A Slow Sew...

[00:00:06]Hi there everybody. It is Joe here from the Crafty Crafter and today I'm here to share the only pajama pattern that you will ever need. Pajamas is often a place where people start to learn to sew. They make some pajama bottoms with an elasticated waist and it's a really great entry pattern and uh garment to start your sewing with, but very very quickly you outgrow that pattern you might first purchase or stick all the PDF paper pieces together. So, um today I'm going to try and convince you to go for the Carolyn pajamas from Closet Core as your first pajama pattern. When you first look at the cover, you might think it's way out of your league. It's something you could never sew. There's double lapels and pockets and everything. But actually, when I chose this pattern, I didn't have that in mind. I thought, I'm going to build up to this and I'm really going to try and improve my sewing. It's a fantastic pattern from taking you from a beginner to an intermediate because you can really, really grow with it. When I first had this pattern, all I made was the pajama bottoms. And they're still an elasticated pajama bottom. They're not difficult. I didn't put the cuffs or the piping on. I just put the slant pockets, the elastic around the top. So, it was really no different or more difficult than if I'd chosen another pattern to start myself off and then grown with another. My first pair I just used to wear with a ready toear t-shirt cuz I was just really pleased that I'd made a pair of pajama bottoms. My daughter who's 18, she makes the bottoms, but she actually wears them as a pair of trousers when she goes out with a trainers on the bottom and a t-shirt.

[00:01:46]So, there's also that element to this pattern as well. So, when you look at this pattern and you're a beginner, just think about maybe making the shorts or the trousers because there's two lengths and there's also lots and lots of things you can add on as you get better and better and better. So, it's a real grower of a pattern.

[00:02:05]My first full pair I made seven years ago in a flannel fabric. It had slots all over it. It was really good fun. And I made the shorts. No piping, no cuffs.

[00:02:16]And then I moved on to the top. And I didn't put any piping on that either. I didn't put the pocket on. I didn't put the sleeve cuffs and piping on. I just kept it really simple because from this make I wanted to learn how to do the collar and I wanted to make it as simple as possible. So, after I'd made pajama bottoms and I've been wearing them with a t-shirt for a year or so, I thought I'm going to have a go at the top. I paired the top down to the smallest skills it could be so that I could work on the collar and really concentrate on that. Those are great. And I wore them for ages and ages and ages. And then the flannel got a little bit where it was peeling and it had faded a little bit on the fabric print.

[00:02:57]So then I'd done lots of other sewing and I thought right, I'm going to have a go at the full set and I'm going to have a go at the piping. So within about a year I decided, right, I've enjoyed wearing those short ones. I'm going to try the long ones with all the piping detail.

[00:03:13]So I did do that and I worked really slowly and I broke it down into really small parts because the thing that's quite overwhelming if you're a beginner with this pattern is there's lots and lots of pattern sheets. So you'll need to sort of divvy them up. so that you're not looking at stuff you don't need to look at. So, if you're making just the bottoms, just take out and cut off the bottom uh pieces and just keep the folded up shirt if you're not going to make that right from the start. So, I then started to decide, right, I'm going to try and do all of the things. So, I did the cuffs, the piping, the piping on the leg cuffs, and I did absolutely everything. And I worked really slowly because I wanted to conquer the pattern and I wanted to be a better sewer.

[00:03:54]This fabric was just a really um dead stock light cotton voil. It was quite thin, but that was okay because that helped me with sort of pressing all around the collars and everything. I didn't have anything too bulky. And they turned out a little bit big. I don't think I probably kept the seam allowance at that point. I probably wasn't sewing accurate enough then to think about the seam allowance. I was probably just trying to get everything together. So, they turned out a little bit big. But um my friend Ellie had those cuz she absolutely loved them. And then I decided to make another pair. I made a white cotton set and this one has the piping because by the time I'd made that first lot of piping, I realized it just took a little bit of time and care to add that. It wasn't a tricky skill or technique that I needed. I just needed lots of time. So I made a white pair with a purple trim and purple buttons.

[00:04:47]And it was really to use up some purple piping. in fact that I bought that I thought was going to be blue, but when it came it was much more purple, so I couldn't use it for the project I needed. So, it was nice to use it up.

[00:04:58]Next up, I had a small piece of Indian block print that somebody had given to me. So, this was in a a bag of fabrics that had come from an aunt and there was a really nice piece in there, but there wasn't enough for me to make pajamas.

[00:05:11]So, I made a Caroline pajama shirt for my daughter. which was probably about 13 or something then. And I didn't have enough for the shorts. So, we made stretchy t-shirt shorts and I just add a little band on the bottom to make it look like a set. So, she had a pair and she really loved them cuz she always wanted to not have kiddies pajamas. She wanted proper collared pajamas.

