Welcome to the Little Stitches Blog, your go-to place for learning how to sew and creating adorable children's clothing. With a passion for tiny details and a love for sewing, we bring you delightful projects that make every stitch special. Join our community of creative parents and sewing enthusiasts as we share tips, patterns, and heartwarming stories. Subscribe for weekly updates and let's make something beautiful together for the little ones in your life!
DIY Ghost Pinafore Costume for Kids | Easy Halloween Tutorial (FREE PATTERN) Summary This ghost pinafore was such a fun and cozy project for my daughter’s first real Halloween. It’s an easy beginner sewing project using a free pattern and can be customized with felt or vinyl details. If you’re looking for a simple, budget-friendly kids costume, this is a great place to start! Storytime! This year is my daughter’s very first time trick-or-treating! Last year, she was still a baby — adorable, of course, but we decided to skip going door-to-door since it felt a little awkward with just two adults and a tiny pumpkin in tow. Now that she’s older, we’re making the most of Halloween! Since we live in the Midwest (where the weather can never decide between fall and winter), I wanted to make her a costume that would be comfortable, easy to layer, and still super cute. That’s how this DIY Ghost Pinafore Costume for Kids came to life! It’s simple, cozy, and perfect for unpredictable fall wea...
With summer comes wedding season, and this year, my brother is getting married! Of course, that means I’ve got the perfect excuse to make my daughter some new clothes! As soon as I knew they were planning a wedding, I started planning what I would be sewing for our family to wear. I made a sweetheart neckline dress with a pink rose cotton fabric and a matching bowtie for my husband. For my daughter, I knew I wanted it to be light and flowy since it’ll be in the middle of July in Wyoming. That means one thing: cotton and ruffles.
As I was going through my cottons, I found a beautiful pastel rainbow, cloud print fabric, which I knew I needed to use. But as more information flowed in about his wedding, she needed something to keep her warm in a building with A/C, so I decided to also make her a jean jacket out of some pink pants that I have never worn before. Yay upcycling!
Materials
Simplicity Pattern S9899- options A and B
1 yard of cotton fabric
¼ yard of lining fabric
Jeans I plan on upcycling
Zipper 4-6 in
Scissors
Pins
Thread
HEAVY DUTY NEEDLE- MUST HAVE
My Experience
I’ve had a very different experience sewing the dress and the jacket, so I’ll review them separately.
Dress
The sizing on the pattern was very confusing as it didn’t list month sizes and made its own unique size chart. After measuring my rambunctious 14 month child, I landed on size ½. Strangely, even though she usually wears 12-month onesies and 18-month pants, she fits! The length is great too. How it works, I don’t know-but it fits! That’s all I care about.
Sewing the dress was wonderful. Super easy to put together and didn’t take long at all. I could make 20 of these in one sitting. The longest part was hand gathering all the tiers. (This project has me really considering investing in a gathering foot.) I recommend either using a zigzag stitch or a serger to finish the raw edges. You’ll have a lot of loose threads by the end of it and want to make sure it’s secure before having a toddler run around in it.
TIP: I recommend using a zigzag stitch or serger to finish the raw edges. You'll have a lot of loose threads and you'll want to make sure it's secrure before having a toddler run around in it.
Jacket
I highly recommend using a non-stretchy fabric for this jacket. You will also need to use a heavy-duty needle. Trust me, your machine will thank you.
I was confident that I would have enough fabric from the pants I planned to upcycle…but nope. I ended up using some of the leftover fabric from the dress, which tied it together nicely.
I still plan on adding some embroidery and find a good way to close it, since the larger pockets I added changed my plan for buttons. But I’m done fiddling with it.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I’m very happy with this wedding guest outfit turned out. It’s flowy, fun, and perfect for summer, and she has room to grow with it too!
The jacket was definitely a challenge, but I learned a lot and would try making it again now that I know what I would change. I’m satisfied with how it turned out and can’t wait for her to wear it! If you’re looking for a quick beginner-friendly dress pattern, I’d give Simplicities S9899 a try!
If you’ve made this pattern too, I’d love to hear how it went! Don’t forget to check out my Youtube channel for the full process and Instagram for a closer look at the finished outfit!
Comments
Post a Comment