For this Florida baby, the recent drop in temperature has made his little toesies cold! When you live in Florida the term winter wardrobe is not in your vocabulary. Heck, the term winter isn't in your vocabulary! That being said, these flannel pj's were the perfect diy for this week.
This project didn't cost me a single penny because I already had everything. Even if you went to buy fabric and thread, with Joann coupons you could easily do this for like $5 bucks, if that!
What you'll need:
Fabric
{I made size 12m pants and only needed 1/2 a yard}
Coordinating Thread
Elastic
{For the waist band. I used 1 inch knit elastic}
Sewing Machine, Pins, Scissors, Fabric Pen, Etc.
Iron
This is where I cheat. I picked a good fitting pair of pants and traced them on the fabric as a template. To do this, fold your fabric in half right sides together. If your fabric has a one way pattern make sure that the pattern is in the right direction so you don't end up cutting your pieces upside down {I've done that!}. Fold the pants you are using to trace in half as neatly as possible. Now lay them on the fabric and begin tracing. Be sure to leave ample space at the top for the elastic band and at the bottom for the hem. You also want to leave enough space around the entire pant for seam allowance. I like 1/4 inch seams, but as long as you add enough space you can do any seam size you prefer. In case you are wondering, I left 1 inch for the hem and 1 and a 1/4 inch for the waist band. Trace the pant once on one side then flip them over and trace once more on the other side. When you cut out your pieces, be sure to cut through both layers of fabric. You should end up with 4 pieces total.
Keeping both sets of fabric together {you should have 2 sets of fabric, each with 2 pieces right sides facing each other}, pin from the waist to the start of the leg and sew. Only sew the portion you pinned. Do not pin or sew down the leg portion. Remember to backstitch at the beginning and end of each section you sew to lock your stitch. Once each set is sewn together, press open your seams. I also chose this time to press my hem since I already had the iron on. You can sew your hems first like I did here or you can sew the pant legs together and do your hems last. Either way will work however, it's probably a cleaner finish to do to the hems last.
After you have pressed open your seams of both pieces, put them together right sides facing in. Line up your center seams first and smooth out the fabric on each side. Pin the pieces together starting with the inside of each leg. Sew the pieces together starting at the bottom of one leg and working around to the other. Then, pin and sew the outer sides of each leg. If you choose to do your hem first be sure to line up the bottoms of each leg piece so that your hems are not offset. If you decided to save the hem for last, you can press and sew your hems at this point.
Once you have pressed all your seams, fold over and press your waist band. Here's where I cheat again. That same pair of pants you used to trace out your fabric, use to measure your elastic. Without stretching them I lay them on my cutting mat and measure the width. Then multiply that by 2 for the entire width around and add 1/2 an inch to sew the ends together. There are several different ways to do the waist band and I'm sure there is a way much easier than mine, but this is what works for me.
Sew your elastic band ends together and slide the elastic into the fold of your waist band that you pressed in the previous step. Make sure the elastic is all the way up into the crease and pin {I pin at the 4 seams}.
As you sew the seam around the waist band, stretch the elastic until the fabric is completely smooth. Don't stop stretching the elastic until you have sewn around the entire waist.
Here's what the finished product should look like. Be sure when sewing your waist band not to sew the elastic, that way it will stretch and relax as needed when putting the pants on and off.
Here they are in action, totes adorbs!
When I showed the pants to him he immediately started to take off the pants he was wearing so that he could wear them. Makes a momma proud :) I love when my kiddos get excited about something I've made them!
