New swimsuits.

I recently made swimsuits for 4 of my kids, meant to do 5 but the baby's will have to wait, ha!

Abby is at that hard stage, she's very particular on what she likes and what she's willing to wear.  She LOVES rash guards and boy shorts, so I figured this combo was sure to win her over.  She also chose the main fabric, so that didn't hurt either.

For the rashie I used my favorite shirt pattern for her.  I have bought a rashie pattern in the past and realized it was basically a slim tee with a taller neckband.  I usually choose not to do the taller neckband because I don't like the look of the way it flops, but if you want more sun coverage you can just add some height.

The Hey June Camden Raglan was perfect for the task.  I did add a partial lining to the front that goes a little below the armscye, I just layed the wrong side of my main fabric and wrong side of my lining together and treated it as one.  I probably could have figured out a way to add some elastic to the bottom of the lining to keep it down, but for now she didn't seem to mind. She says it's very comfortable and her favorite rashie yet.

The bottoms are the Jalie Swim Shorts.  The pattern has a great value, with 27 sizes included in one pattern.  But  that also came at a price so to speak, there are no layers and at times it was difficult to discern my size line.

Once it was cut, though, it was smooth sailing.  The instructions are well written, very to the point which I really like.  The shorts are lined with a bikini style bottom, again she said she really likes these and would want another pair in the future.

I made this adorable little set with the Boo Designs Swimmers.  This is definitely a favorite swim pattern of mine, I've tried many, many swim patterns and this one gets my highest recommendation.  It's drafted well, instructions are great and it actually tells you to use elastic in the straps and other places it needs it, unlike other patterns.  There are also loads of views included.

For this one, I chose the tankini and boy shorts.  The bottoms come with an optional lining, that I always choose to use because no one wants unsightly camel toe, not even a kid.

The palm fabric from this top, the starfish and sharks (boardshort) below are all from Raspberry Creek Fabric, she just got in to the swim fabric game and I have to say, it exceeded my expectations.  It is nice and thick and as easy as swim knit can be to sew.  My machine hates the shiny swim for whatever reason, ha! I have bought from other custom swim places and the base is thin, this one is nice and thick and so I chose not to line the top even though it is white.

I have been eyeing this Jalie Racerback for quite some time.  Again, it has 27 sizes in one, so fabulous value.  This one at least has the adult and kid sizes separated in to two separate files, which made it a little easier to cut my size, but still no layers.

This pattern did not disappoint, I was very, very happy with my end result!

If you're interested in any Jalie patterns, on their website you can download the instructions and take a peek before you buy a pattern, I thought that was pretty cool.

I actually went out more than once, maybe more than twice (shhhhh!) to try for photos, that's what I get for not wanting to wait for the golden hour.  So the last time we went out (all the photos above) George and Izzy wanted to switch suits, hence the child changing in the suit.

I just love the lines on this suit, It would be adorable in two fabrics to show them off even more.

This pair, I hesitated to include it.  I chose the Gracious Threads Swim and Surf Shorts for my shark obsessed boy.  As it turns out, they ended up too tight because they are drafted for girls.  There was no indication of that on the website or pattern listing, so I was quite disappointed.  The only way I found out was through a post on Facebook where the designer confirmed it.

The pattern itself went together alright.  I really like the way the bias tape is done, it makes it less bulky as it isn't overlapped except for a very small part where you hide the raw edge. I liked the lining, I used regular swim knit instead of lining (I think she mentions to in the pattern, can't remember) because swim lining is very thin and doesn't give any support.  I actually line all my suits with regular swim. I had major problems with the waistband elastic, though.  You're instructed to sew 1/8" from the top, then 1/2" down and 1/2" below that.  I chose to follow the 1/8" but then split the difference in the remaining waistband at 3/4".   I used 1/2" elastic and could barely thread it through, my hands were so sore by the end, ha!

So I grabbed some more of these sharks and the other boardshort print offered by Raspberry Creek and am on the look out for a better boardshort pattern.  Maybe just a regular short with a lining?

This post was written to be a part of the Suit up for Summer Blog Tour, but all opinions are 100% my own and I was going to make them all suits any way, haha! But if you want to check out other posts that review other swim patterns, check out the links below. And rumor has it, the giveaway is pretty rad.

Hosted by Sew Sophie Lynn & Paisley Roots

Monday: Pear Berry Lane / Inspinration / It's Liesel / Sewing For Four

Tuesday: Harper Lu / Call Ajaire / Stylin Stacy / Skirt Fixation

Wednesday: Sewing By Ti / Sewing With Sarah / Sew & Tell /  Me Made

Thursday: Made By Melli / Life Sew Savory / That's What She Crafted / Auschick

Friday: Rebel & Malice / EYMM / Stitching & Making / Lilliepawillie

Mermaids.

My friend who orders from me from time to time requested mermaid suits.  We talked over the specifics, and I was quite excited because I was already planning on making some for my girls and now I had an excuse.  I wanted to try the pattern first and work out all the kinks before I move on to the ones I am selling. 

