Women's Nightgown Sewing Pattern

Scroll to the bottom for the $4.00 Seamingly Smitten Sewing Pattern SALE! Happy New Year!

Does anyone get Christmas pajamas as a gift each year? For as long as I can remember my mom has given my sister and I a pajama pant and top set. I rarely buy pajamas because they are my mom's favorite thing to give as gifts a few times a year. Thanks, Mom! Well last month I designed The Sadie Grace Nightgown sewing pattern for girls (sizes 6 months - 8 years) and it got me thinking - what about designing a Women's Nightgown sewing pattern?

I started drawing out some designs and the first few I drew were looking more like lingerie - nighties - chemises - something for the boudoir.

This was my first version made in a satin - very lingerie-like.

 

This one (above) was sewing in Amy Butler fabric and looked more like a sundress.

Ultimately I decided it needed to be more modest, something classic and I came up with this Women's Nightgown design. It's just a mock-up of one - done in white cotton broadcloth and a top panel and straps done in some scrap fabric I had. It features a long ruffle, elastic straps, a slightly gathered bodice and a coordinating panel. What do you think? Would you sew one?

The pattern is written and now just needs pictures, pattern testers and then will be published. It's exciting to add another design into the Seamingly Smitten sewing pattern shop that is a women's sewing pattern. I've focused on children lately so it's a great change of pace! I can't wait to show you the nightgown I started on today which is the final version.


In 2013 there are some amazing things to look forward to as Seamingly Smitten grows:

*Women's Nightgown Sewing Pattern
*Men's Pajama Pants Sewing Pattern
*Women's Pajama Pants Sewing Pattern
*Women's Cowl Neck Shirt

Some people have requested tween sized sewing patterns, too, so the list of patterns to create is growing! Thank you for sharing in this creative journey with us!

To close out the year I wanted to offer all of you a special sale! The $4.00 sewing pattern sale in the etsy shop. CLICK HERE. Thank you for being dedicated and encouraging readers, creative and passionate seamstresses and the best Seamingly Smitten fans! Happy New Year!

Christmas Pictures - Seamingly Smitten

Christmas 2012

 

Here are some of my most favorite photos from Christmas this year. Of course it is the hardest to get a family picture where everyone is looking, smiling and that isn't blurry, right? But most importantly, we created so many memories with our family - we baked a gingerbread house from scratch, went to the annual Christmas Eve neighborhood parade at my in-laws house, loved the look on my son's face when he got his pretend bow and arrow set (he had been waiting for it since July!), watched the kids play dress up in their police officer costumes, paint with their art sets and just spent so much time together as a family. It was my own slice of Heaven for a few days and I will always remember it.

Above: John Patrick, Patrick, me and Catherine

 

 

Above: Christmas Eve parade picture

 Above: Christmas morning hugs (still in pajamas, too)!

 

 Above: Christmas Eve picture with my grandparents (This is my grandmother that taught me to sew.)

Above: My sister, Laurie, myself and my mom, Claire

 

Above: Silly cousins on Christmas Eve

Above: Catherine got into her older cousins make-up set before she did!

Above: John Patrick FINALLY got his bow and arrow set! He has waited patiently for it since July! We were so proud of him for being as patient as he was for so long! Last week was the first time he said, "I'm tired of waiting. Can we just go to the store and buy it?" We of course said no and didn't give in because Santa knew it was on his list. :)

Above: Ready to play

Above: Catherine asked for a couch for her and a couch for her baby doll. Little chairs were just the thing! She even got Merida from the movie Brave because Catherine loved her curly hair, her independence and her courage. Her favorite part of the movie is when she says she wants one day with, "no rules, no expectations and no being a princess." That's my Catherine. :)

 Above: John Patrick and my mom

Above: My sister, Laurie, and her husband Matt - It was their first time hosting Christmas and it was wonderful!

 

After all the time off from work and time with the family it was so wonderful just being together. I have to admit I am ready to sew, ready to create more patterns and ready to be inspired by what you create with them!

 

Merry Christmas!

Jenny



PDF sewing pattern sale - Buy 1 Get 1 Free

This Christmas season I want to GIVE YOU ALL a Christmas gift from my heart to your sewing pattern collection!

