The Zephyr Romper and Romper Week Giveaway

It's Romper Week again with Sewing Mama RaeAnna!  I love rompers and wish I were young enough to wear them still and not get funny looks!  Instead, I'll just have to sew up a few for Ella and live vicariously through her.

This year, I put together one of the prettiest and most detailed rompers I've ever sewn--The Zephyr Romper by Figgy's.  A long, long time ago, I bought the Kid's Romper Revamp Class at Craftsy (affiliate link) that has Shelly Figueroa of Figgy's walk you step-by-step through the process of sewing her Zephyr Romper.  I've now forgotten why I waited so long to take the class and make this romper, but I wish I had tried it sooner!  This Zephyr Romper is amazing!

The Jasmine Romper - Take 2

Who else loves rompers?  I know I do!  And today I'm sharing with you my Jasmine Romper - Take 2 as part of Sewing Mama RaeAnna's Romper Week.  Thanks so much for stopping by today to see what I've made for my friend's first ever blog series.

I am an affiliate of Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop, but all opinions provided in this post are 100% my own.

Yesterday I showed you how I made the Jasmine Romper - Take 1 by taking the Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop Jasmine Dress Pattern upper half and combining it with the Gracie Romper Pattern bottom half.  I was pretty pleased with the result, but I wasn't completely sold on the look based on the fabric I had used.  So, I decided to make another one by using some Amy Butler Lark fabrics.  This time I was in love with the result!

Again, I used the bodice part of the Jasmine Dress Pattern to create the top half of the romper.  I wanted the casing for the elastic around the top and the armhole binding to be in a different fabric from the main bodice fabric, so I made some double fold binding and sewed it onto the exterior of the bodice.  If you decide to make one similar, just remember to remove the excess seam allowance when cutting out the bodice pieces.

This time for the bottom half of the romper, I used the shorts pattern from Simplicity 1903.  I've used this before when making my Ruffle Neck Romper Tutorial.  As I recommended in that tutorial, I found it best to use at least a size larger in the shorts so that the romper will be comfortable in the stride when your child bends or sits.  These shorts are a little roomier than the ones I used to make the Jasmine Romper - Take 1, and the width of the size 6 was actually a perfect match to the width of the 5T Jasmine Dress bodice. The only other thing I modified was to add an extra inch and a half to the length.

Ella fell on a rock wall and scraped her knee while we were taking pictures, so I'm sorry I don't have too many of her wearing it to share with you.  She was a trooper though and allowed me to take a couple more photos after her accident.

For the waistband elastic casing, I cut out a strip of fabric 2 inches wide by the length all the way around the romper plus one inch.  I pressed in each long raw edge 3/8" and folded the short ends in 1/2".  I then centered the strip over the seam between the bodice and the shorts and pinned it in place so that the two folded ends met along the side seam of the romper.  I then sewed the casing to the romper and then inserted through the opening a 3/4" to 1" wide piece of elastic the length of Ella's waist measurement plus 1".

I used the same black/white fabric from the Lark collection that I made the waistband casing with to make the skinny strap and shoulder bow tie.

Finally, I hemmed the bottom, sewed on a sewVery label, and was done!

Since Ella was such a good sport and even sat at the playground so her brother could play after she got hurt, I thought she deserved a yummy treat.  Having a milk shake at Sonic definitely seemed to make her feel better!

Thanks again, RaeAnna, for inviting me to be a part of your first ever Romper Week series!  This was really an excellent idea!

Be sure to check out all the other Romper Week posts as well as share your romper creations in the Flickr group and link-up party.

Plus, be sure to check out all the adorable romper patterns offered by Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop this week for just $6!

And finally, be sure to enter to win a pdf pattern from Elegance & Elephants!
 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you'll decide to follow my blog with Bloglovin!

The Jasmine Romper - Take 1

When my friend, RaeAnna, first asked me if I wanted to be a part of her summer Romper Week at Sewing Mama RaeAnna, I didn't hesitate to say yes!  You see, I love rompers!

