How to get your toddler out of diapers in 4 easy steps

1. Spend 2 precious, rare, weekend hours to yourself sewing two new pairs of longies. When you find out they're too small, in a fit of frustration, spend tons of money to purchase two pairs of longies.*

2. Buy a pattern for big butt baby pants, designed especially to fit over bulky cloth diapers. Cut out fabric to make a pair. Cut it out again, because you foolishly cut the corduroy in the wrong direction.

3. Begin crocheting a pair of longies. Realize they're coming out too big, but continue on because she can wear them at some point.

4. Realize they're all unnecessary, because your baby has outgrown the need for diapers**.
...
*I must say, they were worth every penny; and no, I have no connection to this company. She'll continue to wear them as super-warm longjohns.

**After 17 years of teaching young children and advising parents on toilet learning, I learned about EC shortly before Lucy was born. It sounded like a great idea--for parents who could be one-on-one with their baby all day. But for a teacher of 6 toddlers? No way. So I put it out of my mind until she was 5 months, when I read some more about it and decided maybe I could do it part time. The first time I put her on the potty, she peed, and I was sold. I have been amazed and stunned by the whole process ever since. Hurray for teaching old dogs new tricks!

Yarn Along

I love Ginny's idea of a "yarn along," which she's hosting at her blog Small Things (share what you're reading and what you're making in a photo: two kinds of "yarns.") I talk about kids' books here a lot, but rarely about what I'm reading (why is that?), and I haven't had many finished projects to share lately, so this seems like a perfect opportunity to share stuff in-the-works.

I'm reading Little Bee, which is described on the cover (by the New York Times Book Review) as "an affecting story of human triumph," and I surely hope it is, because so far it's an affecting story of devastation. I could use a little triumph right now.

And I'm crocheting a pair of longies for Lucy. I sewed her two pairs with two very-rare hours to myself this weekend--and they didn't fit!! I was so upset to have wasted the precious time. So I'm really hoping this pair will work out well. I chose a super-plain organic wool from my gifted-from-a-friend stash (thanks, Melissa!) in the hopes that this pair will be able to go under any dress she might wear this winter.

And here's how projects in the works usually look around here:

Because there are still cold days to come...

...I finally finished some new longies and a wool dress I cut out weeks ago. (Why, oh, why does it take so long to finish things sometimes? Sewing these together took less than 1/2 an hour, and yet, they'd sat waiting for weeks!) I've wanted to share them with you, but I've been having a hard time getting photos; Lucy is no longer an easy model. Here's what I get instead:

You wanted to take a picture of my new dress and longies?
But there are kids to chase! I can't stand still!


What do you mean, stand up to model my pants?
There's a step to climb!


And what's going on over there?


Come out? Don't be silly, mama. I have to eat this bread I found on the floor! And I like being in here!
(We call this spot behind the chairs "baby jail." Lucy puts herself in there all the time and hangs out there to play.)


You want a picture of my new longies?
You'll have to catch me first!

Bye-bye!

Lucy's handknits

I promised photos of some of Lucy's hand knit birthday gifts. The lighting was pretty poor and my day was hectic, so I did the best I could!

Here's Lucy modeling the hat and sweater from Melissa. The light's not much better than last night, but this is closer to the true color (which is fabulous with her eyes).


I didn't quite get a shot of it, but Melissa thought to include panels at the back that made it wider at the bottom (for her cloth-diapered bum).

(edited to add: Melissa got good pics of it. You can see more detail here if you're on Ravelry.)

This past weekend, we had a visit from Lucy's paternal grandparents. Grandma has made Lucy many wonderful sweaters and blankets and hats. This time, she brought her this dress:

(What a lot of work went into all that edging!)

And this whole outfit:

By request, she's been making Lucy some longies. She made this whole wool outfit to match this pair. How cozy and beautiful is that? (Wish it were my size...)


They're a bit big yet, but I'm sure they'll fit next winter. And that jumper should work as a vest for even longer.

I feel so blessed to have all these crafty women in my life. I love dressing Lucy in clothes someone's made just for her, and talking with her about where they came from. And I love that she wears clothing no one else has; it seems fitting that her unique self should have a unique look!

Cozy cashmere for the Craft Hope Etsy Shop

So, I decided what to make for the Craft Hope Etsy shop (have you been there yet? Such beautiful things! Going so, so quickly! I'm thrilled to hear they've made over $7,000 so far.)

I'm sorry the pictures are so bad; I finished it in broad daylight, but my model was napping! I wanted to get it to them right away, so I hope shoppers can see past the bad lighting.



Lucy likes it, anyway!



My donation was a "Cashmere Baby Dress and Longies Set"

This wonderfully soft and cozy outfit is made from a recycled, felted lavender cashmere sweater. Included are a pair of "longies" (wool diaper-cover pants), which will come lanolized and ready to wear. (If you don't use cloth diapers, they make lovely leggings, too.) There's also a comfy dress, warm enough for winter, but lightweight enough to carry right over into spring. Eyelet trim on the arms and pocket give it a cute girly look. This outfit is made for play--it moves with your child and doesn't get in the way of crawling or walking.

