Hi, Good to have you back here. I am excited to share with you this make(s) that I have been meaning to sew for quite a while. I am really glad I finally made them. This is the Love Notions Kids’ Compose robe and just in case you are wondering, there is the ladies Compose robe too. I made two versions of the ladies’ robes last year and I shared a pattern review and a few tips about the construction process. I will be sharing with the two robes I made for my little people and they are really happy with them because they had the chance of choosing their fabrics.
I made size 8 for my daughter who is 7 years old to allow room for growth. And I sewed up size 8 for my rather slender 10-year old son but I lengthed all pattern pieces to size 10.
Were the instructions easy to follow?
This pattern is quite easy to follow, all thanks to the well-written instructions. I have made two of the ladies Compose robes last year during the pattern testing process which made the making of this very easy.
Fabric Used:
I made both versions out of fleece fabric. This pattern is recommended for both knit and woven fabrics such as fleece, French terry, Sweater knit, Sweatshirting, waffle knit, and Ponte.
Fleece sewing tips
If you experience skipped stitches while sewing with fleece, you could try some of these tips.
Use a walking foot to allow for even feeding of the fabric under the presser foot.
A brand new ball point or stretch which works better than a univeral needle.
A longer stitch length is recommended such as 3.0 and above due to the bulkiness of the fabric.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
Apart from the sizing changes I made to my son’s robe, I did not need to make any other alterations to both robes.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
Of course, when they outgrow these which may happen soon or later. I highly recommend this pattern to anyone who loves who had been looking to sew robes for children in your life. The ladies Compose robe is one I would recommend too.
Conclusion:
Having made the Ladies compose robe a year ago, I knew I had to make the Kids’ Compose robe for my children too. Their RTW robes had become short which made the time perfect for new compose robes.
My daughter loves gymnastics and I love sewing her leotards. I can say we both love something about gymnastics. A year ago, she started her gymnastics classes and I made her a leotard before her very first session. I made it using the Jalie 3136 leotard pattern. However, she outgrew it and I had to make her a new one. And she made a special request for a purple leotard but I decided to add more colour to it.
Pattern Description
The Jalie 3136 leotard pattern is an empire-waist leotard with an optional skirt (sewn over the leotard) to turn it into a skating dress. This pattern features two versions: version A with a crossover neckline (front and back) and version B with a boat neck. It can also be made with either long sleeves or cap sleeves. I opted for version A with long sleeves.
Pattern Sizing
This pattern comes in 22 sizes which range from size 2 to 13 for girls and size 4 to 14 for women. I sewed up size 6 for my daughter.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it? It definitely did. I am impressed.
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, they were. And there are video tutorials on the Jalie Youtube channel should someone require extra assistance.
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? The pattern is quite straightforward to sew. I love the instructions on sewing the neck binding which made it all easy to do.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I lengthened the body piece by 1/2 inch to allow for growth. The pattern does not include the shortening and lengthening line, so I created one on both the front and back pieces.
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, of course.
Conclusion
I love this pattern and there is nothing I would change about it. And I intend to continue using this pattern for my daughter’s gymnastics leotards because of the wide range of sizes it offers.
Have you ever needed the ultimate T-shirt pattern? The Jalie 3669 Nico Raglan Tee is your go-to t-shirt pattern. You could easily use it to sew up T-shirts for everyone in your life. I know it is designed by men and boys but I also used it for my daughter. This pattern features a curved hem which gives a feminine touch to a girl or woman’s shirt.
The Pattern
The Jalie 3669 Nico Raglan Tee pattern is a fitted raglan T-shirt sewing pattern for men and boys. It features three sleeve lengths: short, three-quarters and long and it is an everyday classic T-shirt. And this pattern comes in 27 sizes running from size 92 /F (age 2) to adult size FF/52. It also has two hem options: the straight hem and the curved one.
The Fabric
This pattern is recommended for knit fabric with 40% stretch. And for all my four projects, I used cotton spandex fabric with varying thickness. The printed fabric was slightly thicker than the plain ones but they all sewed up really well.
These t-shirts sewed up really fast since no setting-in of sleeves was required. I mostly used my overlocking machine to sew them up and my coverstitch machine for the hems.
Below are classes I would recommend for anyone who would like to learn sewing with knit fabrics.
I made size DD/XL for my husband as per his measurements. However, I later took out a total of two inches in the side seams because he preferred a more fitted look. And I also added two inches to the length of his shirt.
The two shirts I sewed up for my son fitted really well because I went a size down. This is mostly because he is quite a slim boy.
My daughter’s T-shirt was true to size (size J) and I used the curved hem for a feminine look. And both my husband’s and son’s shirts a flat hem was used.
The finished project
I love the final outcome of all the Tshirts and I know I will be using the pattern a lot more. I recommend this pattern for anyone who wants just a single Tshirt pattern for the entire family. It comes together really fast and very easy to sew up too.
When I think of autumn sewing, I think of practical and function pieces of clothing that I will wear throughout the cold season. These items range from tee shirts, pinafores, skirts, jumpers and other items I can layer up. I may not have sewed up a range of these items this month but I plan to do so in the subsequent months.
Here is a video from my youtube channel It is Josie where I documented what I sewed up in the month.
Itch to stitch Idyllwild top pattern
I made a t-shirt for myself using the Itch to Stich, Idyllwild top and dress pattern which I hacked into a boat neck one. I achieved this by raising the neckline which in turn reduced the curve. I also omitted the neckband and instead folded it over which I finished up with a coverstitch machine.
The Jalie 3669 Nico Raglan Tee pattern was used to make four T-shirts for my family. This pattern comes in 27 sizes for both boys and men. However, I made one for my daughter using the curved hem variation. This pattern also has three sleeves variations: short, three quarter and long ones making it perfect for all year round sewing.
October has been a productive month in terms of sewing. And I am hoping to be more productive as we come to the end of the year. I am currently working on a coat this month which is a first for me but quite exciting too. I hope to share with you more of my Autumn sewing at the end of the month. Until next time…
I had the opportunity to travel to Uganda during my summer holiday. Just in case you are not aware, I am born and raised in Uganda (a beautiful country located in East African). My family and I relocated to the UK which has turned into our second home. I know I should be talking about my sewing makes for the summer holiday.
If you are a sewist and you have a holiday booked, I am almost certain a handmade wardrobe might be the first thing you think about. Uganda is warm all year round, and most of my handmade clothes favoured the British weather. So I had to come up with sewing plans specifically for that holiday.
Here is the video where I share with you what I sewed up for the holiday. I hope you enjoy it.
I would also like to share with you in detail the patterns I used for my summer holiday makes.
Firstly, I made up three Cami tops using the True Bias – Ogden Cami Pattern, a well-loved sewing pattern in the sewing community. It comes together in pretty much any lightweight fabric however I prefer making it out of viscose fabric.
I also made up this gorgeous unicorn dress for my princess using a pattern from a Burda Style Magazine. Burda 06/2019 #129. It was made out of a cotton poplin fabric.
burda 06/2019 #129
I also hacked the Simplicity 8178 jumpsuit pattern into lightweight summer pants which I wore a lot during the holidays.
Simplicity 8178 Trouser Hack
And the final project I made was the viscose zebra print night robe made using the stoff & Stil kimono pattern.
Stoff & stil Kimono
Thank you for stopping by…
Lifestyle blogger
Josephine is an entrepreneur, blogger, public health professional who loves sewing, baking and is passionate about a healthy and natural lifestyle.
Josephine is an entrepreneur, blogger, public health professional who loves sewing, baking and is passionate about a healthy and natural lifestyle.
