How to Stretch a Shirt - Project 2 (also for baby legs!)

This is the quickest, easiest project E. VER.  Well, except for maybe the leg warmers yesterday.  See how simple it is to make the most of a shirt???

Little leggings are super in style, and with those skinny baby legs sticking out, I just can’t resist dressing mini in them!  I used the tights pattern I had previously made (by tracing a leg from one of mini’s store bought tights) (which are not nearly as colorful or as cute).  I just lined it up on the shirt and made sure to make the leg pieces only as long as I wanted the leggings - I left off the foot part - and made sure the bottom of the shirt was the bottom of the legs.  

You can use Rae’s tutorial here, a very nicely explained tutorial with better pictures because I took these with my old ucky camera.  She also has a free pattern piece you can download and print if you don’t have tights to trace to make your own.  Very handy!

You’ll need 

the remains of your shirt from the last project.

sewing machine and thread

elastic (measured to fit the baby’s waist)

the pattern piece for the leg of the tights/leggings

a baby

First, you’ll fold your shirt in half and line up your pattern piece right side up along the edge.  

Then you’ll flip you’ll pattern piece to make the opposite leg - line it up along the edge once again.

Once your two pieces are cut out, you will sew up the legs from the bottom to the crotch area and STOP there.

Now, I don’t have good pictures of the next part, most likely because I just forgot to take them.  Because I’m forgetful like that.  If this is confusing, move on to Rae’s tutorial.  I’ll understand.  I won’t be offended.  Promise.

So, now take your legs and pin the front crotch pieces together and the back crotch pieces together.

Sew from the waist down the crotch.

Go over this middle part a few times, as it would be the most likely to get holey.

Then continue sewing up from the crotch area to the waist on the backside.

Measure how wide you’ll need to make the casing for the elastic.

Fold the waist down just a bit and sew around the whole thing to hem it.

Now fold the waist down again the width of the elastic and sew around the waist with a straight stitch, leaving an opening about an inch wide.

Thread your elastic through with a safety pin.

Sew your elastic together using a zig zag stitch (for stretch-ability).

Then sew the opening closed.

And you’re done!  

Sooooo easy!  (and even though I like this older version, the more recent ones are a far cry from making them out of socks).  I could make like fifty more of these, easy.  That’s how simple they are.

And they fit!

Now, for a commentary courtesy of the minster:

“Look at these SWEET leggings my mom made!”

“I know, right?!?  It's amazing!”

“They’re just too cute.”

“Like me.” 

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