The Maxwell Top by Shwin Designs

School is in full swing in our small corner of the world, so I've been more focused on sewing new school clothes for my little man.  Last week I made him a coordinating outfit!  Something I usually do for Jaidyn.  I chose to sew a Maxwell Top by Shwin Designs and some Blank Slate Patterns Clean Slate Pants/Shorts (my go-to for Landen's pants or shorts) in the shorts version in coordinating fabrics.

Couldn't get a decent smile from him!

This turned out so dang cute!  I was worried because he's about to be 7 (in 5 days, yikes!!) and you have to be careful with being too matchy-matchy with older boys.  But the funkiness of the Maxwell Top makes this all work.

The top fits a little wide on my skinny boy, but that's okay.  His chest measured a size 4 and I still made a 6 because I second guessed myself.  Next time I'll make it smaller in width and keep the size 6 length.  If you're making this, follow the measurements provided!

I love the aqua blue against the black!  I even used this aqua blue thread to top-stitch.  I think it added some extra oomph.

The Kona Cotton I used attracts lint like crazy!!

The instructions were super easy to follow.  They have a ton of pictures and there's even a YouTube video to help you attach the collar if you need help, although I found the instructions written well enough that I didn't need the video.  Landen loves his new outfit and we've already gotten tons of compliments.  

And the shorts?  I can't rave enough about the shorts.  I've made about a gazillion pairs of these already and I've had the pattern for about 2 months now.  They aren't baggy, I LOVE that they are slim fit without being skinny jeans.  Melissa describes how to install a zipper so well that I've heard a ton of bloggers (including myself) claim that these are the pants that taught them zipper installation.  You can make these with or without the zipper, with or without the front pockets, with or without the back welt pockets, as pants, shorts, or capris, making this just about the most versatile pattern I own.  And they look great on girls and boys, so even when my son outgrows the sizes (fingers crossed that bigger sizes are coming soon!  Maybe?  Hopefully?) Jaidyn will still get a ton of use out of this pattern. 

I'd love to see your version of the Maxwell Top and/or Clean Slate Pants!  Link your blog or page in the comments :)

Blank Slate Patterns Sew-Along

Mothers of little boys, especially older little boys, know how hard it is to find good patterns that your little man will wear. That's why one of my most favorite pattern designers is Melissa from Blank Slate Patterns. She has a wide variety of patterns perfect for a trendy boy, whether they're a toddler or an older school-aged fella. She has a gorgeous pattern for moms and some adorable patterns for little girls, also (I've got a few for Jaidyn waiting on the perfect fabric).

Melissa had a sew-along on her Facebook group, Blank Slate Patterns and her blog, Melly Sews where she provides tips as she sews along. If you haven't yet, you should definitely join the Facebook Group. Melissa is on there often and is always happy to help if you have any questions. Plus you get to meet lots of fun ladies who share a love of Blank Slate's PDF's.

For the sew-along we made the Coastal Cargo's. You can purchase the pattern here. I love this pattern!  You can roll them up for a long beachy type pair of shorts and roll them back down for cool summer evenings.  They have a bias binding detail down the side and inseams that serves two purposes...it looks cool and it hides the raw edges on the inside of the pant leg, so when you roll up the pants you don't see any seams.

Landen loved them so much he asked to wear them on his first day of 1st grade. 

The pattern pieces taped together perfectly once printed. The pants were so easy to sew. Melissa's patterns taught me how to install a front-fly zipper and welt pockets. Even a newby can accomplish these daunting sewing tasks with Melissa's fab instructions. 

I made my son a size 6 in the waist, and a 7 in length. I LOVE that they are long enough for him but they aren't sagging in the waist. That's the benefit of sewing your own cloths. If I buy him RTW pants, either they are baggy in the waist and long enough, or they're too short but fit him in the waist. He's tall and skinny. I'd say that these pants fit true-to-size. 

The most difficult part of the pattern is sewing the inseams, and that's just because you have to sew in a tight spot. Melissa was kind enough to shoot a video to show how to do this, for those of us that are visual learners. You can find her tutorial here. 

Aren't they just so cool rolled up?  I made these out of linen because it's still so hot here in Florida. I hope Landen isn't too rough on them. I love this pattern and can't wait to sew up many more!!