Elena: Quilted Sweatshirt & Pants

Why does Elena get all the cute things? If this fabric was anything other than hearts, I would have made this for myself. This quilted knit sweatshirt fabric is from Joann's. It is some cozy stuff.

I used the Imagine Gnats Tumble Tee pattern with the long sleeve add-on to make this tunic. I added something like 3 inches to the shirt length so it is somewhere between the pattern markings for shirt and dress length. I made the front 1-1/2" shorter than the back and made side vents following the method in the True Bias Mini Sutton Blouse pattern.

I sewed the doily on by going around in 3 different circles to make sure it all stays flat. The longest circle was the one around the entire scalloped edge. Just as I started feeling like this was a real pain, I was back at the beginning and happy to be done with that. It's just a lot of lifting the presser foot and adjusting over and over and over again.

This fabric is quite thick which can make for some bulky seams as I learned when serging on the sleeves. I had planned on cuffs and a traditional ribbed neckband, but I think the seam would have stuck out funny. I decided that the best way to finish the sleeves and neckline was with a simple turn and top stitch with a double needle. This way turned out very well.

You know the main reason I sew for Elena? Because she is a bean pole. It's her 2T width and 5T length that make it a necessity. These pants may look strangely long and skinny to you, and they are, but they fit her perfectly. 

I was really winging it with these pants. I started with the Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop Skinny Jeans, but modified them a lot. 1.) No fly  2.) Combined the back yoke and back leg pieces into one piece 3.) Narrowed them even more 4.) Changed the shape and construction of the pockets and 5.) Used ribbing and 1-1/2" elastic for the waistband. 

Again, the thickness of the fabric and seams is what drove some of the changes. I eliminated the pocket bag to reduce bulk and just sewed the back piece behind it. Is there a name for that? It's like a reverse patch pocket. That's what I'm calling it. For the waistband, I didn't want to sew/serge on a waistband and have a thick seam exposed so I sewed the opened up flat ribbing to the inside of the pants in the round. I pressed under 3/8" on the open edge. I laid the elastic in and folded the ribbing over it tucking in the pressed edge. I sewed it on from the outside with a zigzag stitch covering the first line of stitching. Does that make sense? It definitely all lays nice and flat.

I don't really intend for her to wear the 2 pieces together. She can of course, but I'd rather split them up and mix them with some of her other pieces. That's the beauty of the capsule wardrobe. And now, I think I can really say Elena's fall/winter capsule is complete. Besides maybe a Christmas dress, I don't think she needs anything else until spring. I know I'll never make it that long without making something for her, but I'm going to try my best. There are plenty of other people in this house to sew for, and plenty of other things needing my attention.

Thanks for reading and I hope you have an awesome weekend. My whole family will be busy with a swimming meet. Only one member of the family will actually swim, but my husband and I will volunteer as timers and such and the oldest will have to watch the youngest for the whole day so that's that. Maybe I can get a picture of Andrew wearing the shorts I recently made him and then he can make an appearance on the blog. Hmmm, I wonder if he would.