Back To School Clothes

[dangerouschicken]

My two oldest girls go to preschool, and this year I figured I'd make some jumpers for them. The cost of patterns, fabric, thread, zippers, and buttons is definitely not cheaper than buying back to school clothes from Target or WalMart, but at least they will have one-of-a-kind outfits made with love

Now before you picture "one-of-a-kind" as meaning everything will be all crooked and ugly

, you should know that by that I mean the fabrics are actually a color other than PINK

Why is it that everything for toddlers/young girls is freakin' pink? It really gets old after a while. I made sure to get greens, purples, blues, golds, browns, etc. Most fabrics are corduroy and have little animals like owls or squirrels on them

 

[BearSwampChick]

Laurie, I can just picture those cute little jumpers! No, it's definitely not cheaper, but you get the satisfaction of knowing you made something special for your lovely daughters. I used to make them all the time for mine. I really have to get my sewing machine set up so I can start sewing for my grandddaughters. I don't have a good place to sew (dark basement), but I've been thinking about converting my 3rd bedroom into a sewing room/guest room. Once upon a time, I did some pretty elaborate seamstressing. Before I had children, I made my husband a sports jacket, just to see if I could do it. It actually looked pretty decent. I also made my own swimsuit. I've made wedding dresses, bridesmaids and flower girl dresses. One Halloween I made all three of my kids Wizard of Oz costumes. Jaye was Scarecrow, Josh was Tin Man and Aimee was Dorothy. Boy was that Tin Man a pain in the butt to make!

Don't you just love those really soft corduroys? Okay, now I'm dying to go to Jo-Ann's Fabric and run my hands over all the different materials. Hmmm, I may just have to use my (mostly) unused dining room table for sewing. I think I've got time to make all 5 grandchildren's Halloween costumes, if I get started soon.

Thanks, Laurie, for the inspiration!

 

[miss_jayne]

don't get me wrong...i LOVE pink (my hair is usually sporting pink stripes!) BUUUUT...
you are so right! does EVERY little girl outfit have to be pink? especially pale pink? little ladies get dirty just as well as a little boy. washing those pretty pink princess frocks is not a chore i was in love with.

i chose to make many jumpers for our daughters when they were little also. and i went with the darker colors too. just smart.

you are right...so not cheaper, involves your time and emotion/energy. but, the satisfaction is going to be well earned. good for you!

(p.s. love the feel of short nap corduroy! or NAPLESS corduroy..like velvet, but more rugged.)

 

[gumpsgirl]

I bet they are adorable, or will be! I love making clothes for my little DD. I don't get the chance to do it very often, as I am busy trying to keep up with everything else! I envy you for being able to do it. BTW, if you're looking for something other than "pink clothes" for you toddler, try Gymboree! You'll find LOTS and LOTS of different colors. If you sign up for their e-mails they will send you coupons and let you know when the sales are. That's when to buy! With the sales + the coupons, you can get the clothes for as cheap as you can at Wal-Mart and Target.

 

[BearSwampChick]

I buy most of my grandkids clothes at consignment or resale shops. They have terrific deals and a lot of them are from the higher end clothing stores; such as, Gap, Old Navy, Gymboree, Children's Place. You get the look w/o the high prices. They tend to steer away from the "pink is for girls" theme, too. I've bought quite a few orange things for my GD. She looks so cute in that color.

 

[Daycare Mom]

I can't wait to get sewing again! I found some great material at a garage sale last week and now everyone will be getting new jammies!

 

[SewingDiva]

I buy all of my fabric on-line now, there just aren't many retail stores that carry anyting decent. A friend of mine sells fabric on-line at great prices, and she has wonderful stuff:

Gorgeous Fabrics

~Phyllis

 

[Tuffoldhen]

We will be having our first Granddaughter this Oct. and the first thing said was .... NO pink!...lol...love hitting consignment shops for kids clothes...they grow out of them too quickly and are usually in great shape for a second round...

I remember my mother making me some really cute clothes!!...go for it!!....

 

[coffeemama]

I'm lucky-because part of my business is to sew children's clothing, I get fabrics and patterns at wholesale, and draft my own. I am not anti-pink either, but I almost go out of my way not to buy it for dd because it is so prevalent.

 

[dangerouschicken]

BearSwamp, so glad I could inspire! That makes me happy

My mom and I made one dress last night. It has owls doing math, school busses, the alphabet, apples, and other back to school designs on it. It is soooo cute. It is an A-line jumper. My middle daughter loves it so much, now she won't take it off

That's the best reason to make your kid's clothes, right there!

I buy resale and online sales now and again. I am a long-time Hanna Andersson supporter, even though they were sold recently, and the colors aren't as cool as they used to be. BUT their clothes last FOREVER, and that is really important when passing them down through 3 girls. I also use my frequent flyer miles to convert into Gap gift cards, etc. Gap clothes are fairly well-made, and with the FFM, it is like getting free clothes for them

Miss Jayne, I love the feel of short nap corduroy, too. That's totally what I bought them. I just acquired a bunch of dark blue denim, too. Can't you just see that in jumpers with red rick-rack along the bottom and red thread? CUTE!