Last year, we decided to forego Christmas pajamas. Maybe it was time constraints, and the fact they could still ‘semi-wear’ their pjs from the previous year. Or maybe it was the notion that Christmas pjs were a one hit wonder for one day/month.

Although in reality, we have seen enough Christmas pajamas on parade from our nieces this past summer…as capris. We should know better. Whatever the case, we missed the girls not having a fresh new pair for the big day!

Over the course of the next few posts, we will be sharing each niece’s Christmas pajamas. We had a few goals when deciding what route to take when sewing them.

We wanted them to coordinate, but not be “matchy-matchy.”

We wanted to use colors other than the typical red and green used for Christmas.

We wanted to choose Oliver + S patterns that weren’t necessarily pajama patterns, but could function as such without being heavily modified.

We really wanted the articles of clothing to serve a purpose greater than ‘just pajamas’, allowing the girls to actually wear the garments out in public!

On EA’s pajamas, we chose to sew a nightgown using the Hide and Seek dress pattern with  length added. Other modifications included: eliminating the welt pockets, adding trim to the yokes, splitting the cuffs to add trim, and adding embroidery to the front and back yoke sections.

In hindsight, we loved the dainty trim, but the flannel used for the nightgown almost engulfed it. Flannel needed a larger trim, or we should have opted for a lighter weight fabric to use with the given trim. Also, we chose a snap closure for the back of the gown using KAM snaps. Love the snaps. Hate that they didn’t quite coordinate with everything else. BUT, when we ordered them we also ordered a handy dandy card so that in the future we can color coordinate with confidence! Talk about fun. . .

As usual, our favorite part of this creation is the embroidery which might put it into the ‘appropriate to wear in public’ category {even if it is flannel}. All we used was a BASIC straight stitch and a few French knots on the featured ornament to top it off. We found a design we liked online, printed it out to the appropriate size, and then traced it onto the yoke. Finally, Emily drew in the detailing for the special ornament.

We realize many of you may be intimidated by handwork. Please don’t be! Give it a try. All it takes is a little bit of time. Don’t feel constrained by the rules. Pssst. . .we knot our thread at times which is a big no-no {gasp}. Trust us, it really opens up the realm of possibilities!

So if you had to choose, which would you sew? Christmas pajamas or everyday wear? Is anyone out there overachieving and sewing both? We’d love to hear your Christmas sewing plans!!

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