[00:05:33]During lockdown, my very best friend um had her birthday and I couldn't go and buy her anything or choose anything and I had loads of time. So, I made a really beautiful set of Caroline pajamas, and I really got stuck into the details on this one. This one has um piping around the collars. It has it across the pocket. It's got a label. I I put like lots of care and attention into it because I knew that she probably wouldn't have had any other birthday presents that year from many people. So, um I sent them to her and she absolutely loved them. She said, "Oh my gosh, these are for standing on a balcony. They're not for going to bed. Next up, I was making a video for Manurva on pattern matching along a button band on the front. So, I chose a flannel check fabric to uh demonstrate a a center front pattern match. And actually, the checks were really useful because it was a big enough pattern for people to see on the camera. So, my next set, I wear them at the moment in the winter.

[00:06:33]They're a long trouser, long sleeve, no piping because I was busy concentrating on the placement of the checker on the front. So, in each pair, I might take out one skill and put in another skill so I can really concentrate on the one thing that I want to get right. If you go at this all out right from the start, you might end up getting so stuck that you give up. So, you can see how my pajamas have evolved over time. My last couple of makes from this pattern are a hack. So, I found out that I was getting too hot in bed and I wanted um stick my legs out and have cold feet. So, I changed the shirt top into a night shirt and I simply just extended the pattern and just graded out a little bit for my hips. You could and I added a shirt style hem a little bit more curved. I've got a flannel one of those that's really nice and cozy with long sleeves. And I've got a poly cotton embroider onlay one that I usually take on holiday. It's one that goes into my suitcase because if we're in a hot place on holiday, I don't want to wear anything too hot in bed.

[00:07:42]The problem that people have when they look at this pattern is they think they can't do the collar around the neck. And it is the most tricky part. And the only way you can get real success with it is if you make sure you put all of the markings on, even if you don't understand what they're for. If you look at the pattern pieces and there's a dot or a line or a square or a snip line or a notch, just mark it on the pattern piece and it will become apparent because the instructions are so well written with Closet Core. At the moment, I'm making a pair of Caroline pajamas.

[00:08:11]So, I'm not going to give you a full sew along of it. If you want a full sew along, my friend Diane has one over on Manurva's YouTube channel. She takes you through all of the details from the bottoms to the shirt at the top. But today, I just want to show you the neck piece. It's the piece that some people find tricky. I've helped someone at our social. I could see her frowning and and she wasn't asking or saying anything.

[00:08:35]And I said, "Are you stuck?" And she said, "Yeah." And she was stuck in exactly the same place that when I first started this pattern, I got stuck to.

[00:08:42]So, I'm just going to show you how to put the neck on and the reveers. I have I have got piping on this one, but it would be the same if you were doing it without piping. So, let's have a little bit of sewing today. So, this is the front and the back shoulders joined together, ready to apply the collar. And I've got all of my markings here. So, on the lapels, I've got a mark here with a tailaylor's tack that's showing me the point where the two collars meet. Here, I've got some other marks as well. It's easier for me to see. I've just put a pin in so that you can see it. And I've put Taylor's tacks in, but it's quite a busy fabric, but they all need to be marked around the neckline and on your collar and lapel pieces. This dot here is particularly important. So, make sure you've put everything on. The collars have a couple of markings here, and this will help you to turn back the collar and neaten the inside. So, you'll need the markings here, and you're going to split to those once you've done your sewing. I've got piping detail, but it doesn't matter if you have or you haven't. The construction is exactly the same. My piping's already tapped in place, so it doesn't move around.

[00:09:52]Okay. The under collar has a seam in the center, so you can press that open. I've interfaced my under collar because that's the way I like to do it. Some people have it on the other side. You need to put a stay stitching line around here. And it's not really optional. Your stay stitching line needs to go from end to end notch. And those little markings there is 1.5 cmters.

[00:10:21]That stay stitching line means that you can clip those little tailaylor's tacks and snip the curve.

[00:10:29]You'll see it on the pattern marked as a dot with a line running to it. That means you can release that bit of the collar that's round the back of your neck. And you want to make sure that you've clipped it neatly so that you have an accurate 1.5 seam allowance without any nicks or kinks in it. I hadn't quite gone far enough on that one. So, it really is just tiny little margins, but that's really going to help it now to lie flat. If you have used piping, it's useful to clip your piping to go around a curve. That makes it a gentle curve and it won't flip up or change the shape of your collar. With right sides together, put the collar pieces. And first of all, mark the end points.

[00:11:12]You'll be leaving this bit open. That stay stitching line along the bottom has given you that clear 1.5 cm seam allowance running along that stay stitching line. And that's not where you sew at this stage. It looks on the picture like you have to sew that bit, but that's the stay stitching line. You need to be sewing the outer edge of the collar.

[00:11:34]That's the bit where some people go wrong. They sew this bit together. And that bit needs to remain open.

