Little Pants No. 4 for Lisann (Size 56) with a side seam

Yes, you’re seeing that right. I’m still working on the pants. When I made the first pair, my son pointed out that it would be better if the seam on the waistband wasn’t on the back, since the baby lies on it for hours and it could end up digging in. So I made another pair of mini pants where I placed the waistband seam on the side at the top. That way, it won’t bother her.

For larger pants, the seam naturally goes in the middle of the back. But for very small babies who spend a lot of time lying down, I think this is better. We’re invited over for coffee today, so I’ll hand them over then. Let’s see if they like them.

Warm regards and have a wonderful weekend—Ina

WOW, great job!

Best regards, Inge

So cute!

(Although personally, I don’t see how the seam could cause any pressure 🙈😉—after all, there’s the diaper and usually a onesie in between. In any case, I’ve never noticed any pressure marks from waistband seams on any of my kids. But it certainly can’t hurt 😉)

Dear Nina,
my son and his wife are very particular parents. They pay attention to everything. But everyone has their own preferences. If it’s nothing more than a seam, I’m happy to fulfill their request.
Maybe he’d come to that conclusion because my seam didn’t look like the ones on store-bought pants (no overlock stitch, after all) and I used thicker cuff fabric, too.

With these pants, I realized once again that you should always do a test seam first. Every fabric is a little different, and you always have to adjust the stitch type and stitch size slightly. But that’s surely due to my lack of experience. The pieces are also tiny, so there’s hardly anything to work with. I’m already looking forward to when the pieces get bigger.

Have a lovely afternoon—Ina

You’re really outdoing yourself. It couldn’t be any cuter. ❤

Wow, Ina, number 4 turned out really cute again. I agree with you about the seam—the diaper keeps a lot of things in place there. Nothing can dig in. Have fun giving them as a gift and enjoy time with your little ray of sunshine.

Dear Ina,
I didn’t mean to criticize the fact that your son and his wife are worried about that 😘
And yes…if you can use such small gestures to signal, “Hey, if that’s what you’d like, then I’m happy to do it,” that’s great.
Besides, what matters most is how beautifully you work ❤️

Oh, your praise makes me very happy and is really motivating.

Yesterday I gave the four pairs of pants to my daughter-in-law. She was amazed that my first sewing projects already look so good. And, of course, she was happy about the new additions to her wardrobe. She thought they were all very pretty. She liked the ones in spice tones best. They just don’t really like colors that are too pastel or too “pink-heavy.”

  Now I get to sew other things. I’ll only make pants for Lisann on request from now on—and even then, only with specific size details and a request for thinner or thicker fabric.

My next project is another pair of pants—ha, who would’ve thought! They’re supposed to have dinosaurs on them and are for her 3 1/2-year-old brother, Oskar. He specifically doesn’t want any pockets, which is a bit of a relief. Because I can’t sew pockets yet. But well, since they’re not wanted, I don’t have to worry about them right now.

So this morning I started searching online for jersey fabric with dinosaurs and actually found some on Etsy. They’re not supposed to be cute dinosaurs, but big, dangerous ones. Now I hope the dinosaurs aren’t too big, because a slim size 98 doesn’t have that much room. So I’ll have to pay close attention to where I place the designs. I bought a little extra fabric—maybe I’ll even try my hand at a T-shirt. In any case, I imagine it would look cool if a magnificent T-Rex were emblazoned on the little guy’s chest. But for now, that’s just in my imagination. T-shirts are a whole different level of difficulty. I’m sure you’ll have to help me out there.

For the pants, I still need some matching dark rib knit fabric, which I don’t have yet. I’ll wait for the colorful fabric to arrive first and see what might work. I want to thread a wide elastic band through the waistband so the pants don’t slip down while he’s playing—that’s the plan. Kids don’t sit still; they’re always running around, so these (maybe new favorite) pants have to stay in place.

I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.
Warm regards, Ina

I’m so glad your daughter-in-law is so thrilled ❤️

Here’s a tip for Oskar’s pants: Sew on a veeeery wide waistband that he can pull all the way up over his tummy. That way, his back won’t be exposed when he’s running around wildly. And you can always fold it down if you don’t want it to sit quite so high. That’s how I always make pants for my kids, and it works really well for me (even with my “Eww… I don’t want anything on my tummy—that pinches!” girls 😉).

Thanks, Nina—that’s a great tip! Especially since his T-shirt always seems to be too short, and it quickly slips out of his pants in the back when he’s playing or bending over. The wide waistband helps prevent his back from being exposed.

Best regards, Ina

Ina, for T-shirts, I recommend a raglan cut. It’s also very simple and no harder than making pants.

That sounds good, dear Ruth, because I’m already familiar with raglan from knitting. And it definitely has more straight seams than a set-in sleeve. That’s a great tip, too!

Best wishes, Ins