Pattern love - Kwik Sew 2705 - dressing gowns (bathrobes) for kids

I've made this pattern a gazillion times and I just added a review to patternreview.com. (you may have to join... but if you're not a member already - why aren't you ?!   Its a great resource for getting tips on commercially available patterns.  Sometimes I've looked at the results of peoples attempts and said 'um, I don't think so!')   But this is definitely not one of those patterns:

I mean bathrobes aren't high art, but they are functional and my kids love 'em.  I have made this out of fleece:

and satin

and assorted cotton prints / broderie anglaise... unfortunately no pix.  Made it in one of those awful slippery hologrammatic sequin shimmery fabrics.  Now THAT was a disaster!   Daughter who requested it hated it and it was like sewing deflated balloons.  NEVER AGAIN!

But if you've got any young children buy this pattern now and trace it off however you like to do it.  Kwik Sew patterns don't come on that flimsy brown tissue that every dressmaker has learnt to despise.   No way, these suckers come on full on hard white paper that is meant to be traced.  They know you want to use this pattern over and over again or their very reason for being is called into question.  That's why I love Kwik Sew so much.  No multi sizes like 4,5,6, then 6,7,8 tthen 8,9,10 then 10,11,12, then 12, 13 14 for them.  Nuh uh!  You get the whole lot on one pattern 4 (toddler) through to 14 (young lady or it happens, my very petite favourite fiend Ngaire).   Now that's value for money.

Personally - I trace onto sew in interfacing.  Its stiff and sits on the fabric nicely to rotary cut around the pattern pieces over and over.  I do this with all my patterns.  What if you cut into size 10 and you're a 12 in that pattern?  Too late, you've cut off the variations.... drama.    I bought a 50 metre roll of the cheapest nastiest interfacing for $50 from mrecht.  You don't want anything hard to work with.  This stuff is stiff, easy to see through and INDESTRUCTIBLE!!     

But I digress.

The pattern lasts until 14 years old and [maybe] too cool to wear a dressing gown that mum made.  I doubt that though, you can do this in so many gorgeous fabrics - unlike your choices in the shops.

It occurs to me now that a glamorous version for a young lady to wear would be this done in a red silk with black silk bindings and cuffs?!  Oh my girls are growing up... cue adolescent tantrum.  Well hopefully 2 more years before then.

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