One Pattern Three Ways & Kid's Clothes Week

It's a very busy week in sewing land. I'm making the most of Kid's Clothes Week and my latest post for Petit a Petit + Family with my favorite kid's t-shirt pattern. Head on over to the Petit a Petit blog to see how to transform a simple t-shirt pattern into 3 unique summer staples for boys.

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Luckily, this little project coincides with the last Meg (Elsie Marley) directed Kid's Clothes Week (KCW will continue with Julie as its new host). Since my daughter started kindergarten I've fallen off the KCW wagon a bit. It's so easy to whip up a dress for a toddler and take a few quick photos. It's harder to negotiate picture time between school, and homework, and park time (though much easier to find an hour to sew!).

Kid's Clothes Week was my first entry into a virtual community of any kind. Before KCW I kinda thought the internet was a place where people said mean things anonymously. But that is definitely not the case. My first, timid Flickr based experience with KCW set the tone for many very supportive and enthusiastic interactions to follow. Seeing something I made on Meg's blog made me realize the power of virtual connections. Thanks Meg!

This is the first thing I ever sewed for Kid's Clothes Week back in 2012. I made it with my first indie sewing pattern, before I had a serger. After I took the photos, part of the neckband fell off, and J never really wore it! I like to think my t-shirt construction has come a long way since then!

Here are a few of my favorite KCW makes:

Playtime Dress  /  Liberty Theo  /  Rainbow Dress 

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You can see my other KCW makes here.
You can read my contributor post to KCW here.
And don't forget the whole point of this blog post, One Pattern Three Ways, here!

Buffalo Check Country Earflap Hat

First order of business: today is my first post for Petit a Petit + Family. I'm sharing a pattern for a sewn pixie bonnet called the Blizzard Bonnet. I must knit a million pixie bonnets every Christmas, how did I not think of sewing one sooner?! Cute. Fast. Seasonally appropriate if your city got slammed with 22" of snow over the weekend. Go check it out.

In the spirit of fairness, and toasty ears, I made J a hat too. You can never have too many in the dead of winter when things get lost between home and school, or coat closet and front door. This bright buffalo check is not likely to be mistaken for someone else's in the school coat room. So, new hats for both kids made with the last odd pieces of Robert Kaufman Mammoth Flannel in Red Buffalo Check left over from my Tamarac Jacket. I can't rave enough about this flannel, sturdy and soft all at the same time. Perfect for outerwear. I used what sherpa fleece I could get at Joann, but I don't recommend what they have on the shelf. The quality is pretty poor and not equal to the flannel. I recommend the Shannon Fabrics Sherpa from fabric.com. It is thicker and warmer, but still acrylic so it's won't retain moisture from melting snowball fights. 

The pattern is the Country Earflap Hat by Worthy Goods. This hat is fun to sew and fun to wear, possibly explaining why this is my fourth one. I used black corduroy from my local fabric shop for the bias binding, and the underside of the brim. The pattern is not written for bias binding but I wanted the detailing to have something in common with the Blizzard Bonnet. 

Maybe you noticed that the mittens match. If the kids ever go back to school I will have the mitten pattern to share, too. 

Things are getting out of hand. I think it's time to go home. 

Credits:
Pattern: Country Earflap Hat by Worthy Goods
Main Fabric: Mammoth Flannel by Robert Kaufman
Lining Fabric: Shanon Fabrics Sherpa Fleece from Fabric.com
Bias Binding: Self Made with Black Corduroy from Fleishman Fabrics on Fabric Row

Pixie Bonnet Pattern in all the same fabrics on Petit a Petit and Family today!