[00:11:40]So all my outer collar is pinned in place. I've pinned the end points and around the collar curves matching the raw edges. And I've put a pin in the center. And I've got a little bit of fabric here. Look to ease. And that's what helps the collar to roll around. So I like to use all the parts of my hand.

[00:11:57]So I use the palms of my hand to grip the fabric. And then that releases my fingers to keep splitting the pins in half and then in half again and then in half again. That spreads the fabric around that gentle curve. So I'm using this bit of my hand gripping and then using my fingers to match up the raw edges.

[00:12:20]Once it's all in place, you can take this to the machine and sew the outer edge. You'll need to either clip the curves or trim your seam down so that you get a smooth curve at the end of your collar tips. I'm checking at this point that I have gone close enough to the piping. And always go back and just add a little more stitching if required.

[00:12:40]With the under collar, that's the one with the seam in touching the right side of the fabric. Match up the ends of the collars with the little markings at the end. That's where you need to put everything on.

[00:12:54]And then you can find the center point.

[00:12:57]There's a little notch for that. Or if there isn't, it's really useful to put one on.

[00:13:02]And you're only pinning the under collar to the shirt. My under collar is the one that's interfaced.

[00:13:09]I like to have a soft fabric on the outer surface of my top. Some people like to have a crisper finish with the interfacing on the other side. Once this is all in place, you have the correct position and you've only pinned the under collar here at the end. You need to make sure that you're sewing really close up to the end of there and you're going through the tack point.

[00:13:36]Okay. So, it's all attached. That center bit is left open.

[00:13:41]And you can see we've gone through the tack point at that end and at this end.

[00:13:45]So, everything is accurate. Now we need to press this seam up and clip it so that that curve works nicely. All of that seam allowance is pressed into the collar. This means now that that little notched area that we created before can sit really nicely over the back neck on the inside.

[00:14:06]It will match up with the notch. Again, that's why they're so important.

[00:14:11]And you can take this to the machine and sew. You need to be quite accurate. or you can hand stitch it if you're just beginning. So, I've edge stitched right on the edge of the collar and it's caught on the other side and you can only do that if you use a 1.5 cm seam allowance and fold accurately.

[00:14:28]Okay, we've got these bits at the end to deal with. So, we need to do our other snip on the other side.

[00:14:36]This will release the fabric. So, we'll have these three layers here at each side. These will be attached to the facing. That will create the second part of the collar.

[00:14:49]I'm going to pin mine together. You can tack it together, which does help a little bit because it holds all of the layers together because we're going to put another layer on top of that. So, with right side facing you, all of those layers pinned or tacked together, whichever you've chosen, you're then going to take the facing piece and put it right side down. There are notches to follow. This will ensure that you get the curve in the right place. And you're going to pin your facing around the curve. The next point you're going to be looking out for is the dot marking on the lapel.

[00:15:25]And that will mean that you can match up the collar with the facing. So whether you've got piping or not, those two points need to match up exactly. Pin everything in place. And then this upper part which hasn't got any piping on, that's going to sandwich with these previous layers. I'm just switching out the pins and adding this fourth layer as I go. At the end, it doesn't say in the pattern, but it's a good idea to press your shoulder seam to the front. And I'll show you why later on.

[00:15:55]We're going to sew to that dot and then sew all the way around the rest of the facing to the hem. This will need to be clipped as well because we're working with lots of curves here. You can layer that out a little bit if it's bulky. And then turn your collar through. It's essentially your facing, but it's going to be your second collar reve. And just check that you've got everything correct there at that notch point. And take my tailaylor's ts out now because everything's meeting up. Okay.

[00:16:26]And it creates the double collar.

[00:16:29]If something's gone wrong here, go back and fix it. Now, when you've done both sides, you get this beautiful collar finish.

[00:16:37]It takes quite a while, but it's not actually difficult. It just means you need to do each part really accurately.

[00:16:43]And here's why I've folded my shoulder seam to the front, because now it's covered over with the facing and I've handstitched down the end.

[00:16:56]Okay, so these are my Caroline pajamas.

[00:16:58]These have got all of the details. So, I've uh turned these back, added the piping. I've got a piping detail on the pocket, but you can just as easily leave it off. I've got the piping around the neck. And this is a readymade piping, so I don't make it too ownorous for myself trying to fold bias binding over cord or anything. This is readyade with a little flange on. I like it to be quite oversized. I don't want it to be tight because I'm going to be wearing it in bed.

[00:17:26]Got some mismatched button colors on the front, but they're all from uh the same brand, but just in different colors.

[00:17:35]This is the waist detail. So, you've got a pocket here, a wide elastic, so you can make that as tight or as loose as you want. It has a faux stitching on the front for a faux fly.

[00:17:50]It's really not an important detail. You can just sew the front crotch if you want to.

