I know my days of sewing "back to school" clothes for my daugher are numbered. Thankfully, she is still at an age where she's excited to wear something I make for her, for the most part. lol!
She's also at a growth stage where it's a bit challenging to find clothes with enough length which also fit around her waist (without looking like they are going to fall off)! That's why sewing a few key pieces for her can really help get us through this stage. I can ensure pants are long enough, but go down a size or two in the waist.
Did you know bell bottoms are back in style? Yup! They are everywhere. Only the kids aren't calling them bell bottoms but rather flare pants! And, my daughter loves them!
I found this great pattern to whip up a few pairs for her. These flare leggings were a quick sew on my Janome AT 2000D Serger and Janome Skyline S9.
I love digital patterns. They are quick to put together and usually have easy access to multiple sizes. For my first time making this pattern, I printed a size 8, which I made sure to mark on my pattern pieces for future reference, along with the number of pieces needed.
Now that I've made a few pairs, I know this pattern is a keeper and when my daughter grows another few inches (by what, Christmas?!?) I can get the next size.
I love working with knits but I always have to remind myself how to find the grain. It's important to make sure apparel sewing has the right stretch, so you definitely don't want to skip this step! The thing I always remind myself is that the grain runs parallel to the salvage.
In the case of knit fabrics, you'll find the stretch is perpendicular to the grain/ salvage. That can be confusing with knits because it will stretch both ways, but there's always one way which stretches more, which is meant to be across the body widthwise. When making something like leggings, you don't want the most stretch in the length but rather the width. That will give the best fit.
I always run a test on my serger first, just to make sure the tension is set correctly.
Look at those flare leggings! This project really came together quite quickly. I love that about sewing with a serger. Janome has many sergers from which to choose. You can make these leggings with any of them!
I hung these up to look at them just before finishing the elastic around the waist. I kinda want a pair for myself, they look so cozy.
I used my serger to secure the waist elastic in place. Once that was done, I folded the elastic to the inside and finished with a zigzag stitch on my Janome Skyline S9.
I loved these so much, I quickly went on to make a second pair!
With both pairs, I was able to find the perfect matching Madeira thread. This was used when I stitched around the waist and to hem the bottom. Because there was no need for the bottom to have any stretch, I could use a straight stitch to finish off the hem of the legging. You could also use a Janome CoverPro machine for these steps, as well.
What do you think? Will these get a lot of wear in second grade?
I sure think so!
Are you still sewing clothes for your kiddos? Do you remember wearing bell bottoms? Or did you call them flare pants, as well?
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