Project Run & Play: Week 1

Hello all, and welcome if this is your first time on my blog! If you’re reading this, you likely came over from the Project Run & Play site to see the deets on my week one look, so I’ll jump right in. The theme is “1+1=School.” When I think of school, I think of fall, chillier mornings, crisp smelling air, new faces, and the smell of the hallways after being absent from the school buildings all summer long. All this screams “Welcome Back!“, which brings me to the name of my theme….

It’s no secret that school (as most public school attending children know it) has certainly not been orthodox for the past year and a half. My children have been antsy all summer, looking forward to school. Our eldest had just started making connections in our new city this past spring, and our youngest has been over the moon about starting kinder this year. Even though things are trending a little towards uncertain again for the full fall semester, I wanted to make sure I send my babies back in style.

For the looks, I knew immediately that I wanted to incorporate plaid. It’s like the quintessential fall print and I think it looks soooo cute on all kids. For colors, I started out by looking ahead to the fall Pantone Palette for this year. I was really drawn to Adobe, Fire Whirl, and Root Beer, so of course, I needed to find a plaid with at least one (or all) shades in it. The Plaititudes line from JoAnn had this super cute cotton flannel that I couldn’t resist. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have used flannel for clothing, but after feeling up some old button downs at Goodwill, I realized many of them were flannel, so I went with it…and y’all, I couldn’t be happier!

This brings me to my pieces. I thought for certain that the hardest part of this week would be settling on a cohesive look that I could pull together for both my babes. Turns out, it was finding patterns to help me bring the looks to life. Recently my daughter wore a pleated skirt (that was intended for me, btw) and she loved it so much. I remembered when I was younger, I always wanted a plaid pleated skirt (I was a kid who genuinely wanted to wear uniforms to school) but never got that wish granted. Her excitement made me think “yasss!!! I’m gonna make her one!” I spent wayyyy too much time looking for a pleated skirt pattern, that I decided I’d have to figure it out from scratch. I started out by using the top portion of the Kids A-line skirt from Ellie and Mac* with a bunch of mods to create the yoke, then measured out the pleats, measured in seam allowance for a zipper, & figured out how to sew it up. It took two versions before this final one to get the finished look, and I’m so glad I made it a couple times because my zipper game needed a little work lol! I had originally drafted the pattern with a waistband and an exposed zipper where the fabric was folded back to conceal it. This looked great with my muslin fabric, but with the plaid for this version, I eliminated the waistband, added more length to the skirt and used an invisible zipper & facing, instead. It was my first time sewing one EVER and the Colette blog made it sooooo easy! Here was my concept sketch. I think I nailed it! 😏

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To tie her look together, I created a short, oversized cardigan out of Cashmere waffle fabric from my stash, based on this cute one I saw at Target while back-to-school shopping. I started out with the Lounge Sweatshirt from B&T, removed length & some width from the neckline and at the shoulders to account for the band/button placket, & split the front into two pieces. I had a lot of fun tweaking the pattern to make this and it sewed up as expected on the first try. Don’t expect me to sew buttonholes on waffle knit again for a while though…that was quite a feat 🥴! To not overwhelm the look, I made a basic piece to wear underneath. That pattern is the Brynn from Sew a Little Seam with cap sleeves in Burgundy Double Brushed Poly, purchased using my pre-season shopping funds from Cali Fabrics.

For my son’s look, I wanted to create an outfit that was cute & coordinated with sissy. I instantly decided on a button-up shirt for him, but wanted the overall aesthetic to be playful and still comfortable for a kindergartener to wear. I used the super soft flannel I used for my girl’s skirt and the Charlie Camp shirt (pattern was formerly Ellie Inspired, purchased from Annelaine Patterns). Though I didn’t change the look of the pattern, I followed a different tutorial for some of the construction that I found easier on the Megan Nielson blog and used some of my own basic knowledge of garment construction to make some things neater. Underneath, he’s wearing a Blueberry Classic Knit Tee from Sinclair in maroon modal from my stash.

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I’m obsessed with joggers for him. I have tried many, many patterns, but always felt like this or that spot could be better. Most of them are more fitted and tapered at the ankles, cuffed, and usually require fabrics with a decent amount of stretch. For his bottoms, I took the time to draft a new joggers pattern using the ruboff technique on a pair of store bought joggers we had at home that I really loved the fit of. I created my own pattern to have a couple different waistband finishes, hem, & pocket options AND to be used with french Terry with limited stretch! I used solid black medium weight cotton French Terry that has about 20% stretch, also using my pre-season shopping funds from Cali Fabrics. I settled on a folded over elastic style waistband, traditional hem, & side seam zipper pockets for this go-round. Seriously my favorite pair of joggers ever. I hope to one day learn more about drafting and grading to be able to bring the patterns that I create to the homes of others who want the same things. One day….

I really, really adore the overall look that my pieces and fabric choices brought to life. They’ve got a very classic, traditional feel to me, but aren’t dated. Being that I’m not a pattern designer, it was a bit out of my comfort zone “drafting” two patterns to use, but I’m proud that I did it and now have them in my pattern library to sew up again in the future! At least I know for a fact they fit well 😉. I also think my kids look soooo cute and they look so school ready! They love these outfits so much, that I feel like a winner already. I hope you love these looks, too, and I’d love it if you’d vote for them over at the PR&P blog! Wishing you and your kiddos a very happy school year (regardless of how you’re schooling) & I hope I get to see ya back here next week. Toodles!