For this week's blog tour excitement, I was invited to participate in project from an awesome group of designers at Sewing With Boys - the collaboration is called "S is for Sewing" and includes 4 full patterns that are great for back-to-school. Also included are great tutorials from a number of other designers and bloggers. And it's ALL for the boys - how great is that??! I've mentioned before that I love sewing for my little guy (and the feeling is mutual, so I want to enjoy that while I can!) and it's no secret that patterns for boys are far more limited in scope and design than those for girls.
All of the patterns included in this e-book look great, but I selected the Radical Raglan hoodie from Jonie of Knot Sew Normal to sew up for A this week. It was a HUGE hit and is jam-packed with options. I sewed up the size 3 based on his measurements (this is his typical size for RTW and handmade) and the fit was great. It's definitely a closer-fitting garment than many boys' hoodies and has great lines. I used microfleece with cotton lycra for the accent fabric. If I used a heavier fabric or one with less stretch, like sweatshirt fleece, I'd definitely size up. The length was good and the waistband was perfectly snug but not tight; I did shorten the sleeves by 1.5" and kept the cuffs - it was good to know that they were a little long so if I wanted to omit the cuffs another time and just hem the sleeves it would work well.
The front pockets are a key feature of this pattern, and they're great. My guy couldn't keep his hands out of them - I used the microfleece for the pocket lining so they'd be nice and cozy. The size is generous but not ridiculous, and the hand opening is just right for little hands and their cars/Lego/rocks/other assorted treasures. I added a patch to ours, since A loves when I do that - I like to stock up on woven prints like this one so I can just applique a small piece. This particular print is Stenzo, and is still available at Mabel Madison (use the code savemm through 7/31/15 to get 50% off the entire shop!!).
The main modification that I made to this pattern was the neckline. The pattern is drafted with a cool asymmetrical button placket, and a strap that extends from one sleeve/bodice seam to cross over the placket and snap in place. I COULD NOT convince my stubborn kiddo that the placket wasn't "crooked." I guess 3-year-olds just aren't into design concepts yet lol. So I decided that since this hoodie was for him and I would love if he actually chooses to wear it this fall, I'd just leave off the placket and strap.
Instead of just attaching the hood to the existing neckline, I scooped the neckline and the tops of the shoulders a bit deeper and serged a neckband to the new neckline. I used a 2" wide strip of ribbing, and cut it to about 80% of the size of the neckline. I attached the hood directly to the seam allowance (from where I attached the neckband to the shirt) and then topstitched to help keep the seam allowance tacked down. I left a gap between the ends of the hood at the front so it wouldn't feel constrictive around his neck, and also since I plan on using this for layering over tees when the end-of-summer chilly mornings start showing up around here.
It's probably pretty obvious by the pics that the finished hoodie was a big hit with my little guy. Taking photos was unusually easy, and he's already asked for another one (he's got specific fabrics in mind, of course!). I'm glad he likes it since I do, too - I love that there are lots of design options included, but the basic pattern itself is so well-fitting that it's easy to customize and make it exactly how my kiddo wants it to look and feel. The pattern was provided to me for my participation in this tour, but all opinions are mine (and those of my little guy, too). He was compensated with a handful of jelly beans, but not the spicy red ones. He hates those. ;)
Make sure to check out the other stops on the tour - today's the last day for new posts, but there are lots of amazing ladies who've already shared their takes on the S is for Sewing e-book patterns.
July 13th
July 14th
July 15th
July 16th
July 17th
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