I wasn't going to participate in Project Run and Play's June sewing challenge, not because I didn't want to, but because I had a lot of other projects that needed to be finished and put away before my grandchildren arrived at my house for an extended summer stay.
I'm happy to report that these grandchildren arrived last week. The second day they were at my house, my three-year-old granddaughter asked me if I would make her princess "pajamies". My five-year-old grandson also said that he needed summer pajamas too. Their mother, my daughter, said he definitely didn't need any more pajamas. Regardless of the need, how could I say "no" to either of them? After all, it's not everyday that I get to make custom sleepwear.
For the pattern, I decided that the Kiki & Company princess dress would be the perfect inspiration for creating my granddaughter's summer princess pajamas.
I bravely took these two grandchildren fabric shopping. I wasn't surprised when bright pink tricot fabric and matching lace were selected by the three year old. To accent the bright pink, I also picked up white tricot fabric and white lace. My grandson selected a cartoon-looking super hero knit fabric, which his mother wasn't crazy about, but hey... it's his pajamas not hers. (Honestly, I didn't like the cartoon fabric either but, it really did look like his kind of fabric.)
I've always heard that fabric shopping with children is a good way to let them be involved in the sewing process and I wholeheartedly agree. It was fun to watch them look through the fabrics and excitedly decide on something.
My grandson's super hero summer pajamas were a breeze to sew together. I sewed up a basic tee shirt and shorts. He loved helping me with the process by operating the sewing machine pedal according to my every command. He also loved trying to bonk me with this giant panda bear!
For the princess "pajamies" I changed Kiki's pattern. On top of a white underskirt, I added a slightly wider pink overlay skirt with an open front seam. I omitted the elastic in the skirt, choosing instead to gather the skirt and sew it to a princess bodice, like on the Kiki & Company Cinderella dress.
I hand stitched white sequins and clear lavender seed beads to the white lace flowers, because sparkles were also requested by this three-year-old. The raw edges were all finished with the pink lace as the binding. More pink lace was sandwiched in-between elastic for the shoulder straps. The bodice has pink lace layered onto the front and I finished off the look with pink ribbon streamers and a pre-made pink ribbon rose.
One night this week she wasn't going to eat her dinner, so I bribed her by telling her that if she ate it she could help me finish her pajamas. I'm here to report that bribery still works! She too got to be the sewing machine pedal operator as I once again gave the "start and stop" orders. As an added bonus, she also got to push the scissors button on my machine. She thought that button was magical.
After taking these photos this three-year-old said, "Grandma now I need a crown." Well, of course she does, how did I neglect that detail? We plan on making that happen another day.
Thanks to Project Run and Play and Kiki & Company for the inspiration for these "pajamies." I've now got two very happy grandchildren with new summer pajamas at my house and we couldn't be happier. xoxo Grandma
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