Battle of the Stitches (Round 4): the Cocoon Coat

 

It’s been a while since the last Battle of the Stitches,
me and Made by Toya starting to get twitches.
But now we’re back and we’re going head to head,
Battle of the cocoon coat without the bloodshed.

Housecoat*

*More commonly known as a dressing gown depending on where you live, what your mum calls it or how old you are.

I spent my first 29 years calling it a dressing gown and switched to housecoat like a disloyal friend, after living with a Scotsman. Now, much to the annoyance of my sister, housecoat flows out of my mouth like I’ve been saying it forever. The only other words I can think of where this happened is for products, like Oil of Ulay which became Oil of Olay, but how often does one need to say Oil of Olay? Nike started being pronounced Nikey rhyming with spikey in the UK, less than 5 years ago. And I don’t even know how Opal Fruits became Starbursts. But it was Marathon that I resisted for as long as possible, and before long I had switched to Snickers without even realising it.

How to make an ‘Easy Peasy Poncho’ without a pattern

What’s the difference between a poncho and cape? This is what my daughter asked me when I told her I had made her a poncho. Errr! A poncho is a rectangular shape and a cape has a curved hem. This is what I told her, but I wasn’t quite sure. Well, do you know?

Florence Christmas Blog Tour: DAY 2

Hi, it’s Nina of Fliegfederfrei. I live in Switzerland and I have a one year old daughter and a two year old dog. I’m a sewing addict and I spend every free minute in front of my sewing machine.

Today is my turn to show you my Christmas inspired Florence. When Olu first asked me to be part of this tour, I fell instantly in love with the pattern. On closer inspection I realised it started at size 2Y. What was I to do? My 1 year old daughter would probably be too small. I sewed a test version and as expected it was a bit too big. That was when I hit upon the idea to sew a Florence coat instead of a blouse. And I’m so happy with the result. It suites her like a charm.

Just hop over to Fliegfederfrei to see all the details.

 

Hello! I’m Tasha–blogger at Glitter+Wit, small-business owner of handmade goods under the same name, 27-year-old wife of seven years, and mother of two adorably feisty children. I live in Southwest Missouri, USA. Sewing is pretty much my all-time favorite thing, though when I do take a break you can catch me binge-watching my favorite television programs. I’m currently preparing for my first craft show, but I just had to make time for the Florence. See the rest of my daughter’s red+green shirt on my blog (styled two ways) on my blog, and keep up with me on Instagram for more making madness.

Who says tights are for girls?

Little Hero tights by Little Titans

My little nephew has swagger, he’s cute, he’s cool. He wouldn’t be caught in a pair of baggy, slouchy, shapeless jogging bottoms, no siree. He saunters around not only in jeans but drop crotch pants, leggings, girl tights and boy tights (not all at the same time, I hasten to add) because he can. Tights shouldn’t be just for girls, boys should also be able to benefit from the cosy comfort that tights have to offer. It makes perfect sense to me.

Leggings are pretty much an extension of the skinny jeans, but in jersey fabric they are more comfortable, cheaper and will fit growing kids for longer. Who knows, it may soon be commonplace for boys to wear leggings, it’s a no-brainer I think. But I’m only talking about little boys, not big boys, for practical reasons of course, come on where would they put their mobile phones?

I was delighted to be asked to join Perfect Pattern Parcel#4, last time it was patterns for girls, this time, patterns for boys. Woo hoo!!!

What a great selection of patterns. I decided to sew the Schoolboy vest for my nephew, it looked easy enough to sew on my ‘toy’ mini sewing machine that I took on holiday. (Yes, that’s right, I took my sewing machine on holiday.)

Knowing that my nephew is a cool dude, who wears tights and leggings as standard attire, I didn’t want to make him a vest that would cramp his style. I wanted to steer away from the formal look (after all he doesn’t often go to posh dinner parties and the opera) and give the vest a more urban flavour.

So here’s what I made

It’s not as urban as I intended, but it certainly looks good on my nephew, don’t you agree?

The great thing about the schoolboy vest is that it is reversible. So you sew one item and get two. Bonus! My sister-in-law asked about washing instructions. Normally I would say ‘Wash inside out at 30 degrees’. But what is inside out on a reversible vest? My brother’s solution was to wash at 15 degrees both sides. That’s the kinda guy he is (hmmm!!).

I made some minor adaptions to the pattern

Colour blocking, piping, two buttons instead of 4, no welt pockets, no buckle at the back but shaped the bottom to form a point, which unfortunately isn’t that noticeable [sad face].

There is one simple rule for wearing a vest or waistcoat as we call it in the UK…  ALWAYS BUTTON UP (rather than leave open and flapping), unless you want to look like a child being forced to wear a suit at a family wedding.

 

Want to make a reversible Schoolboy Waistcoat (or any of the other patterns in the Parcel)? Purchase your parcel today.

About Pattern Parcel

Perfect Pattern Parcel believe in supporting independent pattern designers. It’s their opinion that indie patterns are better than big box patterns, and they are pretty sure their customers think so too. So, they allow customers to show their support in naming their own price for each Parcel.  They also encourage customers to allocate part of their Parcel price to the charity Donorschoose.org in order to help classrooms in need. Pattern Parcel donates all profits after expenses from Parcel sales to the charity as well. They have raised $9,800 towards eliminating educational inequality.

Hey look! It’s my other nephew.

Bonus Pattern

Choose a price of $26 or greater for Parcel #4 and you will automatically also be sent the Bonus Pattern! The Bonus Pattern for this Parcel is the Knight Hoodie by Charming Doodle. This pattern is a unique and fun spin on the traditional hoodie. Thorough instructions and pictures help you create an amazing and memorable hoodie that will inspire creativity in your little one.

What are you waiting for? Get your parcel today.