dana's test blog: Stripes, Checks, and Piping, oh my

I can't get away from the super-size gingham checks!
Now and 2 years ago:

They may just become part of his annual wardrobe.
Who can complain?! Well, he might. Some day.
But for now we're living it up!

And this time I around I used the gingham for shorts.

I started with all the same tutorials:

Then like the Plaid Shorts from last week, I added a lining to the fabric (since it's super lightweight) and I added Back Pockets (click over for the tutorial). But I gave them one more twist....Piping:

If you've never used piping it's so fun! It can add just the right pop of color or detail to make your project that much more interesting. It's sort of the sister to Bias Tape and made using similar methods. And though I plan to do a full-blown "Everything you need to know about Piping" tutorial down the road.....we'll save that for another day.
Today I'll share snippets. AND...you're totally in luck, because Rae's also sharing a piping project...and she does have a great how-to for sewing piping. Woohoo! So pop back and forth between our two blogs.

Basically, I cut out my pocket and a lining pocket. I basted the piping to my pocket first (and since I don't have a piping foot, I used my zipper foot and it worked fine), then laid the lining fabric over that, sewed the sandwich together, turned it right side out, folded the top under, finished it off,

And.....

Then I did the same for my front pockets. And soon I had 4 pockets ready to arrange and sew in-place.

One pair of Gingham shorts!
I do wish I'd done two things differently:
• Would have been fun to use orange or green piping but I was in a rush and only had white on-hand.
• I sorta regret doing pockets on the front and wish I'd left them plain/flat front like these (since there's so much going on)
But I'm not complaining. It's a half-yard of fun and he'll use them all spring and summer long.

To top it off, I paid homage to the 90 minute Shirt! making one from this stripey Tee found at Target. Is he too old for it? It almost looks like a gun holster around his shoulders.

I put it together with black tennies and a cardigan from H&M (which would be super easy to make using ideas from this tutorial and this) and he's got a full outfit!

I love semi-homemade ensembles.

And Owen loves a treat at the end of a photo shoot. He's a good sport.

Do your kids do this? It makes me laugh every time.
"Look Mom! My lollipop is a superhero!"