dressmaking for kids??

[sprout]

At the risk of sounding like a domestic goddess from the wrong decade (or century?), does anyone out there make their children's clothes? I mean, assuming you can sew OK, does it work out cheaper?

What kind of patterns are Debbie Bliss, sounds like knitting to me but then maybe not?

Yup - knitting - they were mentioned further down the thread?

Are you an experienced knitter in which you are able to take a sleeve or similar from one pattern and mix it with a bodice or collar of another? Tweaking here and there, you would be able to come up with something that doesn't scream where you got the parts from.

Actually I was really thinking about sewing - I do knit, but need more practice . I can work out sewing patterns though if I have to. I expect (never actually tried, but it doesn't look too hard!)

Just used Debbie Bliss as an example cos it happened to spring to mind as I was typing - I had just been looking at her pattern books.

There are quite a few good books around about designing your own knitting patterns, where they just give you the basics and you work around them. I can't see how there could be any real copyright issues there. There's an example here .

What is your level of sewing, if I may ask?

Not really professional yet - but working on it.

How mnay years or what are you capable of sewing?

Second time I have typed this!

I have mostly made fairly simple things - like blinds for the nursery, nighties (once in stretch cotton knit with an envelope neck - not an enormous success, the neck went a bit baggy. Suspect I put the pieces together not quite snuggly enough - which would make it the pattern's fault not mine!), skirts, my son's Christening outfit, baby sleeping bag, fancy dress stuff, etc. I think the thing I was proudest of was a set of Three Musketeers cloaks I made by watching the film and just copying the design. They were kindof tabards with very copious sleeves which made them look a bit like cloaks. They were cool. I used to do a lot of hand sewing, cos my machine was cr*p, but got a new machine a few months ago and have decided that with practice I can probably get good enough to make stuff that people might want to buy. Had a baby 3 months ago, though, so haven't been doing it much lately! Have a few projects planned though.