'One each' - raglan sweatshirts

'One each' was what my son said with a big smile on his face when he realised we were wearing matching sweatshirts.  I had wondered if maybe matching clothes was a step too far but decided to go for it anyway with a gorgeous sweatshirt knit fabric from Faberwood.  Seriously if you haven't checked out Fiona's fabrics yet go have a look. I had been given some birthday money from my mother-in-law so decided to treat myself to some fabrics as I hadn't bought myself any in ages that weren't for quilt making.  This sweatshirt knit fabric is made by a Finnish company Paapii Design, and is made in Europe from organic cotton. It's £9.99 a half-metre which to be honest is a bit more than I normally pay for fabric, but I figured that if I was buying ready-to-wear then £20 is about what I used to spend on a sweatshirt so it makes sense to spend that on quality fabric and spend the time making it myself. Especially sweatshirts - I've realised that I really enjoy making sweatshirts, whether for me or for Harris. There's something so satisfying about the way they come together with the cuffs and hem bands, so neat!

Out for lunch all matchy matchy



I bought 1 metre of fabric knowing it would be enough for a top for me but not imagining I would have enough left for anything else. The pattern for mine is the same as last time, the Raglan sweatshirt for Sew U Home Stretch.  Due to the wide hem band, cuffs and the neckline ribbing it doesn't use as much fabric as I would have thought. As I've already sewn this before it didn't take me long to cut out or sew up. I pre-washed the fabric at 40degrees and ironed it, then had a sudden panic that I might have smudged the triangles. I'm not sure how they're printed but they didn't come off under the iron, though I'll iron on the reverse in future just in case!  This is a really unusual make for me as I hardly ever wear black but I just couldn't resist this design and it goes with every colour too so it will get lots of wear. I pressed all the seams and overlocked using the overlock stitch on my Bernina sewing machine so it looks nice & neat on the inside too.

I decided to have a go at squeezing a Raglan sweater for Harris out of the remains.  I've just realised I never blogged the car sweater I made him (you can see it on my MMMay 16 instagram photos if you follow me, kathryn_mhairi) but he wears it all the time and it's a good fit so I decided just to use the same pattern, the Owl Raglan from Ottobre magazine Spring 1/2014. If you want to see another brilliant version of this pattern check out Zoe's!  It was a bit of a puzzle to fit the pattern pieces out of the scraps and I had to piece one of the sleeves in two parts bit I don't think the seam is very noticeable at all (it's on the right arm). I used the same ribbing and I overlocked all the edges so this is all nice & neat inside too, it will also protect it from all the washings it will get!



Summary for my sweatshirt -  

Pattern: Raglan sweater from Sew U Home Stretch Built by Wendy book, a Christmas present from my husband

Size: small 

Alterations: None

Fabric and notions: Sweatshirt knit from Faberwood £19.99, ribbing from Kitschycoo £5 for 1/3 of a metre, thread from stash

Any changes I'd make next time: No, though it might be a while before I make this again.

Total cost: £24.99

Summary for toddler sweatshirt  -

Pattern: Owl Totem Raglan from Ottobre magazine, Spring 1/2014

Size: 92cm

Alterations: None

Fabric and notions: Scraps from my sweatshirt, ribbing from Kitschycoo £5 for 1/3 of a metre thread from stash

Any changes I'd make next time: No, I think I can make this size for a bit longer as there's definitely still growing room.

Total cost: Nothing as made from scraps & counted cost of ribbing in my sweatshirt.



Close-up of the gorgeous fabric

Toddler sweatshirt, made from scraps