Good morning! Whoa, I am wiped out…but in that I-worked-out-hard-and-I-feel-good way. The tiredness is not from exercising, but from teaching my first ever sewing class (an all-day workshop!) — I think the class went well yesterday! A wonderful group of women gathered together and made some seriously adorable tunics. I loved teaching. I really did. I enjoy the whole process: the preparations of materials, structuring the class, connecting with students/participants. I had so much fun! I’ll talk about it some more soon, and I do have a few more pictures of the studio set-up (wish I’d had time to get shots of the tunics!) but for now, let’s move on to this week’s outfit.
So. When your daughter says, “Mama, can you make me a poncho?” and even though you have a to-do list of epic proportions, a laundry pile that is gravity-defying, and you were actually thinking of skipping the Monday Outfit this week altogether, you respond, “Of course, honey. What color would you like?” Because how often does she actually ask for something to be made by you? Very, very rarely.
And so you shuffle some fabric around to find wool in the bluish purple she wanted, and then laser beam your gaze onto some Lisette Spiral Blue Flowers cotton fabric you’d forgotten all about, and trace out a pattern you’ve made already once before (only one size larger because she’s outgrown that one). You start to sew at an unholy hour on Saturday evening…
Which brings us to her waking up early Sunday morning and exclaiming, “Oh!!! It’s so cool!!!!!” The.best.feeling.
I made some changes this time. I fully lined it, as you can see, and decided to keep the tab closure that I nixed for the plaid one I made a long time ago. The pattern is from this book, and I seem to have long ago laid aside my plans of sewing every pattern from it. Oh well. What matters is that K loves her “poncho” to pieces and wore it from the moment she woke up until bedtime without taking it off once.
These are the times that make me extra, extra happy to be able to sew. The dress, by the way, is one I made a while ago that is finally fitting her properly now. And hey, I’d made a purple coat to go with the dress back then too. Not sure what she’s doing up there, but smiles are involved, so that’s a good thing. We’ve dubbed her Little Purple Riding Hood, and this hooded cape is going to get a lot of love, I can already tell. I think I want one too!
Ah that’s so lovely – I want to make one for my little girl! And isn’t that the best feeling, when your daughter loves something you’ve made? I think that’s why I sew…
It’s the most amazing feeling! AND she wore it to school today, and it caused quite a stir among the girls and teachers. They all wanted one 🙂
Lovely. It makes it so much more satisfying when they really love what you make, hey?!
Thanks Suz, and yes, so very satisfying!!
So sweet. I, too, would drop everything to make my daughter something if she asked. 😉
I did a double-take, Jams! “Did you just ask me to make you something?” I asked, just to confirm. 🙂
I’m chuckling to myself over here because, coincidentally, I too started a cape for my daughter Saturday night (the O & S cape). However, that’s where the similarities end – while mine is sitting half finished on the ironing board, yours is not only completed, but modeled, photographed and blogged about! Wish I had more of your productivity!
Loved seeing that dress modeled again – so beautiful! And looks just gorgeous with the cape.
Glad to hear that, although tiring, your class went well yesterday. Yay! Looking forward to reading more about it.
So funny! I almost made the O+S cape too, but I saw all the extra steps and remembered the poncho I had made last year. With the full-lining, this was a snap to sew up!
And the sewing class was great! I want to organize my thoughts a little more before writing about it — I was quite overwhelmed but it was a completely positive experience 🙂
It’s lovely. That wool is beautiful and how serendipitous that you had a matching fabric to line it with 🙂
The wool is great – it’s actually a thrift store find, and no gross smell! I had been hoarding the Lisette fabric forever and it was very lucky that I happened to find it 🙂
That is a beautiful cape! No wonder K doesn’t want to take it off, I wouldn’t either. I would love on just like it, only it’s warming up down in this hemisphere, so I might need to put it on my to do list for next winter. Best wishes to you and yours for a happy week!
Thank you, Rhonda! Wishing you a happy week as well 🙂 Wool capes are very stylish, I think. I actually saw a woman wearing one this past weekend and she was very chic!