The pattern I used was the Santa Monica Sweetheart Tankini both pieces in size 4.  Georgia's top probably could have been a 3, she is pretty thin in the chest, the bottoms fit well though.  I wanted the suits to be interchangeable, though they will likely stick with 'theirs'.

They were so funny, when I showed them the suits they started giggling uncontrollably.  Then ripped off their clothes as soon as I gave the go-ahead and spent the afternoon pretending to be mermaids.  They just got out of the mermaid bathtub and Iz asked if she could sleep in her suit.  I call that a success.

Elizabeth picked pink from my swim stash, she wanted yellow but settled when the only yellow I had was a mustard.  She didn't think it was yellow, ha! 

I used the purple my friend picked for Georgia's, purple is her favorite color and I wanted to get a feel for the fabric.  Turns out, the pink was excellent to work with and the purple wont hold a press.

The purple is super hard to photograph and get the true color.

 I didn't like the way the binding was told to do in the instructions, so I did my own thing.  Also why I wanted to try the suit first.  I basically treated it like bias tape, which is why it would be great if it could hold a press.

Overall, I am really happy with the look and am glad I took the time to work out the kinks.

For the lake.

I have managed to sneak in an itty bitty amount of sewing time since Sam was born, first up was a new swim suit for Abby.  She and Jack were headed to Lake Powell and I wanted her to have a rash vest for a little more sun protection (Jack has a purchased one).

I wanted to use the Field Trip top, but I didn't have time to make more than one if it came out too big, so I used the Peekaboo Pattern Hang Ten and for the bottoms the Coney Island.  I made the CI last year and she wears that one all.the.time. It is starting to wear out and the bottoms are getting too small.  I made the size 8 for both pieces, I think they fit well, but she says she got a rash the first day from the bottoms being too big and the way they rode up when jumping in.  Who knows, I wasn't there and never saw the rash.

I am also working my way through 2 Hide-and-seek tops (and have been for over a week) that we are both excited about, if we manage to make it out of the three week growth spurt alive...

Fun in the sun.

 

 Girlfriend "needed" a new swimsuit.  Okay, maybe not, but I really was itching to make one.  I bought this pattern last year intending to make one, but never got around to it. 

 

Her Uncle Jake who just got home from being away for 2 years gave her these glasses he bought while on his mission, he has a matching pair but blue.  "I am supposed to wear them to the lake with  him because we are best friends"  That is all she has talked about all day:)

It is the Coney Island Tankini, both top and bottom are size 7.  She was in between a 6 + 7, so it is a little big on her for now, but certainly still wearable.  I got my black and white dots from girlcharlee and the white from a local shop.  The white gave me quite a headache, it curled so much!  I think I need to invest in some spray starch. 

Because of my troubles with the curling, I did the bottom band a little different, instead of folding it like bias tape as instructed, I folded it in half  and serged it to the tank, then ironed and  zig zag stitched it flat. 



The tank is fully lined, so no itchy seams.  Since the pattern pieces didn't indicate to cut a main and a lining fabric and I didn't read the instructions through before cutting, I ended up cutting everything out in the b+w dots, I would have rather had the inside be white and save my precious pretty fabric for another top (for the twins maybe?), but alas, I will know for next time. (the pieces were named "liner", I just didn't realize I was meant to cut them out of a different fabric, blame it on a sleep deprived sewing day I suppose)

I also did the bottoms a little different, I used the Ottobre method for the waistband (sew the elastic to the wrong side of the fabric then turn it under and sew again) and actually cut off an inch from the top before sewing on the elastic as they went up past her belly button!  They are still a little long, but better. 

At the risk of tooting my own horn, I think it turned out pretty cute! Sure, if you look close up it has it's flaws, but I am counting on her to swim fast;)  She has requested another suit from this in my stash, but the twins actually need a new suit (one minimum) so they will have to come first.  We are taking a trip to Lake Powell in a few weeks and need to be prepared!

A suit.

I made Abby a swim suit at her request earlier this week.  She asked Grandma to change their play day to earlier in the week so she could have one last long day together before school began, and the plan was to visit Beth and Jude's pool.  (Ben's cousins that are Abby and Jack's age).  So I got my stack of swim material, two of the patterns that I had, and let her pick what she wanted.  Well, mostly let her pick, I steered her towards the tankini rather than the bikini.  I don't care if she wears one, but Ben prefers she doesn't.  I wanted  to make the top from the Modkid book, but she didn't want that one, so I chose she chose View A and View C of the kwik sew 3605 pattern.

For the life of me I can't figure out how to get the right stitch with my machine, so I did a very harsh zig zag and then serged the seams out of habit, but as it stretched you could see the zig zag stitches.  I asked some lovely friends and one suggested I just pick out the zags, so I did, after the pictures, though. 

I got the material from girl charlee.  I really like the way it turned out.  Not too bad for my first try, but I know what I need to improve next time.

She LOVED it, I started Monday and "Grandma day" was Tuesday after lunch, I promised her it would be done in time.  Luckily the twins went down easy for naps Tuesday because they were beasts on Monday so I wasn't able to get much done with it.  She put it on as soon as it was done, and put her Zephyr over the top and was good to go!  Grandma said it stayed put just as it should, and she has already requested another.