Sew You Had a Boy: Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy Crafts

If you are looking to be really inspired by boy energy our next guest’s blog is the place to go. The tutorial she is sharing today is actually a sewing project I’ve been thinking about- so I’m delighted that she is sharing this great tutorial! (It may have just gotten bumped up in the sewing list.)

If you want to catch up on the  Sew You Had a Boy posts you’ve missed,after you read this one of course, click HERE . Thanks again Stacey for taking the time to share a great fun basic boy’s look with us. Make sure to stop by Stacey’s place and say hi!

Hi, I’m Stacey and I blog over at Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy Crafts. I made a commitment to myself, 4 years ago, when my second son was born, to put some time aside each day to do something I loved, sew.  Four years (and one more boy) later, I’m still searching out great boy patterns and even designing a bit on my own.

The more I sew for my boys, and the more independently they dress themselves, the more I’ve come to realize that boys need a wee bit of help when it comes to matching and pairing clothing.  What I’ve started to do lately is sew up some basics that will be easy to match with many articles of clothing.  If they choose a pair of pants with a wild, funky pattern, I want them to have a few basic shirts they can go ahead and pull out.

Since it’s cold here at least 8 months out of the year, a basic turtleneck has become a staple for my budding “me do” two and a half year old. And they’re surprisingly easier to make than you might think.

Materials:

- basic long sleeve t-shirt pattern (for the banded style of this turtleneck, I like this one)

- knit fabric

- pleather scraps (optional)

Step 1:  Sew elbow patches to unsewn shirt sleeves.  Click here for elbow patch tutorial.

Step 2:  Pin shirt front to shirt back, right sides together at the shoulders.  Use a zig-zag stitch and a 1/2 inch seam allowance.

Step 3:  Pin the sleeve to the arm hole (right sides together), starting with the center of the sleeve and the shoulder sleeve, then pinning each end and the middle.  Sew.  Repeat for the second side.

Step 4:  Pin from the sleeve opening to the bottom hem, right sides together.  Sew and repeat for the other side.

Step 5:  Measure the bottom hem.  Cut a strip of knit fabric (make sure the stretch of the fabric follows the long sides) 4 1/2 inches X the length of the hem + 1/2 inch for seam allowance. Fold the hem binding in half (short sides together) and sew using a zig-zag stitch.

Step 6:  Fold the hem binding, right sides together to form a “cuff”.

Step 7:  With the shirt right side out, line up the raw edges of shirt hem and hem “cuff”.  Make sure to match the side seams when pinning.  When sewing, I like to place the sewing machine foot inside the shirt.  This allows for easier handling of the “cuff” material if stretching is necessary.

Step 8:  Measure the neck opening.  Cut a strip of knit fabric 5 inches X the length of the neck opening + 1/2 inch for seam allowance.  Follow the same steps for the hem “cuff” to attach the turtleneck.

Step 9:  If you want, hem the arm openings by pressing each opening 1/4 inch in and then 1/4 inch in again and sewing (again, I like to place the presser foot inside the sleeve). This step is optional, as knits will not fray.

We like to add elbow patches.  You know, because then it looks like we have armor on. Which is important when you spend half your day fighting crime. Power up!

And there you have it!  A basic, but not boring, garment that can be worn with your loudest pants or a simple pair of jeans.  Heck, throw caution to the wind.  Go ahead and throw a blazer over this puppy and really class the joint up!

Thanks for having me over today, Rachel and Donna.  I had a blast putting this tutorial together.  For more boy sewing fun and things to keep kids busy, stop on over Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy Crafts!

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