 

Right now there is a Buy 1 Get 1 Sewing Pattern FREE!

 

 

No coupon code needed. At checkout simply leave a note to seller letting me know which free pattern you would like. "Sew" simple! :)

 

Etsy shop only - CLICK HERE to view the pattern shop.

 

above: Dainty Jane Dress sewing pattern

above: Dainty Jane Dress sewing pattern

above three: Sadie Grace Nightgown Sewing Pattern

Above two: The Little Lady Jacket Sewing Pattern

 

Merry Christmas to all of my loyal fans, customers and crafty friends! I cannot wait to see what 2013 holds for

Seamingly Smitten!

 

Love,

Jenny

 

 

 

Sewing Crafts with Kids

Now that the holidays are here it is a great time to whip up some craft projects with your kids! There are so many wonderful craft sites and projects out there, but I wanted to highlight a few of my favorites that I know my kids would love to try.

**In the comment section, feel free to link up your favorite Christmas craft that others would enjoy!

Merry Christmas from Seamingly Smitten!
Hug your little ones, play silly games and enjoy their giggles! They grow up way too fast!

 

Sewing and Crafts with Kids

1. Scrap Fabric and Clay Pot Nativity Scene

*My little boy came home with this from school yesterday and he couldn't wait to show us our gift! This project is so simple and only took a few items: 3 miniature clay pots, 3 wooden balls, scraps of fabric, a marker, hot glue, ric-rac and some raffia for the hay. Simply glue on the fabric, add the faces, some hay and a halo and you've made a Christmas Nativity.

 

2. Make a Stuffed Animal or Figure from your child's drawing

 

*This activity and tutorial can be found HERE on Martha Stewart and would be an instant hit with the kiddos in my house. Just think of all the animals that children could come up with - even if they combine two of their favorite animals to make up the silliest animal they can imagine.

 

*My son wanted to make something with me the other night and this is what we did! He drew his design - A Superhero Sailboat - then picked out his fabric. I cut out the shapes, pinned the design and let him push the foot pedal the entire time (but his hands were not near the machine). He loved it and the pictures below prove it with that big old smile!

 

Photo from Martha Stewart.com

 

3.  Monster Tooth Fairy Pillow - get the HOW-TO HERE.

 

*Some of you may have children losing teeth already - we aren't there yet in this household, but we will be in the next year or two. This Monster Tooth Pillow is such a fun idea from The Long Thread blog! The mouth of the monster is a pocket to hold money that the Tooth Fairy leaves and is a safe place to put that tooth all night. Boys would love a monster like this and girls could change it up by making their monster a prettier monster - pink, glitter, ric rac, pom pom teeth, ribbon hair...etc.

 

 

 Photo and tutorial found HERE

 

4. Sew Finger Puppets

 

 

 

*Bedtime stories are a huge hit in our house and right now we love The Gingerbread Man. This finger pupper sewing craft would be a fun activity to create characters from a favorite story in your house so the kids could play along as each character in the book.

 

*The TUTORIAL FOUND HERE from Obsessively Stitching blog will show you how to create finger puppets for The Three Little Pigs (and even that wolf who huffs and puffs).

 

5. Sock Puppets

 

*I found this TUTORIAL HERE on the blog Six Sisters Stuff and wow this brings back memories of playing with Kermit the frot puppets! Who remembers that? If this sock monster project doesn't get your kiddos laughing, I'm not sure what will! I can just see my little ones running around after each other trying to make their puppets talk to one another. I must make this!!

 

 

I hope you enjoyed this list of a few crafts that you might love to make with your kids over the holidays (or anytime). If you have a favorite kid's craft tutorial SHARE IT in the COMMENTS below!

 

Happy Sewing and Crafting!
Jenny

Seamingly Smitten PDF Sewing Patterns for Women, Girls and Boys



TUTORIAL: Grocery Tote Bag

Sewing Tutorial: Reusable Grocery Tote Bag

(Basic lined tote bag sewing tutorial) 

Who can ever have enough tote bags? Not me! I have tote bags for all sorts of purposes - a beach tote bag, my daughter's dance tote bag, my son's soccer tote bag, pool towel tote bag, and travel tote bags. They are great to have around the house in all sorts of fabrics and sizes.

