern I drafted for the boys in the fall... I wanted to make sure the sweater wasn't too bulky and would work under the blazer -  and it had to have  'V' neck to show a peak of tie.

I bound the neck seam with the grey on grey polka dot fabric to once again tie all the pieces of this look together and keep it cohesive.  I think this is also important to stabilize the neck hole on certain knits so that they lay correctly and don't get all stretched out and wonky.

On Bottom:
The Pants..... The PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNTTTTTTTSSSSSSSS!!!  I have been wanting to make colored pants since I started sewing for my boys last summer.  The time is here, the time is NOW.

I created this pattern using a pair of jeans that fit both boys as a base (A is skinny with no butt, but if things don't fit both boys it becomes very frustrating to get them dressed.)  When I held up the mock up pair (that are made out of the blazer fabric so I technically have a suit now) I turned to hubs and said - these are sexy!!!  Hmmm, maybe not the normal reaction to have to a little boys pair of pants, but if I make things for baby girl that I wish I could wear, I make things for the boys that I wish hubs WOULD wear (he is a sweats and t-shirts kind of guy, but he is still sexy to me!)
I started by upcycling an outdated red twill skirt (ankle length that buttons up the front - you know the kind) for the base of the pants.   The great thing about twill is that is has a natural stripe in the weave of the fabric - stretching too far???  Ok, it isn't truly a stripe or a dot either, who cares... it is RED.  My husband thinks I am crazy when I think outside the box on the boys clothes, and yet even he likes how these turned out.
I couldn't just make a regular easy pair of pants.  I wanted the finishing of jeans.  Flat feld seams, back yolk, back and front pockets, front fly, and details,details, details.
The details are where I started having fun.  I mixed the main blazer fabric in as part of both the front and back pockets.  The grey on grey dot became the trim to pop the edges of the pockets and the fly.  I feel like these details  really make these pants a perfect fit with the more classic blazer.  The red also perfectly matches the dot fabrics in the jacket lining and tie lining - home run!

And the top stitching is a super fun design... that ummmm... maybe, kinda.... well dang, YES they are W's.  I am the W obsessed lady after all, but this I can blame on my husband, his idea.  I thought about embroidering on dots or stripes... and while those would have fit the theme they would have made these jeans almost too unique pushing towards circus rather than walking the fine line of cool.

*I had to snap this picture at home the next day - the attention span of a 22month old isn't long enough for adding and removing too many articles of clothing during one photo shoot.  I really wanted you all to be able to see the details of the front of the pants on my little guy.

AND THE CREDIT GOES TOO:
Blazer: Melly Sews Basic Blazer (AMAZING, go buy it NOW!!!  Added the trim and inner welt pocket)
Shirt:  French button up (yeah, kinda sorta... I'll still give them credit since I used their basic sizing to start)
Tie:  This great tutorial and free pattern from Sharing the Wealth (I adapted the pattern to get a skinnier look)
Sweater: Self Drafted
Pants: Self Drafted

More pictures of A strutting his stuff... why yes, I can oblige!

 I cuffed the jacket just to show off the dots in the lining... he could so wear it this way in the Spring with jeans and just the button up, soooooooo cute ;o)

 You can't catch me!!!!

Hey Girl, Vote for Me.  (*Or at least go vote, and if you vote for me, THANK YOU!!!)

Whew... and THANK YOU!!!!

Sorry the blog has been a bit on hold this week (I meant to write and post this monday). I'll freely admit that I have been putting all my 'free' time into sewing for PR&P... you know that free time I have between taking care of three kiddos, taking and editing photos for clients, and trying to keep the house from getting buried under the ever growing pile of laundry. Ahhhhh, luxurious FREE TIME ;o)
But seriously, I am so happy to be a part of Project Run &Play. I am stretching, and growing, and making friends, and just so happy to be involved!


This is where I get a little sappy:
THANK YOU 
-thank you to every friend, family member, and follower who took the time to not only look at baby girl's wolfie outfit, but also vote for it.
-Thank you for all of the AMAZING comments that you left on the blog encouraging me through the weekend.
-Thank you for your e-mails and stories and comments from your kiddos.
-Thank you for walking with me on this journey; however long the road may be.

Last weekend was nerve wrecking as I tried to spread the word to family and friends to vote for me while trying not to look at the results (every five minutes ;op).  By Saturday I realized I was dead last in the people's vote and finally forced myself to STOP looking at the votes... the voting is 50/50 - half the score coming from the people's vote and half coming from the judges.  It was out of my hands and I wasn't going to change anything by staring at numbers.  But here is the thing that really hit me on Saturday... I don't have 150 followers, I don't have 150 friends and family members who would vote  for me on a sewing competition, I WAS getting part of the public vote.  People were voting for ME, not because they know me or are related to me, but because they liked what I made.  WOW, just WOW!!!
I also had some amazing encouragement from some of the other competitors (this is seriously an amazing group of women!!!)

Shannon sent me this verse:
Philippians 1:6

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ

and I stumbled across this quote on FB:
'Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles, it empties today of its strength.'~Corrie Ten Boom

I am so excited to share my next look with you all on FRIDAY.  I hope you will all come back to see what I have made and vote for your favorite over at PR&P.  Every single vote counts, and I appreciate every one that I receive!!!

Until then, HUGS!

