First: let me challenge you to say that pattern name 10 times fast! 5 times? Twice?!?!?! Ha!
When Chrissy from
Muse of the Morning asked for bloggers interested in doing reviews of her patterns I browsed
her selection - and was intrigued by these pants.
Here's why (from the pattern listing):
"Children from approximately 6 mos up to 7 years old can wear them! There is ONE pattern piece, which is cut at the appropriate length."
Oh reeeeeallly!?
So here's what I found out when I gave them a go! {please keep in mind I was given this pattern for free in order to participate in this blog tour / review - but my opinions are honest and not influenced by that monetary savings!}
The Pattern
Sizes: "Baby Bloomers" (looks like about a 6-12 month size) through 7
Options: Basic Pants, Basic Bloomers, Patchy Pants, Strippy Pants (strips of fabric..... c'mon!), optional ruffles on the bum
Pattern Pieces: ONE if you're making the basic pants; 2-3 if you're making the patchy / strippy option. For EVERY size. Really, truly. They all have the same width / rise - - - with length cutting lines for each size
Time to sew: I'd say under an hour for the patchy / strippy pants; 30-45 minutes for the basic pants (and that includes taping the pattern together.... and distracting the kiddos with "really cool" toys so you can get back behind the sewing machine)
What I Made
I cut out four pairs of pants - two pars of basic pants, and two pairs of strippy pants. One of each style in both 2T and 4T. As for what I sewed..... here's a little glimpse into the life of a work-at-home, handmade business owning mama.....
The truth is - - - my children do not understand deadlines. Or "mommy NEEDS to work".... or.... "please-do-not-body-slam-your-brother-into-the-floor, I just have ONE more hem to finish up."
So I had the best of intentions when signing up for this tour - I was going to rock it. I was going to finally make pants {lots of them, obviously!} from the LARGE selection of fabrics I have been storing up for my kiddos.
But life comes up.... and my plan to get this done WAY ahead of time - well, I failed. Then it was Monday morning, and despite telling my kiddos (and myself) that I had a deadline to meet - - the sun came out and
obviously we had to play outside. So the Wednesday morning deadline was getting closer and closer by the second and I WASN'T SEWING.
But... the moral of this story?! These pants are FAST to sew up! Even the strippy ones! I cut them out Monday afternoon, ironed all the pieces, then didn't get a chance to sew them up until Tuesday morning (after breakfast was consumed and the kiddos seemed to be happily playing for at least a few minutes). I put the pedal to the carpet and my machines kept up with my "must sew all the things - FAST" pace.
Then I bribed the kiddos with a picnic lunch outside if they would pleeeeeeeease allow me to take a few pictures. We got a few.... and I KNOW they love their pants because despite the 80 degree temperature outside I could NOT get them to take them off and swap 'em out for shorts. So they played in them - enjoyed our picnic in them - and smiled the whole time!
After sewing up the two pairs of strippy pants - and getting them on my boys, I can say that I love that this pant has so many options - all that can be pretty simply incorporated into the base construction / design. It's great that I can print the pattern ONCE, cut it out at the biggest size, and then fold the pant leg up at the line for the size I'm making!
I did feel like the rise of the pant was a bit long on my 1.5 year old (size 2T), and the legs are definitely a bit wide on him. Not so much that it's an issue.... just not as "trim" of a look as I'd prefer. For the basic pants I think I may trim down the legs a little bit!
The pattern pieces printed well - and I loved the use of a variety of symbols at each page overlap. Between the page numbers and the symbols, you should have NO problem getting this taped together! The instructions were very clear - and construction was a breeze. I actually put 1" elastic into my boys' pants because they are pretty skinny and the 3/8" that the pattern calls for often doesn't feel like "enough" (in other items I've sewn) - really just a personal preference thing, but thanks to serging (rather than turning the raw edge under) I had the flexibility to do this and not alter the fit from the pattern as written.
This pattern does not have a cutting chart for the elastic. For many that probably isn't an issue - but for people like me who are most often sewing for customers / kiddos that they don't have in front of them and ready to measure - this means needing to reference another pattern's cutting chart or a table online. Not a BIG deal - - - but just something to keep in mind!
All in all - I love how these strippy pants turned out and I'm excited to get the basics sewn up as well. The boys love them, too! This was the perfect pattern for that busy but AWESOME OSU Beavers fabric - I definitely wouldn't want a whole pair of pants from it.... but the strippy accent is GREAT!
If you made it through all of that... you should be rewarded, right!? :)
Well you're in luck!
If you click over to the
first day of the tour you'll find a giveaway! Chrissy is giving away TEN patterns of the winners' choice - wow!
Also, she has an active coupon code to celebrate the blog tour! Head over to the
Muse of the Morning Pattern Shop and enjoy 30% off any (or all!?) of her patterns through May 17th using the coupon code BLOGTOUR30. Wowza!
Thanks again to Chrissy for asking me to participate in this blog tour / review - it was fun!