My friend, Elizabeth, wanted me to make two grocery tote bags for her cousin's Christmas gift. They needed to be sturdy, man-ly in color and fabric and pretty basic. With those requests I headed to the fabric store and bought one yard of duck canvas in a navy blue and one yard of lining. The lining is optional. You can always simply serge or zig-zag stitch your raw edges.

Tote Bag Sewing Tutorial:

*This tutorial will show you how to sew a simple lined tote bag. Since these bags were going to be used to hold groceries, I chose a very sturdy fabric. You could make these out of any fabric such as: cotton, denim, corduroy, seersucker, broadcloth, twill, poplin, duck canvas or even burlap.

 

1. Gather materials to make TWO Reusable Grocery Tote Bags:

one yard duck canvas or other fabric you would like to use that is 60" wide
one yard lining 60" wide
2 yards nylon straps (or you can make your straps out of the fabric - it is included in the amount needed)
ruler, scissors, pins, fabric marker, sewing machine, thread

2. Cut out FOUR pieces in your duck canvas that are 18 inches long x 23 inches wide

3. Cut out FOUR pieces in your lining fabric that are 18 inches long x 23 inches wide.

4. Cut out FOUR strips in your duck canvas that are 3 inches long x 36 inches wide for the straps.

5. Lay your two main fabric pieces right sides together. Pin around both sides and the bottom. Leave the top edge (the 23 inch wide edge) unpinned.

6. Sew around all three sides. Backstitch. Trim threads.

7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 for your lining fabric.

8. **If you are making your straps continue here. If not, skip to step #13: Iron your strap pieces in half with right sides together so they are each 1.5 inches long x 36 inches wide and pin down the long edge.

9. Sew down the long, pinned edge using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Trim threads.

10. Turn each strap rightside out and press with an iron. I do this by pinning a safety pin onto the end of the fabric and pushing it through the fabric tunnel. Pull it out the other end and slide the fabric right side out. Iron well.

11. Use your fingers to turn in the raw, open edges of the straps. Press each end with an iron and pin in place. Repeat for all four straps. Place to the side for now.

12. Sew along your pinned strap edges to close them, using a 1/8 inch seam allowance. Trim threads.

13. Time to make the corners of your bag. Leaving the main fabric right side out, spread out one bottom corner of the bag until it forms a triangle. I do this by putting my fingers into the bag and spreading the fabric out carefully, then pinning.

14. Draw a line four inches away from the corner of your triangle. This gives your triangle a base. Repeat for BOTH CORNERS of your main fabric bags and BOTH CORNES of your lining fabric bags.

15. Sew along your drawn lines. Trim threads. This will give your bags corners. Repeat for all four bags.

16. Place one lining bag and one main fabric bag right sides together. Pin all around the top, raw edge.

17. Sew around the top, pinned edge but STOP SEWING 6 inches before your starting point. Backstitch. Trim threads.

18. Reach into the hole you made and pull the bag right side out. Then, push the lining into the main fabric.

19. Press the top of your bag with an iron to give it a nice, crisp look. Turn in the opened hole that was used for turning right side out, press with an iron and pin.

20. Sew around the entire top of your bag using a 1/8 inch seam allowance. Trim threads.

21. If you are using nylon straps, cut 2 straps that are 36 inches long each. *The length of straps is your personal preference. You can make them shorter or longer.

22. Place straps where they are desired and pin in place.

23. Sew a box at the end of each strap and an X that connects all four corners of this box. This reinforces the ends of your straps to tightly hold them in place.

 

 

You're done!! These make great gifts - or you can definitely find something to do with them yourself!

 

 

 

Happy Sewing!

Jenny Hall

Seamingly Smitten

 

*Shown - The Sadie Grace Nightgown Sewing Pattern for Girls - sizes 6 months - 8 years

www.seaminglysmitten.com - PDF sewing patterns for Girls, Boys and Women - instant download

www.etsy.com/shop/SeaminglySmitten - PDF sewing pattern shop