small fry skinny jeans | oliversfancy

You know my passion is sewing for boys, right? So I was super excited to see that the newest Pattern Parcel is all about boy patterns! Jill has done a great job curating a selection of boy patterns for us to enjoy.

Pattern Parcel #4 includes:
Maxwell Top by Shwin Designs
Zippy Jacket by Blank Slate Patterns
Schoolboy Vest by Sew Much Ado
Small Fry Jeans by Titchy Threads
Jet Pack Bag by Betz White

I picked the small fry skinny jeans from this parcel to sew. Oliver is in dire need of pants for the fall and this is the perfect style for him. Mr Skinny Self looks great in a pair of skinny jeans! Unfortunately he was not digging this photoshoot but I bribed him into the outfit by pulling out the Captain America tank I bought him for next summer and telling him they were superhero pants 😉 Worked like a charm.

I sacrificed a pair of my husband’s pants for this. He bought them on clearance a while back but never wears them because the red was just a little too much for him. But red pants on my 3 year old- way awesome. I reused a lot of the pieces too: seam-ripped the waistband and belt loops and cut them down to size. I also added the leather piece from the original pants to the back waistband which I think is fun.

Pattern Notes: I made the 2T and added 2″ to the hem so that he won’t grow out of them so soon. I would normally cuff the hem up so they’re not so baggy in the legs but that looked funny with his tennis shoes so I just left them alone. Next time I’m going to size up to the 3 because the pants are a wee bit tight. The other pair I made him still fit great so it must be that the twill doesn’t have as much give as the denim does. I didn’t do the adjustable elastic because I didn’t have any and was ~~too lazy~~ ran out of time to make my own. Instead I sewed the elastic in place on one side, pulled it through the waistband, then tried the pants on for fit before sewing the elastic down on the other side.

As I mentioned last time I made these pants, they are labor intensive. But having a pair to reference makes the sewing go a lot quicker! I was able to finish these in one night- I might have had a bit of a sewing marathon and stayed up way too late but still, not too shabby. And I love how professional the finished result is.

Side note: I was provided with these patterns in exchange for sewing from them for the blog hop but I actually previously bought the jeans pattern so I already owned this one. All opinions are, as always, my own. You can see my original pair of jeans here.

Click on the button below to take you to the info page where you can purchase this bundle for yourself! It’s only available through this Friday so don’t wait too long!

About Pattern Parcel:

Here at Perfect Pattern Parcel, we believe in supporting independent pattern designers. It’s our opinion that indie patterns are just, well, better than big box patterns, and we’re pretty sure our customers think so too. So, we allow customers to show their support in naming their own price for each Parcel. We also encourage customers to allocate part of their Parcel price to the charity Donorschoose.org in order to help classrooms in need. Pattern Parcel donates all profits after expenses from Parcel sales to the charity as well. Together we’ve raised $9,800 towards eliminating educational inequality.

Bonus pattern option:

Choose a price of $26 or greater for Parcel #4 and you will automatically also be sent the Bonus Pattern! The Bonus Pattern for this Parcel is Knight Hoodie by Charming Doodle. This pattern is a unique and fun spin on the traditional hoodie. Thorough instructions and pictures help you create an amazing and memorable hoodie that will inspire creativity in your little one.

Here’s the schedule for all the other talented bloggers following along with this blog hop. Make sure to go check them out to see how they interpreted these patterns and for some inspiration in boy sewing!

Friday, August 22 casa crafty || Lulu & Celeste || Keep Calm and Carrion

Saturday, August 23 Max California || Amanda Rose

Sunday, August 24 little betty sews

Monday, August 25 Kadiddlehopper || Radiant Home Studio

Tuesday, August 26 La Pantigana || Boy, Oh Boy, Oh Boy Crafts || Friends Stitched Together

Wednesday, August 27 Make It Perfect || Modern Handmade || GYCT Designs

Thursday, August 28 Needle and Ted || Mae & K || Mimi’s Mom

Friday, August 29 Pienkel || Once Upon a Sewing Machine || Friends Stitched Together

Saturday, August 30 FABulous Home Sewn || Gray Skies || The Crazy Tailor

Sunday, August 31 Nine Stitches || Max California || Oliver’s Fancy || Friends Stitched Together

Monday, September 1 a happy stitch || lady and the gents || Our Family Four || Swoodson Says

Tuesday, September 2 verypurpleperson || Things for Boys || The Crazy Tailor

Wednesday, September 3 Our Family Four || Rebekah Sews || a happy stitch

Thursday, September 4 Sew a Straight Line || la inglesita || Made by Sara || Knot Sew Normal

Friday, September 5 Knot Sew Normal || Gracious Threads || Sofilantjes || Max California

I have followed along with Kristin and Jess’s Vintage May series since its inception so I was so pumped when Kristin emailed me and asked if I wanted to be a participant this year. Um, yeah! I had so many ideas floating around my head that I had a hard time pinning down just what I wanted. Then I stumbled across this pinterest picture and knew I had found my lightbulb moment- a 1950s inspired rockabilly outfit. The fact that it would involve several patterns I wanted to try- Bonus!

