It’s been a most unusually rainy and lush summer so far! On a normal year, we might be in the middle of a drought, with all the dry, crackling grass to prove it. But this year, the grass and trees are green as spring! The bed in the front has been exploded in a profusion of color – pink echinacea, white daisies, yellow rudbeckia. I need to give a garden update, but today I’m popping in to share a special sewing project, the second in the Project Profile series!
Project: Toddler’s Vest and Flat Cap
Pattern: For the vest, I used a combination of Simplicity 7063 (a classic 80’s pattern from our stash!) and Simplicity 5366 for the subtle Western accents. For the flat cap, I used a digital pattern purchased off of Etsy. If anyone’s interested in the exact shop where I found it, please reach out.
Purpose: I made this set as a gift for my nephew’s 1st birthday. He is a precious little gentleman!
The teddy bear isn’t nearly as cute as the recipient of this set, but he was serious about modeling this hat with a convincing authentic pose. 🙂
Process: I was delighted to find this dressy linen-weave fabric in our stash, knowing this gray would go handsomely with my nephew’s blue eyes! I made the flat cap first. This was one of my very first experiences with creating off a digital pattern, and my first time to sew a flat cap.
It took a little tweaking to figure out how to print the pattern accurately, but once I had the pieces, the construction went very smoothly! I was fascinated to see the shape of the pattern pieces and how they all came together to form the cap. The trickiest part was handstitching the brim area. Done in a day, this was a super fun project!
For the vest, I decided to use one pattern for the main vest, another for the fun Western points, and put together the little pocket flaps to give it some character. The two patterns went together very smoothly. Like the flat cap, the vest is fully lined. As always, my Singer Featherweight worked perfectly to stitch this tiny topstitching and gave the vest a finished look.
This little set was a joy to make and gift!
Before you go, I’d love to know… What have you been creating lately? What summer flowers are you enjoying right now? What weather are you seeing in your area?
Thank you for visiting in my small corner!
Because of Jesus,
Maggie ♥
Deb Dell
July 4, 2025 at 1:11 pmThat cap and vest pair is absolutely stunning! What a fun project and I’m certain the little gentleman wearing this outfit adds to the style and character of the piece! Fantastic tailoring, Maggie!
The small garden I have has been a welcome to watch and pick over… the weeds and produce. The heat has certainly laid claim to the county, hasn’t it! It’s not been a deterrent for me, as I continue to enjoy working out in the big back yard and most mornings watching and listening to nature from the patio. The Psalms has been my daily reading for the past several weeks! So many verses, reminding us of praise, love, obedience and mercies of GOD!
Maggie
September 27, 2025 at 10:13 pmThank you so much for your kind words! Your mornings out on the patio, reading the Psalms, and work in the backyard all sounds so peaceful. ♥