A Pajama Sewing Frenzy!

A couple months ago, my husband suggested I get some new sleepwear. Haha! He was quick to add that my sleepwear is fine and looks nice, but I’ve just been wearing it for many years. A “change of scenery” would be nice”, that’s how he put it. LOL. I don’t sleep in shabby old clothes or anything, but I know what he means. Something new to look at can be nice.

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The problem is that I find loungewear to be one of those things that is very hard for me personally to buy off the rack. I seriously hate anything that is remotely tight in the waist and almost everything off the rack has that effect on me. The elastic always feels like pressure around my belly. I don’t know if it’s because I have a history with endometriosis, or because I’m short waisted and things just hit me in the wrong place, or what, but I just have a hard time finding anything comfortable. So when I do find something, I buy three of them and wear them for years.

But, I decided to try to make some new pajama shorts that were comfortable and cute. I have teenagers and they’re always around, so whatever my husband would prefer my loungewear look like, it’s not gonna get too risque. I do like to wear shorts and tanks, though and he likes those on me.

I pulled out a pattern I already had, McCall’s 8160, because it has a basic two-pattern-piece shorts pattern on it with an elastic waist. I tried my hand at tissue fitting rather than making a muslin. I literally pinned the pattern together along the sides, also pinning the hem up and the casing down. Then I tried the leg on my body to see what adjustments needed to be made.

The tissue fitting worked really well! I took a wedge out of the front rise and shortened the legs quite a bit. I also used wider elastic than was called for, which lowered the rise even more. This first pair was made from a 1 yard remnant of flannel and they turned out really cute!

Since I already had the pattern at the ready, I was inspired to dig through my stash to see what other fabrics I could use to make more p.j. shorts. I had a piece of yellow and white cotton poplin that I made a Summer top out of last year. There was enough to make shorts AND eke out an Ogden cami. So this turned into a pajama set, although I’ve already worn the cami with jeans and a cardigan.

Add these shorts to my list of scrap busting projects for garment fabrics!

I wanted to make one more pair out a rayon to be a little shorter and slinkier. I had an Old Navy dress in my mending basket because it was too short, but I loved the fabric. I had to get creative and use a different rayon scrap for a waistband, but I love this pair and how the two fabrics look together. I made them shorter on the side seams, but not the inseam, by just taking a wedge shape off the bottom. This is my husband’s favorite pair, he likes these.

Also in my mending basket was a pair of Old Navy flannel pajama pants that are so comfy, but had shrunk in length. I kept having an ad pop up on my social media for a pair of Gap p.j. pants with loose elastic around the ankles. That was the perfect solution for these pants! I cut off an inch and then turned them up to form a casing. It’s not tight elastic like joggers, just loose elastic. My husband likes these. The first time I wore them, he said my pants were cute :)

After his comment about updating my pajama drawer, I ordered some things I ended up liking too. I bought several things and returned what I didn’t like, but here’s what I did keep and really love:

My favorite loungewear & sleepwear from Amazon

• I love this boyfriend style sleep shirt. It’s a really soft rayon jersey and is so comfy. My husband approved, too, he likes this on me.

• I have three of the Calvin Klein bralettes and I love them. I have two colors in that style and one in this style. They’re super soft and so great for lounging.

• I also LOVE this Mae brand modal everyday bralette. It’s my favorite, so soft and comfortable and appropriate enough under clothing even for running out for an errand. I’ve tried and returned a ton of bras of all kinds. This one’s a winner.

• I like this spaghetti strap nightgown. Isn’t modal just the dreamiest fabric?

Those are the only ones I truly love, but I’m still looking out for good options. I’m quite picky! I’ll keep you posted in the future. I have four basic spaghetti strap camis that are among the things I’m trying to replace, but I just can’t find something that fits quite the same. I’ll keep looking, though.

I hope you all have had a restful week or so in between Christmas and getting back to real life. We are getting back to homeschooling tomorrow, and I’m finally ready for it. Breaks are so good! It was much needed.

Cheers, everyone!

Nikki