Romper boy!

Woot! I'm on a sewing roll right now. Last weekend, it was some cute tiger overalls. This weekend it was a new romper.

Inspired by Christina's review, I immediately procured a copy of the Spring 2011 issue of Ottobre Design. Ottobre is a magazine focused on kids' fashion and includes patterns to make all of the featured clothes. A single issue usually includes 30-40 different designs. It is an amazing value! The downside: the patterns have to be traced (because there are multiple designs printed on a page, and they all overlap one another), and the instructions are generally minimal. But I was feeling brave, and loved the idea of having a bodysuit that actually covers Little Bear's cloth diaper-clad bum. So I went for it.


The design is called the "New Star Bodysuit," and I made it in a size 74 cm (which seems to be about equivalent to a 9 months size). LB is 11 months old and about 20 pounds, and it fits great. The romper has a little bit of length to the legs, which allows for full coverage of the diaper area. It's a pretty cute look, too.


The fabric is an organic cotton knit I bought from Near Sea Naturals, back when Big Bear was a baby. Ahem. It has been sitting in my stash for quite awhile now. I'm glad I am finally using it.

My one previous attempt at an Ottobre pattern didn't go so well, so I was initially worried. However, I ended up being pleasantly surprised at how easy the instructions were to follow on this one. I especially appreciated the directions on how to do an edge finish with knit binding-- they worked like a charm!


I even broke out the dreaded coverstitch machine to do the double topstitching at the neck, legs, crotch, and arms. It's horrible, I know, but I really do feel trepidation whenever I even think about using it. I think I need to find a shop that can offer me a lesson or two on it, build up my confidence some. My stitches aren't perfect on this project, but at least they don't look bad on the outside and I'm definitely happy that I gave it a go.

And look! I remembered to do a label (with size information written on the back). Yay!


I used my SnapSetter tool to attach the snaps and it worked really well. (And it was much easier than snap tape!)


This crawling action shot really shows the great, full bum coverage. Really, I think this is just a fabulous design. I need to make more!


Happy romper boy!