Glitzy & Cozy

Encouraged by Patty from Pip Stitch, I am participating in Lit & Laundry's Finished for Friday this week, as well as Melissa's Holiday Mr. Linky at The Inspired Room.
I decorated this glitzy, whimsical Christmas tree sweatshirt for my niece. I didn't invent this pattern, I got it from a co-worker more than 15 years ago. Over the years I've made shirts for most of my friends and relatives, but never myself. Maybe this year! It's a very simple 6 piece pattern. Besides the sweatshirt, you will need Heat n Bond (HNB) or another fabric adhesive, golden gilt thread that you will double when stitching, and a couple of holiday fabrics, mostly greens, with gilt threads going through them.

I cannot stress enough the importance of the shiny gilt in the fabric and the thread! I have a sweatshirt someone made for me where the gold is printed on the fabrics and it is very dull, not blingy at all. The creator did not use gilt thread either, which may have perked up the fabric. It's pretty difficult to find this kind of fabric, especially since so many places, like my local Wal-Marts, are no longer carrying sewing/fabrics, so if you come across it, buy a couple of yards.

First I trace the pattern pieces onto the HNB. I cut them out roughly, with a large border so that the adhesive is well attached to the fabric after I iron it on. Using at least 2 different fabrics, I iron the HNB to the different fabrics. Once the fabric and adhesive are stuck to each other, pull off the backing and iron the tree together. I use the same pattern for both adult and children, just squooshing it more for a child. The final step is to blanket stitch around each layer of the tree, using the gold embroidery thread, doubled.

A variation on this that makes it even cuter is to cut off the bands on the wrists and waist and hem the sweatshirt. Then do the blanket stitch around those areas as well. The wrists will be large, so I take a tuck in them and use a fancy gold button to pull them in. Doing this to the sweatshirt will make it larger on the wearer, so plan for this when shopping for the right size. This is going to make the shirt for my niece last a little longer. Once she outgrows it with the bands on the shirt, we can cut off the wrists and waist and get another holiday season out of it!Clicking the pattern should take you to flickr where you can download it for your own use.

It's possible to make this shirt in 1 day, so you still have time to make it for this holiday season!