PR&P Pattern Remix: A Winter WEAR-Wolf

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(*A little note about the name - no I didn't pick it for the W's!!!  My husband once asked what I would brand my clothes if I ever made a collection... my answer was 'Winter Wear'.  So when I was struggling to come up with the perfect name, he suggested a 'Winter WEAR-Wolf' with a smirk... and thus it was named!)

They sure know how to kick things off right - every season (I think) starts off with a pattern re-mix.  It is an awesome way to see how each designer views and re-interprets a pattern or idea.  Week one was one of my favorite weeks sewing along last season, so I was super excited and on pins and needles to see what would be chosen this season for our re-mixing pleasure.
When I saw that we would be doing the Party Dress from Lindsay at A Cottage Home, I experienced a gasp of delight and then a downward spiral of despair   You see, I am a pinterest junkie (well, mild addict maybe) - and this was one of the first dresses that I pinned to make for baby girl.  Woooohooo, something I already love.  But OH NO - something I already love 'just the way it is'.  It took me almost two full weeks of designing, redesigning, and designing again before I could start working on this outfit.  I went through so many different styles inspired by so many different things until my head was spinning, I couldn't see straight, and my boys had enough scrap paper to color on for months.
Finally I had to take a step back, take a deep breath, and ask myself the two questions that mean the most when I am making clothes for my kids.  1: What do I have in my stash to use or re-purpose and 2: What can they honestly get the most use out of in their wardrobe right now.

I was immediately drawn to this teal blue linen-ish fabric that I scored from my church's pile of old shephard costumes that have not seen the light of day in over a decade (and made their way into my home as I made decor and games for this years Christmas Party).  I then searched through the piles until I found a gorgeous grey linen-ish wrap skirt.  I'm a little in love with grey at the moment.  The two together immediately turned my thoughts to the arctic.

(source)

With fabric in hand, I knew immediately what I was making.  I had fallen in love with a dress for me - and it became the inspiration for baby girl. The answer to question two was a fun play dress - not a fancy holiday dress, but something she could wear anytime; and most importantly something warm enough for our NE winter weather.

I knew I would shorten the dress and that baby girl would need bloomers added - and ruffles didn't seem appropriate with this design, but the bloomers needed something to make them special... hmmm.  Well I was already inspired by the Arctic and baby girl's nursery is Little Red Riding Hood - so a Wolf it had to be.

(source)

THE MAKING:

-I started with the original pattern grading the size just slightly for my 8month old (size 12 month) daughter.  I wanted a little extra room for crawling movement and to have a shirt layered underneath so I didn't grade down as much as I would have if it was a summer frock.
-I then laid out the pattern pieces and decided where I wanted my piecing to be - I cut the pattern and created new pieces with seam allowance.

-When I attached the pieces together I then top stitched every created seam with silver thread.

-I lined the bodice using my method from the Puttin on the Ritz dress (where you leave the side seams open rather than the shoulder to turn - it is all personal preference, but this way you don't have to top stitch around your arm hole).
-The skirt was also pieced and top stitched along each seam, but I also wanted pockets - I love pockets even if baby girl has no clue what they are. So pockets went into the seams of the front panel. LOVE

-I decided to line the entire dress so that as she crawled around, showing off the inside of the garment to the world with her booty in the air, there would not be random seams staring the world in the face.
- I used the band concept of the original in the lining, this makes sure that the grey linen is really the only thing you see as she moves around.
-The lining bodice and lining skirt pieces were sewn together by hand so that there would be no visible stitching and could in theory be a reversible dress (it is of course not reversible because of the buttons only being on one side ;op)

-The buttons are stolen from an old coat and held on with elastic bands.(I find for babies, elastic can be so much easier to button than fabric loops).  These buttons are so perfect, they are a grey in the center that radiates out to black.

-The Belt is a tube of the blue fabric turned and top stitched with a loop at one end for threading the end through and then tying/knotting in an 'oh so mod' way.  I am thinking I need to make a bunch of these belts for me, so easy and a great pop to add to pieces in my wardrobe!!!

-for the bloomers, I used a Simplicity pattern and then created the piecing the same way I did for the bodice and skirt.
-I did flat feld seams on every seam since I did not plan on lining the bloomers... it is rare that I take the time to finish garments this way, but I LOVE the finished effect.

-The leg casings are made with grey bias tape to create smooth casings with no puckering in the stitching.

-The Wolf was appliqued on and created using each of the fabrics from the outfit (muzzle: cream knit, head:grey linen, pupils and nose: grey lining)

-The shirt and leggings are both made form a cream knit with one way stretch.
-They are both my own patterns drafted from other clothing baby girl owns and then adapted
- The shirt has a gentle boat neck and gathered sleeves
-All seams are serged.  All hems are serged then turned and sewn with the twin needle for a professional finish.

-The neckline of the shirt is finished with grey bias tape and a small bow (this shirt will be a staple for layering or wearing on its own)

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due:
Dress: Party Dress  by Lindsay at A Cottage Home(adapted size and added piecework, lining, pockets, etc...)
Bloomers &wolf: Simplicity 0291(adapted piecework)
Shirt: Self Drafted
Leggings: Self Drafted
Bow: Inspired by pinterest Japanese felt bow - my pattern and tutorial HERE

And more pictures!!!!!!!!

 Baby on the prowl...

 Going..... Going....

Gone!!!

I am absolutely in love with this outfit - and baby girl seemed very happy to play in it, so happy that she wouldn't stay still for a picture ;o)

Now GO VOTE - there are some amazing outfits out there so pick your favorite (and if that happens to be mine, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!)