I immediately began thinking of every romper pattern I already owned (and some that I do not) but kept coming back to a dress pattern that I had recently acquired from Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop.

I am an affiliate for Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop, but all opinions provided in this post are 100% my own.

The top half of the Jasmine Dress Pattern kept sticking in my head as a great top for a summer romper, so I emailed the shop owner, Amy, to see if she had ever considered making a romper version.  She said no but encouraged me to give it a try.  The challenge was on!

This pattern hack was pretty simple actually.  For the Jasmine Romper - Take 1, I used the upper half of the Jasmine Dress Pattern and the lower half of the Gracie Romper Pattern, both from Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop.

 

The shorts weren't quite as wide as the top, so I simply extended the width until they matched and added about an inch to inch and a half to the length.

For the fabric, I used less than a yard of 60" wide seersucker to make Ella a size 5T.  The romper came together very quickly, and instead of making an elastic casing at the waist and legs, I just shirred two rows at the waist and one row at the leg openings to draw up the fabric.

When I finished this test version of the Jasmine Romper (hence the Take 1), I kept thinking that it really needed more color, so I whipped up a really fast (it took like 10 minutes to make) elastic belt using some fabric scraps.  Possible future belt tutorial?  Eh, we'll see!

Overall, I like the romper, but I'm just not crazy about it due to the fabric color.  Plus, the pink of the belt matches pretty good but is just not the perfect shade to match.  None of that seems to matter though because Ella has enjoyed wearing it and always receives lots of compliments when she does.

It's definitely a great little play outfit because it's perfect for all the running, jumping, climbing, and rolling around in it she did at the ball field while my son played baseball!  The shoulder tie and skinny strap both stay up while the fit of the romper is loose enough through the body for unrestricted movement for all that playing.  The shirred gathering at the leg opening is soft and not constricting and provides the modesty needed for a little girl who likes to constantly climb up walls, fences, and bleachers!

Would I make another Jasmine Romper in the future?  Well, if you haven't figured it out yet, I already have!  When you come back tomorrow for my official Romper Week post, you'll see the Jasmine Romper - Take 2 and how I made a couple of modifications to the original Jasmine Romper design.  I think you'll really like.  I know I do!

And remember to follow Romper Week all week for more romper ideas, free romper patterns, a discount code to Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop (which carries several romper patterns), and a giveaway!

Speaking of giveaways, I have a giveaway for two lucky winners that ends tonight!  Each winner will receive an assortment pack of 100 clothing size and care labels from Forever Threads2!  Hurry and enter the giveaway here.  The winner will be announced in my post tomorrow! 

Romper Week at Sewing Mama RaeAnna

It's finally here!  Sewing Mama RaeAnna's Romper Week Series has officially begun today!

Be sure to follow along for amazing romper inspiration from five different bloggers, including yours truly, each day this week.  Plus begin adding your romper creations to the Flickr pool and the link-up party.  

In honor of the event, Peek-a-Boo Pattern Shop (affiliate code) has all romper patterns on sale for just $6!  Just click this link and then click the Romper tab at the top of the page to see all the patterns on sale. No coupon code required!

And finally, be sure to enter the rafflecopter giveaway below for a chance to win a pdf pattern from Elegance & Elephants!  Wow!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
I'd also like to invite you to follow my blog using Bloglovin by clicking the button below.  GFC will be going away very soon, and I want to make sure we stay in touch!  You can also sign up to follow sewVery via a number of other social media outlets as well as email by clicking the links in the side bar.

Although I am officially participating in the Romper Week tour on Wednesday, I have a romper outfit to share with you tomorrow, so be sure to stop back by!

And one final note, I have a giveaway for an assortment pack of 100 clothing size and care labels from Forever Threads2 that ends tomorrow (Tuesday) night.  Be sure to enter!