Without further ado, here is Oliver in his 1950’s outfit: cuffed straight-leg jeans, white tee, and a plaid button down. I de-saturated the pictures a bit to give them a vintage feel. Not sure I was totally successful but I’m kinda digging the effect. He totally owned this photoshoot too- might be because we actually let him drink the photo prop. (please no judging- good pics were a must!) For any fact sticklers, I’m well aware that hubby’s bike is actually a 1975 cafe racer but it’s still vintage so it counts in my mind even if it’s not the exact era we were going for. Vintage May Redo (8 of 10)

My imaginary back story is that Oliver has brought his new motorcycle down to the local hang-out spot and is waiting for his friends to arrive so they can admire his new ride and take it for a spin. Meantime, he’s enjoying a refreshing RC Cola and chilling (like a villian- 😉 )

Now for a little run-down of the patterns I used for O’s outfit:

Pants: Small Fry Skinny Jeans size 2T with 3T+ length. I knew that I wanted to copy Kristin’s idea of the big cuffs so I added several inches to the length. I bought some dark denim at Joann’s then had a moment’s freak-out when I got home because the pattern calls for stretch denim and mine did not have any stretch. I could have sized up to a 3T but I had already cut out the 2T pattern pieces and time was of the essence so I decided to just go for it. Glad I did because these fit great! Actually the waist is even a bit big now that O is potty trained because the 2T allows extra room for diaper bums. Vintage May Redo (10 of 10)

Like all the other reviews of these pants- they are definitely not a quick sew. But they’re not that hard either- her directions are excellent and walk you through each step so beautifully! The only really difficult section was the belt-loops. All those layers of denim almost didn’t fit under my machine foot. And soo much to sew thru! I was afraid I was going to break my machine. One broken needle later and we made it…whew! Note- I switched from a jeans needle to a top-stitching needle and that made a huge difference. When I finished these my husband commented that they looked like designer jeans and he wanted a pair- high five to me! (But I’m not planning on making him a pair anytime soon in case you were wondering 🙂 )

Button-down: Oliver+S Sketchbook Shirt. I have been wanting to make this for O before he grows out of the size range that I bought it in! I went on a search for just the right plaid and found this great madras fabric at Hancock. Apparently I have been missing out because Hancock has a great selection of apparel fabrics. I am definitely going to be making a trip back there soon! This shirt reminded my of my grandfathers- one of which passed away when I was a pre-teen so it was a happy nostalgic time making this for Oliver. I hadn’t really thought of the fact that I was making something from their (my grandfather’s) generation until I was in the middle of this shirt construction but I’m so glad it worked out that way. Feels like a bit of a nod to my grandpa to have my son wearing something that he would have worn in his day.

I used the 2T size because I had traced it back in the fall and never used it. Oliver really fits in the 3T size now but when I compared the sizes, it looked like I just needed to add some length to make it work. I added two inches to the length of the arms hem so that I could retro it up a bit and roll up the sleeves and also added an inch to the bottom hem. The neck is a bit small but I’m not planning on buttoning the collar so that’s no big deal. A very professional finish with this pattern- like all O+S patterns.

T-shirt- I knew O needed a white tee to complete his outfit but wanted to add a little bit of fun to it so I added this motorcycle transfer (image found via google). I had been given some iron-on transfer paper a while back but actually didn’t pay attention to it until I was cleaning out my sewing room a few weeks ago and found it. Why have I not been using this? It’s so easy! And Oliver loves the motorcycle tee! I think it will become a summer fave. Pattern is the flashback skinny tee made in a 3T size with extra length added to arm and shirt hems. I wanted to be able to roll the sleeves up to add to the vintage feel of the shirt.

Hope you enjoyed your trip back to the 1950s. I know I did! Make sure to check out all the other great Vintage May stuff happening on Jess and Kristin’s blogs over the next few weeks.