Want a cute, comfy outfit for your baby? Need some more diaper covers? $30, and all of it goes to Doctors Without Borders. It should be in the shop by tomorrow.

(I said I'd share my books with you, and I will...tomorrow. This seemed more pressing.)

Argyle, head to toe

It's finished! Here's the refashion I hinted about the other day...



It was time for yet another pair of longies. So a while ago, I'd pulled out a pile of felted sweaters whose arms seemed about the right width and length for Lucy right now. Among them was this one. Naturally, I forgot to take a "before" shot, but you can picture it: a grey, pink, and white argyle sweater; 1990s style, with big shoulder pads. Ick. But when I spotted it at the thrift store, I knew it had potential for a baby.

So I chopped off the legs and did the usual thing. When I was finished, I was left with the body of the sweater, and the pattern was too cute to chop up into shorties. I wondered if I could make a dress.

And I did!

I took a favorite knit dress of Lucy's and laid it on the sweater to see if it might work. I'd originally thought "jumper," but realized there was enough fabric for a short-sleeved dress. I also decided to turn the sweater upside down so I could use some of the waistband as a finished neckline. As I positioned my model dress on top of the sweater, I realized the waistband could make a turtleneck. How cozy!

I wasn't sure if it would be too tight going over her head, so I left one side of the turtle open, and used a scrap to make a flap for a buttonhole. I decided to finish the other edges (sleeves, hem) with embroidery floss, using a blanket stitch, because I am still not satisfied with my results when I finish felted wool on my machine. I added a little pocket to break up the big expanse of grey on the lower part of the dress.

The resulting dress has a strangely grown-up style, but with its matching longies is so comfy and cozy like pjs, it's perfect for a baby. Good for a baby's work...like dusting under the couch:



(I tried and tried to get a shot of the turtleneck with its cute pink button, but my model is very active!)

Experimenting with Longies

I finally found some time to do a bit of sewing this weekend. As always, Lucy was in need of some new diaper covers, so I did a bit of experimenting with new styles of longies.

First up was this pair:



I'd recently gotten myself a "new" sweater at Goodwill, and promptly shrunk it after two wearings. (Don't you hate that?) So on to the felted-sweater pile it went. As I considered its use for longies, I realized that the big turtleneck looked just about the size of Lucy's waist. So I decided to use the whole thing as the waistband, thinking it could be folded over (as photographed) or worn high to keep her chest warm and eliminate t-shirt ride-up bare belly. I've also been having some trouble with her made-from-sleeves longies tearing at the crotch, so I decided to add a panel there to increase the width. I didn't get the shape quite right, and will have to experiment some more to make pants that actually look nice, but these fit fairly well and surely won't tear.

Next up was this goofy-looking pair of overalls:



I'd come across some beautiful made-from-sweaters overalls on Etsy, and wanted to try a pair of my own. I laid a pair of her current overalls on top of a sweater, cut around the whole thing, and sewed them up. The sides came out beautifully. But those armholes! The sweater hadn't felted very well, and required some reinforcing along the cut edges. I tried a zigzag stitch, and it was a mistake. I don't like the frou-frou ruffly result. It doesn't help that I made the straps way too long, either. Maybe next time I'll try hemming the edges? Any suggestions for how to do it so it actually looks nice? Oh, well. We're putting them on her to wear to bed, for extra protection and warmth over shorties and a shirt. Works to keep her dry, if not fashionable.

When in doubt, make more longies

There hasn't been a lot of sewing going on around here lately, what with the miserable colds we've been having, and lots of company (thus the lack of posting, too). But this week, I found myself with a bit of time. What to do? Well, there's always a need for more diaper covers. Not very exciting, but very practical.

Needed right now: longies. In cold weather, it's much easier to dress Lucy in a diaper cover that is also pants than in diaper, cover, and then pants on top. And the rule right now is dark colors, because she's crawling all over the place, and they get filthy fast.


(She didn't want to stand up for a photo, but these look super cute with this dress when she does.)

So first up, a pair of plain brown longies. Remember that shrunken cashmere sweater from a friend that became a bum sweater? I still had most of it left, so I used the sleeves to make legs. But this time, rather than add an elastic casing as I usually do, I used what was left of the sweater's waistband to make a waistband for the pants. I pulled it very taut as I sewed, so it would be snug. I love how it worked out, because it resulted in pants that come high up on her waist, keeping her tummy from being exposed in the cold. I left these pants very long, because I don't want to waste this lovely fabric; I want them to fit for a long time.



Next up, a beautiful patterned turquoise pair. I found this sweater ages ago, and have been saving it (I think I bought it before she was born). It's too bad it's so grey here today, because this photo does not do them justice. I love these! The buttons at the bottom look so cute (though for the moment, she has to wear them rolled up). And as an added bonus, I was able to use the buttoned neck of the sweater as the waistband, so you can open them to get them on, and then button them up snug. This pair is really thick and warm, and will be great for the winter.

