How to Make Kids Clothing Out of Pillow Cases

Sewing with vintage textiles has become a very popular craft for seamstresses of all levels. Making kids clothes from pillowcases just seems like a natural progression. These instructions will take you through the steps of sewing a pillowcase sun dress and sun top for your little girl from vintage pillowcases. The embroidered or lace-edged hems become the focal point of these creations. There is also a simple method to make pillowcase pajama pants for your little boy using more modern, novelty print pillowcases.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pillowcases
• Measuring tape
• Scissors
• Seam ripper
• Iron
• Straight pins
• Sewing machine
• 5/8-inch wide satin ribbon, 1 yard
• Safety pin
• Old pajama pants or one piece pants pattern
• 5/8-inch elastic

Pillowcase Sun Dress and Sun Top

1. Measure from your child's shoulders to where you would like the hem of the dress or top to fall. Add 2 inches to this total. Lay the pillowcase, inside out, on your ironing surface and press. Measure up from the hem of the pillowcase using your measurement and cut off the top of the pillowcase. Measure down 8 inches from the top of the sun dress or top on each side seam and open. These will be your arm openings.

2. Fold over the opened side seams to the wrong side of the dress or top 1/4 inch and press. Fold a 1/4 inch again and top stitch a hem. Fold each top edge of the pillowcase sun dress or top a 1/2 inch to the wrong side and press. Fold over another inch and top stitch a casing.

3. Cut the ribbon into two 18-inch pieces long. Attach a safety pin to a ribbon end and thread through one casing. Repeat for the other ribbon and casing. Place the pillowcase dress or top on your child and tie the ribbons together over each shoulder, as you adjust the gathers on the casing to fit.

Pillowcase Pajama Pants

4. Take apart a pair of old pajama pants at the seams using a seam ripper. Do not take apart the outer seam on the pants if there is one. You should have two pants pieces; you will only need one of them. Cut away the hem at the bottom of the pants pattern. Note: You can eliminate this step if you already have a simple one-piece pants pattern. Iron the pajama pants pattern piece flat. Turn the pillowcase wrong side out and press. Lay the pajama pants pattern on one side of the pillowcase. Line up the bottom edge of the pants with the hem edge of the pillowcase. Pin through both layers. Cut the pants out.

5. Pin from the waistband to the crotch on the cut-out pillowcase pajama pants. Sew a 1/4-inch seam allowance. Sew the seams again to reinforce. Hold the pants up and match one sewn seam to the other. Pin the seams together at the crotch. Pin the inseam of each leg together. Sew a 1/4-inch seam allowance up one leg across the crotch and down the other leg. Sew the seams again to reinforce. Open the seams and press. Sew a top stitch around the hem a 1/4 inch from the edge. This top stitch will also hold your side seam open and flat.

6. Turn the top edge of the pajama pants to the wrong side a 1/4 inch and press. Fold over another inch and top stitch the casing, leaving a 1-inch opening for turning. Cut a piece of the 5/8-inch wide elastic, 1 inch smaller than the size of your child's waist. Attach a safety pin to the elastic end and thread it through the casing. Sew the ends of the elastic together and sew the casing closed.

References

• Cyndee Kromminga, Craft and Interior Designer; Kro Crafts; Winfield, Kansas