I ordered fabric at Sewoverit, a white cotton with black zebra print for Alistair and a blue cotton with white Scottie dog print for James. In my pattern box I found a pj pattern for children by Blank Slate Patterns. We made just one change: the pattern has wide cuffs at the bottom, which we didn't bother with.
When James and Alistair first started sewing, they were competing to finish first but soon, James lost interest. Alistair lasted a wee while longer but didn't finish his pj bottoms either. The projects sat untouched in my sewing room until today, when Alistair came home after school and asked to sew. I was busy getting things organised for my trip to Canada tomorrow but I didn't have the heart to say no. I can be a bit of a softie. James didn't fancy it but practiced his footie skills instead.
In the end, it didn't take long, maybe an hour. All that was left to do was to finish the seams with a zigzag stitch, sew on the waistband and hem the pj's legs. I finished the seams with the overlocker to save some time. Alistair sewed the waistband and the hems. His seam allowance was quite generous and inserting the elastic was a bit of a struggle but we managed.
Alistair was very happy with his pjs and instead wearing them straightway. He even went to swimming lesson in his pj bottoms. I am surprised how snug they are, we measured quite generously. Maybe Alistair had a growth spurt? He does seem to be taller.
Now we just have James' to do. I doubt it will before our holidays but you never know.
I am traveling early tomorrow morning, before the children get up. James, Alistair and I had a good snuggle and read a book together. We don't read together often, neither boy enjoys it much, and it was really nice to have a bedtime story like in the olden days. They went to bed happy. I discovered later that James was reading and Alistair was playing with lego.... Ah well, at least they were not bickering.
I doubt I'll get to read a story with Sam and Annie but I'll be happy with a good bye hug.
I'll be touching base once I arrive in Saskatoon! Thanks for stopping by xx
