Sheep shorts for a French trip

My little girl is going on a school trip to France next week and I can’t tell you how excited she is. She started packing 2 weeks ago, against a detailed checklist and soon came to the conclusion that she was a couple of pairs of pyjamas short. The thought being that she can’t possibly allow her friends see her in the same pair twice! But rather than add them to the shopping list she asked me to make them for her so that she could choose the fabric herself. Oh how I love watching my obsession rub off!

Finding good quality cotton jersey in a cool print wasn’t as easy as I’d thought, even with the Goldhawk Road up the road. But we struck sheep after a while and both fell in love with it. Especially at £3.99 a metre, which is all that’s needed for 2 pairs.

And here is the first pair:

pyjama shorts in sheep printI used the stretch stitch throughout and overlocked the seams afterwards. I used a zig zag stitch for the hem as I still haven’t attempted to try the double needle!

And Little Miss Ooobop chose the cute pink buttons which worked a treat.

pyjama shorts fly buttonsThe pattern used was Simplicity 2317. Both pattern and instructions were simple enough though I’m not sure why the basting on the fly was meant to be unpicked. It’s not an operational fly. The buttons are purely for decoration.

And yes, it is an adult pattern! Despite being only 10 years old, she’s long and thin and on my eye-level. So a size 10 was perfect. Wow. How did that happen?!

Simplicity 2317 pyjama pattern

The only thing to watch is that the waistband is deeper than the 1″ elastic so before you stitch to secure in the side seams, make sure the elastic is positioned at the top of the casing.

This is such a great little project for a time-short sewing fix and I loved making them. Next pair is scheduled for this weekend. And I may just have to seek out some more fabric to make me some too!

 

19 Replies to “Sheep shorts for a French trip”

  1. These are gorgeous. When I was shopping in the Goldhawk Road with my ‘big’ girl a month or so ago she came across this same fabric in pink and made herself some of Tilly’s pyjama pants.
    The hem looks good but a woman of your talent need not fear the double needle, it’s easy and, together with overlocked seams, looks so professional.

    1. Thank you Tialys. Praps I should give the twin needle a go on the second pair. We saw the pink too. I think she’d be devastated if mine were too similar though! x

  2. Being a New Zealander, I am very fond of all things sheep, and thee really are adorable! And as the excitement and the company of the trip may be overwhelming, hopefully she can count them to put herself to sleep 😉

  3. they are adorable. I hope my goddaughters get excited about sewing too. as she is a baby she haven’t got a choice and i can shower her with handmade. this pjs is so much nicer than shop bought

    1. Thank you, gorgeous. I did wonder about cost over effort but the quality of that fabric alone is infinitely better than any pjs in the shops. And how wonderful to have a godmother like you. Most definitely heaven-sent! xxx

  4. Gorgeous jimmies! Great choice of fabric.
    Yes the double needle is not a problem really- You can get them with ball point for stretchy knit fabric, and you will never look back!
    I expect they tell you to take out the basting either in case it shows, OR because it will stop the fabric stretching properly. But it still probably doesn’t matter!
    xx

  5. They look great! How fantastic that she loves having her clothes made and now she fits into full sized patterns. She’ll want burdastyle next. Do try the twin needle – you’ll never look back! My sewing group think I must be a sales rep. There’s lots of nice tips on the web for it. Bon voyage!

    1. Thank you. Sue. I think it looks cute too but there’s no denying I am completely avoiding that twin needle! 😉

  6. These are fabulous! I love the sheep print. I read your comment about not buying the pink for it being too similar to your daughter’s. A couple of weeks ago I had to pick my children up from school and I wore a dress I made. I wasn’t thinking how my daughter wore a top I made, which was made out of the same fabric as my dress! As soon as she saw me, she immediately buttoned her sweater up to the neck ha ha. Apparently we can share fabrics as long as no one she knows sees me in it!

    1. Thank you. They look exactly the same but will give them a mention soon as I did a couple of things differently 🙂

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