Summer Sleepwear- Butterick 6225 and Kwik Sew 3644

Do you spend a lot of time in your pajamas?   I have to admit that I do spend way more time in them than I should.   I usually put them on a couple of hours before bed, and then not change into something else until I've been up a couple of hours, so we're looking at about 12 hours a day!  But, my sleepwear is definitely the most neglected part of my wardrobe. And based on what I see others sewing on their blogs, it may be the most neglected part of everyone's wardrobes, as I rarely see anyone posting pajamas!

A few years ago, I did have a very posh set of coordinating polished cotton pajamas and a robe.  I paid big bucks for it, but wore it until the fabric had holes and the print had completely faded.  So, with that in mind, I set out to recreate something similar. 

The first step was the robe.  Since I wanted this to be summer weight, I needed a pattern that was designed for woven fabric- a knit or fleece robe would be too hot.  Enter Kwik Sew 3644. 

I know that Kwik Sew patterns are more expensive than the other Big 4 brands, but let me tell you- I was really glad that I chose this pattern.  The way that it applied piping was completely different than I would have done without their instructions.  And it turned out great.  Piping and I are not friends.  But this time, we were compatible, and I will credit Kwik Sew for that.

I had selected three blue coordinating cotton voiles from Fabric Mart for this set.  Cotton voile is super light weight- I even had to adjust the tension on my machine because it is so light that the regular tension wouldn't hold it down.    I read that if you have a roller foot, that you should use it when sewing voile.  I don't, but once I adjusted the tension, it sewed like a dream.

 The pattern has a contrasting facing, pocket bands, and sleeve bands.  Since this was my largest piece of the set, I used the largest print, which was a blue background with a cream and brown paisley design.    For the contrast, I used a blue and brown striped voile, as I thought the stripe would balance the very ornate paisley.  I used a bronze colored flat piping to bring out the browns in the print.  

 

The second step was the pajamas.  I have to say that I am not usually a ruffles kind of person, but when I saw Butterick 6225, I just fell in love with it. 

It has so many interesting details- small pleats on the front, a shaped front hem, and the ruffles around the neck and armholes.  So cute, and so much work!  About half way through, I realized why I don't have many tops with ruffles.  I just don't have the patience.   But, when I go back to my formula of how many hours a day I wear my pajamas, versus how many hours it took me to sew the ruffles, then it seemed like a pretty fair trade-off.

I used a medium sized blue floral print for the main body, and cut the facing and ruffles from the blue striped voile. I have to say that I think this top could very well be worn anytime of day. 

 

 I cut the ruffles on the bias to give them an interesting angle on the shirt.  I tried it on, and it slipped over my head easily, so I opted to just sew the buttons through all layers, rather than making buttonholes.  I want this to last a long time, and I figure that I am less likely to lose a button if they are just decorative and not functional.

To make the ruffled trim, you first need to do a baby hem on one side of the ruffle piece, then gather the other side.  Baste the trim to the garment edge, and then sew a strip of bias tape over the ruffle.  Turn the bias tape to the wrong side, and finally stitch it in place.  You can use purchased bias tape for this step, but I had enough fabric to make my own, so I cut 1-1/4” bias strips from the blue stripe.

Because this has a shaped hem, the facing on this top was extra wide. 

Inside view of top to show the bias tape finishing around armhole edge.

 I used the blue/brown stripe fabric for my front facings as well.  The facings are interfaced, so it is really important to use a featherweight interfacing, or else this could get too heavy.   For the shorts, I used the blue stripe again.  The shorts are just the standard elastic waist pull-on pants type. 

  

I find that these patterns always run too long in the front crotch, so I fold out 2” off the top of the center front, and then blend that to 1” at the sides, and then  to zero at the center back.  I also added a couple of inches to the length.  I still had lots of fabric left over, so I made a little headband out of the remnants using a 10” piece of fold over elastic and a shaped double layer of fabric.  

This will be a great set for traveling, because it is so lightweight.  And if anyone sees me getting the newspaper in the morning in my pj's, I won't be quite as embarrassed as if I was just wearing my typical raggedy t-shirt and shorts.  

How about you?  Have you ever made your own pajamas? 

Happy Sewing! 

Ann