Footie Pajamas

All the Kwik Sew patterns I have used have been excellent for size and very easy to put together, but watch their seam allowances! They use different ones on different patterns, and quite a few are 1/4" for sergers.

I think Kwik Sew have an adult size pattern for these, but they may not have feet in... I prefer no feet, as my feet get too hot. Why not do matching booties rather than ones with feet in? I also prefer two piece PJ's so my top half doesn't get cold when I take a trip to the bathroom at three am... Just some things to think about.

What ever happened to the drop-seat style? Most accomodating!

Jean M.

Watch out for the pj's being too short through the torso...terribly uncomfortable. I also recommend the matching booties as the "feet" wear out quickly.

I just finished a pair of one-piece PJ's for a friend, using McCall's pattern #3860. The pattern doesn't include feet though. After spying one of my infant son's sleepers with real socks sewn on instead of the regular feet he decided he'd rather have those anyway. This pattern would give you a start, since all you'd have to create yourself is the feet.

Tom I have been using Nighty Night Pattern from Sunrise Designs - I believe it is still available. It is a great pattern for the footed sleepers - infant sizes. I suggest using the YKK Beulon Knitted Tape Zipper- they are soft and move with the fabric without stiffness. If you can't find the pattern let me know. siobhan

I would go with the Kwik Sew, mainly because I like them best for that kind of thing. McCall's used to make the footed sleepers as well. One word of advice, though: don't make the new-born size. Most infants are out of them far too quickly to make them worthwhile. (My third child couldn't even wear some of them home from the hospital!) If your friends are expecting very small babies, then go for it - otherwise devote your energy to the 6-12 month size! If Kwik-Sew still offers the 3mos size, that is okay too. I have made them and the adult size that they used to offer and they all worked up quickly and easily. Cynthia

That's not a problem. I tend to alter everything to a 1/4" seam allowance. I use Kwik-Sew patterns from time to time, and I like them, but find they sometimes don't fit together as well as I'd like... in some cases, I've had problems with shirt sleeves fitting the body rather badly, etc. Also I hate their instructions, I feel they tend to assume you have superb sewing machine skills and want to use industrial methods, while a lot of people have medeocre sewing machine skills and want to use easier methods or whatever method will provide the best results, not the fastest.

But, they do have great designs in general and they're one of the few pattern companies with any variety of menswear, so I keep using them.

I finally found, last night, the number of this pattern. They make the design only for women. I guess I can alter it... I emailed to ask for a mens version, but no doubt even if they went to work on it today they couldn't have it in my local fabric store in time for me to get to work...

I live in Massachusetts...

The friend I want to make them for is nostalgic for the PJs with feet attached, as is his sister (one of the expectant mothers). So, that's what I want to make. I may make them for their husbands and their parents as well so everyone in the family gets one. We'll see if I can afford the fabric.

Tom

Tom,

I once made some slightly looser than called-for onesies in which I also added an extra two inches to the torso to accommodate growth of the baby and the increased diaper volume. These had snap closures. I folded up the excess amount encasing one of the snaps and ran a long stitch at the top of the fold and at the bottom of the fold all around the waist. Then a few months later as the baby elongated, the mom could pull out the stitches which held the extra length and extend the life of the garb. Babies grow SO fast.

Valerie from KlothWerks

Tom Farrell wrote:

I'd go with footless... you can get a lot more wear out of them when the legs are growing.

Penny s

I guess it depends on the baby...I'd make some newborn sizes...When I had my

1st daughter, all I received as gifts were 6-12 month clothes...it was nice because I knew I'd have clothes for her to grow into, but I had to go out and buy all the newborn sizes because there was no way my little 6 lb girl was going to fit in even 3 month clothes! even DD#2 couldn't wear 3 month clothes for a while and she was over 7 lbs.

even if it doesn't last very long, it's nice to have clothes that actually fit at that age...and especially for sleepwear, you don't want them to be baggy.

kristen :)

Tom, I'm a little confused here. Didn't you start out asking about footed pjs for babies? But if you want a pattern for just the foot part, go to

and download the Wild Things program--assuming you use a PC, and not a Mac. (Or if you do use a Mac, that you have a Windows emulator). It has some really cool little doodads, including booties which you can make for a wide variety of sizes.

HTH, Karen in Ohio

Thanks, it looks good. Are there any particular features you think make it superior?

