Baby clothes are a breeze to make!

Join me as I sew the Butterick B6549 version A pattern.

Simple Sewing for Baby…

If you have never sewn a project for a baby, then I will tell you, my friend, it is a treat to sew!

Baby clothes are super quick makes! They can be a good motivational sewing project if you are feeling down.

Plus, isn’t everything cuter when it’s small!?

The only snafus with sewing for babies are tiny armholes! Luckily this project doesn’t have that problem!

I picked this pattern for two reasons:

I was looking for a simple summer sew for the baby.
I wanted to find a way to make mommy and me and sister makes.

While the makes have different features, they will utilize the same fabrics so they look like they are intended to match!

I purchased a beautiful navy jersey from Stitchy Bee which she labels as the perfect jersey, and she’s not lying! I only used a small portion of this fabric for this make, but it will be used again in my daughter’s Simplicity 8430 pattern and my Deer and Doe Givre top.

I paired this fabric with a whimsical rainbow fabric from Hawthorne Supply Co. I first saw this Liberty Collection on their Instagram feed and fell immediately in love!

After I had selected my fabrics, I had to select what version of the pattern I wanted to tackle.

Originally, I wanted to make version C without the lace trim, but my husband didn’t like the look of the giant ruffle.

So, I decided to go with version A since my older daughter’s pattern and mine would have similar looks. Each of our garments would feature the navy jersey in the bodice or sleeve.

Let me show you how I did it.

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List of Supplies:

Makes: 1 outfit

Estimated Time: 2 hours

Sewing skills needed/used: straight stitch, channel sewing, inserting elastic, hemming

Skill Level: Advanced beginner

Items you need:

Butterick Pattern
1 yard of fabric for the body (I used the Firework Sky in Liberty from Hawthorne Supply Co.
1/4 yard of fabric for sleeves (I used the Perfect Jersey in Navy from Stitchy Bee)
1/4” elastic
Safety pin

How to sew the Butterick 6549 pattern

Step 1:

**Gather the supplies and cut out the pattern pieces.**
For this particular pattern, it only requires two pattern pieces, totaling in four separate pieces.

Step 2:

**Place the two bodice pieces RIGHT sides together and stitch down the side seams.**
Ideally, you should press the seams, but I was pressed for time (sorry, but not sorry for the pun!). Pressing gives your garment a more professional look and ensures your seams are clean.

Step 3:

**Turn the armhole in 1/4” and stitch around the curve.**
I didn’t follow the directions exactly on this step. They say, “With right sides together, pin sleeve to armhole edge of front and back. Stitch”
This is followed by edge stitching and basting the sleeve.
I couldn't wrap my brain around what they wanted and I just did it the way I would naturally sew. Plus, you would have to find a way to sew around a small opening to finish the curved edge of the sleeve.
This way, the edge is finished and you only have to attach the sleeve to the finished edge.

Step 4:

**Turn the bottom of the sleeve with WRONG sides facing each other and hem the bottom of the sleeve.**

To do this, I first serged my fabric and then turned it under 1/4” before stitching it down.

Step 5:

This next part was a little confusing but stay with me.
**Turn your sleeves so that the WRONG sides are facing each other and leave a small gap (see image).**

Now, with RIGHT sides together, match the edge of the sleeve with the edge of the armhole.

Do the same with the other side. This will become the armhole.

This is a closer image. I know the navy is hard to see, but your are matching the RIGHT sides together and stitching.

Step 6:

**Edgestitch the seams.**
To do this, I pressed my seam allowance toward the bodice and simply sewed very close to my armhole, ensuring that my stitches caught the seam allowance.

Step 7:

**Turn the top edge of the neck hole under 1/2” to create a channel for the elastic and stitch in place, leaving a small 2” gap to insert the elastic.**

I left my gap behind the shoulder seam at the back of the garment.

Step 8:

**Insert elastic and sew channel casing closed.**
To do this, I attached one end of my elastic to a safety pin and used that to thread it through the channel.
Once the elastic was threaded in the channel, I stitched it together and sewed the channel closed.

That’s it!

The dress is ready to wear!

Tips and Tricks

If you don’t have a serger, you can use a zigzag stitch on your sewing machine to encase the edges.
You can also use pinking sheers to finish the edges. Jersey is typically not prone to fraying.
Use a ball or jersey needle on your sewing project.
I usually use a stitch length of 3. I find that it allows a smooth stitch and the material is less likely to bunch up.
Using a safety pin to thread the elastic is the easiest way to feed the elastic into the channel.
I typically use a zig-zag stitch to secure the ends of the elastic. This elastic was too small, so I used a straight stitch and backstitched.
Choose your threads carefully. I chose a white thread for this entire project, but if I did it again, I would match the navy on the sleeves so the stitching is hidden.
Use the measurements from the doctor’s check-ups to determine the correct size for your pattern.

Final Thoughts…

This pattern was a breeze to sew, minus the slight glitch at the armhole.

I love making baby clothes because they can be completed usually under a half-hour at the machine!

I did not make any alterations to this project.

I made a size L and my daughter is 1 year (but she fits into 18/24 month clothing). You can see in the images that it fits her beautifully!

She even tested it out on her head!

Should I have made the matching diaper cover? Probably, but I really don’t use those with her. For me, it wasn’t a practical make.

If you are making this for a friend, daughter, granddaughter, niece, or whoever, a matching set would be lovely; and this pattern comes with instructions to make the diaper cover.

I will be testing out a few more variations from this pattern as it offers 6 different versions to make for baby!

But for now, I will end it here and get to work on part two of three in the mommy and me and sister makes!

Stay tuned!

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