Merry meet all,
I just sewed a pair of awesome spooky Pyjama pants. I love them. It was so easy and so much fun to make I had to share it with you. It is so easy to do. You can do it in one day or in a few days.
I borrowed a pattern from my Mom. Her pattern was so simple. But there is the problem. It’s not really all that simple. Since I had a skull print on the fabric, I wanted to ensure the direction of the print was correct. I laid out the fabric on my kitchen table. I made sure the direction of the skulls was in unison. The skulls go down the pants not up. I hope I explained that clearly. I have included a photo of the skull Pyjama pants. Maybe that will help.
Then I cut out 4 pieces on the selvage. I had 4 pieces of fabric. Then I stitched them together – the inside of the legs. I used a straight stitch. Then I sewed the crotch area. I reinforced the stitches. That means I stitched twice to strengthen the stitches so they don’t unravel. Then I sewed the front and back sides together. I tried the pants on. Yay they fit! When I was sure that they fit, I proceeded to the next step.
I did a finishing stitch on the seam allowances of the pant legs. I did a long nice zigzag stitch. That prevents the fabric from fraying. But I hit a snag. There is always a snag when sewing. I needed to set the sewing machine to the right settings to do a zigzag stitch. I had to watch the tutorial on how to do that again.
I pinned down an inch or two of fabric at the waistline. I did that to make sure I had enough of a casing for the elastic. I pinned the bottom hems of both legs of the pants. Then I stitched the pant hems. I stitched again to strengthen the stitch. I then sewed the casing for the waistline. I worked in the elastic using a safety pin. I looked in the mirror and armed with chalk- and securing the elastic in my fingers, I measured how much elastic I needed. Always have more elastic at hand than you plan to use. You are always better off using more than less. You cannot compromise on this step. Or it will never fit you properly. I also tested my pants for fit by sitting down in the pants to see if they truly fit me and do a few stretches. When I was sure they fit, I stitched the ends of the elastic, tucked it in the hole and stitched the hole closed. I wore the pants for a moment. Yup they felt good. I was so happy. It was so easy to do.
Just like the elastic, I encourage any of you who are eager to try this to have more fabric than you need. It is o easy to err when sewing. Always err on the side of caution. If you are using a print like mine, decide how you want the print to go. The skull print goes down the pants on both sides- front and back. This is in unison or consistent. It makes it look store bought.
Now I have an awesome affordable cool pair of Pyjama pants to wear with my diabolical dark lord slippers. !! I love how they turned out. Paying attention to the details ensure a beautiful garment in the end. It is easy to have problems as you are sewing such as the elastic twisting in the casing, not enough elastic or fabric or running out of thread. Taking care of those tiny details ahead of time saves you the trip to the fabric store in the rain- when you could have been sewing.
When you sew the zigzag stitch, be neat and clean. Sew it next to the straight stitch or on it. The point of the zigzag stitch is to prevent fraying. If you look carefully at a garment in your wardrobe, you might just see a zigzag seam on your clothes. It will be found on the inside of your garment. Look even closer and you can see how neatly it is done. Yup that is what I am talking about. You can adjust the stitch to be wide or a narrow zigzag stitch. Try not to sew the zigzag stitch outside or far from the seam allowance. Sew it on the seam allowance, inside the seam allowance. It will look neater that way. If you think you can do it, a smaller seam allowance leaves you more fabric. It may help the pants fit you better.
Remember this maxim when sewing: Measure twice, cut once. I can’t emphasize that enough. It is so true. When you hem the pants, you don’t always have to do a narrow hem. I didn’t. I just folded up the hem on the inside of the pants an inch or two. I secured the fabric with pins then sewed it. I did it twice to ensure it would not come undone. The fabric I used can unravel easily. I had to be careful. The stitches show on the right side of the fabric. But I took the extra time to make the seams neat. I can see it but I don’t know if others can. There are so many black lines on the print it may not be visible to everyone.
That is how you sew your own pjs! It is so easy to do. Most fabric stores carry fabric patterns. It certainly is a cheap way to make a pair of pyjama pants. I love mine. It’s even better that I can wear my Dark Lord slippers with them. I ordered the slippers from Killstar. But I didn’t plan to pay for shipping and handling for pjs- not when I made mine look that cook! I also plan to set in a black tie or ribbon for the pj pants. That will be the finishing touch!
Does this inspire you to sew your own pyjama pants? I hope so.
Blessings, Spiderwitch
