Meet my super cute new pjs!

It’s all been a bit ho-hum around these parts. No sooner do Melbournians get a sniff of freedom then bam! Back we are into a lockdown! The news comes through, and you regretfully put that fun party dress back in the cupboard and reach once more for something comfortable, preferably with an elasticated waist, because you sure as heck aren’t going anywhere that requires any dressing up.

But wait – here’s a notion! Why not celebrate the enforced quiet time by dressing comfortably yet still stylishly? After all, mandatory lockdowns doesn’t meant that you have to look drab and leave the fun out of your wardrobe, do they? So in that spirit I decided to make the most fun and cutest pyjamas that I could. I took that lockdown challenge, and I succeeded!

For this project I used Simplicity 8803. Not only are these pjs adorably cute, but they also have a great fit. So many pj patterns out there are simply huge, but not these ones. The fit is fantastic – slim-lined yet still roomy enough to be comfortable.

The patterns comes in girl’s and misses’ sizes. I made size small misses, and decided to keep the fabric single, rather than using a contrast, which is one of the pattern options. The fabric used was Dashwood Studio cotton poplin. I just adore this fabric! Nothing cheers me up more at the end of a long wearying day that the thought of putting on my gorgeous jimmie jams covered with tigers, birds, turtles, dragonflies and flowers! I may be stuck home in a lockdown night after night after night, but I have a whole menagerie of animals to lift my spirits when the time comes to rest my sleepy head!

This cotton poplin, besides having the greatest graphic design known to man on it, was a delight to work with. I prewashed my fabric, and it handled like a dream, displaying a lovely crispness that is just perfect for nightwear.

When it came to sewing up the pjs, I pretty much followed the pattern but did makes these minor alterations: (1) I omitted the pockets on the front of the pj shirt, because I would never use a pocket there; (2) I sewed all the way along the shirt side seams, rather than putting the vents in the bottom. I quite like being all tucked up in bed as cosy as can be, with no drafts bothering my kidneys, so the vents were given a miss!

I also didn’t put piping in on the pyjamas – I would have liked to, but once again lockdown thwarted my going to the shops to buy some, and I am pretty fussy about colour matching, so I didn’t want to chance buying some online that didn’t match in exactly with the colours in the fabric print. However, these pjs are so awesome I will definitely be making another pair for sure, so piping will be a feature of pair no. 2! And then for the final touch I finished off the pj shirt with some vintage buttons from my collection – I love the bright pop of red standing out amongst all the other colours.

As you can see from my photos, I’m pretty darn chuffed with my new pjs! The only thing to be aware of is that the pj pant doesn’t rise very high over the hips, so if you like a longer seat like I do you may need to add a few centimetres to get your preferred rise. Apart from that they are pretty much the perfect jimmie jams – comfortable, super natty and original, and guaranteed to banish any Covid blues away!

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