I love it! But poor, bad wolf… I am sure K would have lots of fun with him! Love that last picture! There seem to be capes everywhere, did you see the woodland stroll cape by liesl + co patterns today? I can absolutely see the two of you together in capes as another mother – daughter outfit!
I am very happy your class went well! Yes, teaching is wonderful. One of the best jobs there is. I know that happy-exhausted feeling after a good workshop. You give so much and receive so much in return. Looking forward to hearing more about it! Have a great week!
Oh, that cape is so cute! I love the idea of another mother-daughter outfit, that would be very fun. It’s interesting because I’ve actually taught a lot in the past (various things from high school English to corporate training) and haven’t always enjoyed it. But with the sewing class, it was a total pleasure. I imagine you are an excellent teacher, Ute!
K is totally right. That cape is really cool! The color is absolutely gorgeous!
I’ve got that book too (in French, though) and, although I love it, I haven’t yet sewn any of its projects. This would be a great start…
I’m not surprised that the book is translated into French – the aesthetic is very Gallic. This cape comes together so fast (especially if you opt to fully line it, which you obviously will be able to do with your eyes closed)!
You can tell this was a requested item by the photoshoot…she’s radiating happiness!! 🙂
It’s true – K was all smiles while I took these photos. She actually wanted to wear this cape to sleep!!! That’s high praise, my friend.
Aw it’s beautiful! It’s obvious she loves it, which is always the best feeling as a sewing mama, for sure. 🙂
Thanks, Kristin! Yep, the best – she even asked me to make a matching one for her best friend 🙂
The cape is gorgeous! I love it when my daughter likes things I sew for her..and I dread the day she starts preferring store bought clothes. Congratulations on the teaching class. If I lived a tad closer (you know, like on the same side of the ocean) I would so be in your sewing class!
I’m dreading that day too, Laney! Though I’m hoping that my skills will be good enough by then that she’ll still want me to make her stuff. I would so love to have you in my class! I’ll be teaching some more and who knows… Maybe one day I’ll be able to do online classes or something 🙂
She’s right it is cool. It’s very nice when they ask for something and then love it. I bet it made your weekend 🙂
It completely made my weekend, Tracy! She’s on day three of wearing the cape non-stop, so the love is still going strong 🙂
I want an adult version! (Actually, I have the O&S Woodland Stroll pattern… so I will have one!) So cool that you can be Supermom and grant wishes.
Ha, Supermom I’m not, but I’m pretty good at finding easy patterns to sew up from my vast stash 🙂 The O+S Woodland Stroll looks fab – can’t wait to see how yours turns out, June!
This is really lovely, in fact I think it is the nicest version I have seen (I follow the Japan Couture Addicts (fr) blog). I showed it to my daughter (she’s nearly 4) and she said “I really like it, can I have it?”, so I am considering making a version for her, and hope that maybe that will put a halt to the eternal “I don’t want to wear a coat” discussions. Of course, my version will never be as pretty as this, but thank you for inspiring me!
xx
Oh, I’m certain that your version will be much prettier, Marie, and if you use wool and a flannel lining, this is a very cozy cape perfect for winter! To make it even kid-friendlier, you could switch out the buttons for snaps 🙂
It’s such a glorious feeling to have your kid ask for and love something handmade.
That would be the best feeling ever 🙂
Sanae,
Which book did the awesome poncho come from? My little gitl(9 years old), asked for one last week… and I can’t find any cute patterns, but I LOVE the one you used! Thanks!
Kathryn
Is there an english version of this pattern?!
I’m not sure – many of the Japanese sewing books have been translated into English. However, the pattern itself is quite easy to figure out from the illustrations :-).
Hi I’m Dana I’m 13 years old and total beginner in sewing(I’ve only ever made a circle skirt). Is it possible that you could maybe send the instructions to me so I can make this in my size? I found your website via a picture on Pinterest. I love the color combination and your daughter looks like the sweetest thing ❤️
Hello Dana! I’m so pleased you found this post. As much as I would love to send you instructions, the poncho pattern is actually from a Japanese craft book (I linked to it in the post). However, if you do a “hooded poncho pattern” Google search, you’ll find lots of options and some are even free. Best of luck, Dana! How wonderful that you’ve discovered sewing! xo