Thanks. I get my zippers from my local YKK distributor... at less than

1/4 the price of buying them in a fabric store. They're really wonderful about advising me about what I want for my desired purpose, and can make custom lengths for me. Incidentally, I recommend them: US Slide Fastener Corporation 21 Drydock Ave., Boston, MA 02210 (617) 426-3546 They'll take credit card orders by phone and ship to you, and they have just about every size, color, and feature. Oh, and they stock Velcro too I think. They'd prefer bulk orders, but are willing to handle a $20 or so order. I get zippers there for $1.50 that I find in the stores for $8 or $9. I don't use a lot of zippers, but when I go there I always buy half a dozen jacket zippers and such because that way I'll probably have one on hand if I decide to make something that will require an expensive zipper.

Tom

I can add them, I was just sorta hoping I'd find a pattern that already had them attached.

Thanks. I'm adding everyone's suggestions to my list so I can compare and contrast.

Tom

Yes, that's a concern of course. I'm hoping I'll be able to get measurements of at least most of the recipients in advance. They all know I sew and I've sewn gifts for them all in the past, so if I tell them I want measurements it'll be no surprise. I also have a history of taking lots of measurements to obscure what I really want. In one case I measured people's head, neck, chest, waist, back length, sleeve, and inseam... and they got hats. (It was enough years ago that I need new measurements however.)

As the whole point of the project is that my friends want PJs with feet attached, they'll be attached. Anyway, I have pairs of slipper socks I made out of Polartec with grip-tite fabric on the soles that I've had for 5 or 6 years with no significant signs of wear, so I'm not too worried about the PJs wearing out.

Tom

Oh Dear: I guess it does depend a lot that way. Babies around here average about 7 and a half pounds and gain quickly. My 2nd was small at 7 lbs and did not grow (she stayed at the bottom of the growth charts until after the age of two!) whereas my third was 8 lbs. 4 oz and grew rapidly off the top end of the charts! By the age of two she was already at three year growth levels in all areas. By three and a half she had her 6 year molars! Now they're both willowy teenagers with a whole new set of fitting problems... Cynthia

The *average* birth weight >

Thanks for the excellent advice from you both. I'm going to only make the footie pajamas in some somewhat larger sizes, because I'm planning to give them for christmas instead of at birth. However, I may make some other things in newborn size.

Tom Farrell

I want to make them for a number of people, three of whom haven't been born yet, six or more of whom are adults. The patterns for babies are easy to find, there are several so I have choices and I welcome advice about which one is best. The patterns for adults are more problematic, because the only one I've found with attached feet on the pattern is only for women.

I use a Mac. I could run a PC emulator, but don't care to. I only use Windows when I have to, and I have slipper sock patterns already.

Tom Farrell

I like this pattern because the zipper extends down one leg making changing time easier. I like the pattern with the little bit of elastic across the back not all the way around. Since one of your friends is expecting twins figure the babies will be small - make up some smalls and mediums with the possibility of needing to make some extra smalls. I also like the sleep sack from this pattern - instead of a drawstring in the bottom I used a baby weight elastic - makes changes easy and allows the baby kicking freedom. For sizing for toddlers - my trick has been to make them big and use ribbing at the wrists and ankles so they can grow into them. I believe the pattern I used for these was a Doctor Denton pattern from Simplicity #8886. (#9853 is similar) For toddler age I never maded footed pjs because my sons feet would get too hot. Sizing was also a problem, they have to be the correct length so they don't walk on the legs instead of the feet, hence the reasoning behind the ribbing.

US Slide Fastener Corporation 21 Drydock Ave., Boston, MA 02210

Where is this place located in relation to South Station? Do they have a store front or is it just a business location that will sell retail if requested?

What a nice project to do for your friends! You have been getting quite a bit of good advice on the making of the of the pajamas. I'll add my bit on the baby versions since I can't help with the adult versions. I was going to advise not to make the baby footie jammies too small (newborn or 3 month) since the babies grow out of them so quickly. Then I read the posts which said their babies were small and used the smaller sizes for quite awhile. My babies wore the 3 month sizes when born and grew out of them quickly. Most of my friends had similar experiences except for one who had twins. I would still lean toward making the 3 month size rather than the newborn size. You already have this problem solved since you are planning to make a range of sizes. If you use snaps on the baby clothes, I would advise against using snap tape. Some patterns call for it, oddly enough, but it is not a good thing. Snap tape has snaps at a short interval which makes it difficult to match and close the garment on a moving target. Believe me, babies are moving targets and rarely enjoy the process of being dressed. I use snaps from the Snap Source which has the purple plastic gadget for attaching them. The snaps worked well and could be attached at a sane interval for dressing wee ones.

Marilyn