[00:17:55]And these ones have the piping on the bottom cuff as well. And that's what makes the pattern sheets have lots of pieces because there's little pieces for different ones. If you make the shorts, there's cuffs for the front and the back. So, you want to pick your view and then pick your pattern pieces so that you can reduce down the amount of pattern shapes that you're dealing with.

[00:18:17]Otherwise, it's just a mass of paper.

[00:18:19]But it's definitely my favorite pattern.

[00:18:22]I've made it from really simple to much more complex.

[00:18:26]I hope that's helped you if you've bought this pattern or you've seen it on the horizon. It's a very ubiquitous pattern in the sewing community. Um, if you search Carolyn pajamas on either Manurva's website or on a Google image search, so many people have made them and they look so high-end and luxury and beautiful. I really like to make them when I really want to sew, but I don't need any more clothes. You know, I don't want to just make clothes for the sake of clothes. So, I love to really sew slow my sewing down and make a pair of Carolyn pajamas. They make great gifts if you've got a lot of time or I like to just have a pair myself, a winter pair.

[00:19:02]And the pair that I've made in this lighter cotton should be great for in between seasons.

[00:19:08]The one thing I will say about this pattern is it's an absolute fabric pig.

[00:19:12]So, it uses lots and lots of fabric. So, you have to be really careful when you're choosing your fabric. So, from my choosing fabrics video, you'll see that I talk about fabric type first, fabric base cloth. But this is one of the few patterns where I look on price first because I've seen beautiful fabrics in beautiful cotton satine or cotton lawn.

[00:19:34]And if I bought it enough to make the Carolyn, which is about three and a half, four meters, depending on your fabric width, you can end up with a 92 pair of pajamas, which I did once. I was so excited about something and I looked and I was like, I'm not spending that on a pair of pajamas. So, you need to kind of look at your price per meter and know that you're going to need sort of three or four meters and that can really bump up the price of anything. So that's when the second pair that I made came into its own because that fabric was £3.99 a meter. So it was a good price to just have a go at all of the details.

[00:20:14]The one that I've got today was from the Manurva roll end sale and it was £4 a meter and it was one of the things that I went on my list to the rolland sale with because I knew that fabrics were £4 a meter. I went straight to the Rose and Hubble section or and cotton and cotton mixes. I could see all of the Rose and Hubble prints on the top shelf and I I wasn't even really that fussed with which floral one I had. I I was looking for a piece that was 3.5 meters. So, I got a 4 m piece. So, that whole lot of fabric cost me £16. So, I think that's a really great price for a pair of pajamas.

[00:20:50]The reason I recommend this pattern even to beginners is that you can break it down into smaller components. I have the Jamie pajama bottoms because I used those in a video for Manurva. And actually a Tilly and the Buttons pajama bottom pattern is like 17 or £18, but a closet called Carolyn pajamas is about 20 or 21. So for that little bit extra money, I've got a pattern that I won't grow out of really quickly in terms of sewing skill. I can keep it and I can do short sleeve ones, long sleeve ones, flannel ones, shorts. Um, you know, I can really really mix it up. The one thing people ask me often is, can I make it out of a stretch fabric? And you can.

[00:21:37]Um, but I don't think you'll get the same finish around the collar. If you're looking for something for a stretch fabric, then the Juno pajamas are a good recommendation. Or you can just try one of the big four patterns.

[00:21:51]I'm always looking for versatility in a pattern. So, Simplicity 153 is a good one there. You've got um men's, women's, a dressing gown, and some different tops. And that one's really good for stretch fabrics. The only pajama pattern that I will ever need though is the Carolyn pajamas.

[00:22:10]Talking of pajamas, today I have the Donnie shirt on. And I've seen a few people use this as their pajama top by sizing up because you can just put it on over your head so you haven't got any buttons or anything that might be uncomfortable. This is um from Manurva's uh soft linen range and it is beautiful because I've been sat down sewing all day. So all of that has been scrunched up. But you don't get the same creasing in this linen that you get in other fabrics. This one is called Wonderland Whim. It's really beautiful. It's got a sort of Victoria floral illustration on it and a few animals hidden in there. There's a stalk here and a little monkey there.

[00:22:54]So, if you make your Caroline pajama bottoms, but you're not quite ready for the top and all of the buttons and and the collar and everything, could just go for your favorite shirt or top to go on the other half of your pajamas.

[00:23:09]So my question for you today is, have you made the Carolyn pajamas? Have you been frightened of the Carolyn pajamas?

[00:23:16]Or do you have another favorite pajama pattern? I would love for you to subscribe to the channel here. It's really great to build our sewing community. And the more people we have, the more comments we can generate and the more things we can learn from each other. It's also great if you click a like if you've enjoyed today's video, because that gets the video in front of a few more seers. Until next time, we'll see you again soon.