I've fallen in love with the look of a baby in longies and a dress. And I love all the funky, mis-matched but somehow just right outfits that result (for example, because diaper covers get rotated as they get wet, later in the day she wore the turquoise, patterned ones with the purple floral dress, and it looked great!) I wish I could find a super-gigantic gorilla-armed sweater so I could make a pair for myself; they've got to be the perfect winter pants!

How to make felted-sweater diaper covers

I had a request for more information about how to make diaper covers from felted wool sweaters. There are several good tutorials out there, so I'll point you in that direction rather than re-write what's already been said. But I've picked up a few tips along the way and combined two patterns last time, so I'll share some of what I've figured out here.



This is the first tutorial I came across for making wool "longies" (long pants that serve as a diaper cover). I've followed this basic design for most of the longies I've made. They are really cute and useful. (Lucy's modeling a pair, above.) As she gets bigger, I'm finding that these are sometimes too short in the back. I'm going to experiment with some different waistbands. I loved these--how smart to use the cuff of a pair of pants as the waistband! Other tutorials I've seen use some of the waistband of the sweater to make a waistband for the longies--a great idea I want to try. And I've never tried this pattern, but it looks very promising; I like the fitted bottom.

*edited to add: How embarrassing! I was looking at Lucy's diaper peek above her too-short-waisted longies tonight and realized what was wrong with them. My own stupidity; I forgot to allow for the casing when I was cutting down the side of the sleeve! I just cut it to match the pants I was using for a "pattern," so when I added the elastic casing, I lost nearly an inch. I'd still like to try those other ideas, but now I'll also be able to make these and have them fit! Can you say sewing while exhausted?

I also love this pattern for a "bum sweater". Here's the first one of these I made. Super cute shorties (short pull-on diaper cover), and nice and trim. It fits well under clothing and also looks cute under summer dresses. I don't put in the recommended drawstring, and so far, haven't needed it.

When I made the pink pair, I followed the suggestion to use the cuffs of the original sweater as the leg bands. But that meant that when I later made longies from those sleeves, they didn't have a nice finished edge. For less waste, and a more finished product, for the brown pair I made next, I cut the neck of the original sweater in half and used those strips to make the leg bands. Much better.

The bum sweater is also the pattern I started from to make her latest cashmere longies. Rather than sewing on legbands, I sewed on long legs made from the sleeves of the sweater. The sleeves were long enough that I was able to cut them in half and make two pairs. However, I'd cut the top of the sleeves off the sweater following the angle of the shoulder--so they came to a point--and I decided to try to incorporate that into the design, to see if it would give her more space around the diaper. You can see how the legs come to a point at the top in the pair on the right, below:



I like how they fit, but they come down a bit too low in the front; I think this pair would benefit from an added drawstring.

To make any of these diaper covers, you'll want to start with a largish, not-too-scratchy, 100% wool sweater. I use no special techniques for felting--I just throw the sweater in the washer and the drier and let them do their thing, and then decide what to make out of it based on how big it ends up! Once you've made your cover, you'll want to lanolize it to help it absorb water. I dissolve a few drops of liquid lanolin (from the health-food store) in a bit of hot water, then fill my bucket with room-temperature water, let the covers soak for a while, rinse, squeeze out the extra water by rolling them in a towel, and then hang to dry. It takes forever for them to dry that first time, but don't worry--you only have to lanolize them every month or so.

Well, now, that was wordy! Hope it's helpful! Let me know if there's anything I should clarify or add.

She keeps growing, and growing...

...1 1/2 pounds in the last 2 weeks! Time for more diaper covers.



I made the two pale-pink pairs from one cashmere sweater. It was only a women's large to start with, and once it was felted, it was pretty tiny. So I got creative and combined the two diaper-cover patterns I've used so far. The sleeves were so long, I was able to cut two legs from each one. They look really strange hanging on the line (like upside-down sweaters), but as you can see in the top photo, they're pretty cute on. (You can also see Lucy's face is almost cleared up after Friday's incident.) The darker pair is my standard cut-off-the-sleeves-and-sew-them-together style, except that I'd already used the cuffs of the sleeves for this pair. I'm hoping the ends will be fine as is. If not, I'll add some trim to the bottoms.

We're finding that we much prefer the homemade covers to the store-bought ones. They sometimes look a bit goofy, and they definitely look homemade (not in a good way), but they're easier to put on, harder for her to take off, slimmer under clothing, much more affordable, and cute! Some of the covers we've bought cost $30 a piece. These two sweaters probably cost me $8, and I got four covers from them--that's $2 a piece. I can't imagine that I'll be buying any more. (Except maybe some more of the totally adorable custom-made crocheted ones I bought on Etsy. I love those!)

Here's the dress that goes with the shoes...

green/orange dress and longies
Originally uploaded by mcghol

This is the dress I made using the free "Itty Bitty Baby Dress" pattern from "Made by Rae." She'll outgrow it before it's warm enough for naked legs, so under it are some wool longies made from a felted sweater. The dress is made from a vintage sheet, and the lining is from a thrifted men's shirt. Because I'm a dork like that, I made myself a skirt to match, following the A-line skirt pattern in Sew What! Skirts.