#3: In the Christmas Spirit

Welcome and congratulations on surviving the end of the world! ; ) I found this men's nightgown at a local thrift store for about $3, and I left it behind. But I kept thinking about it, so I went back the next day and thankfully it was still there. And I knew just what I wanted to do with it.

Before: very long men's nightgown

Before: the back

Yesterday I went to visit my family for an early Christmas dinner. Every year for Christmas and Thanksgiving my aunts and uncles all gather under one roof for a feast fit for kings! Where there's family, there's food (or is it the other way around?). And my mom usually does all the cooking. Even with a broken toe this week she still cooked up a storm. My hat is off to her : ) I loved that I got to help out a bit by bringing desserts and carving the ham.

SO delicious!

In the spirit of Christmas, I decided to jazz this nightgown up a bit in a Christmas theme just in time for Christmas dinner. First I cut it straight up the middle. Then I cut about a foot off of the bottom and hemmed it.

Hasta la vista length!

Next I cut, folded, and pinned down the collar on the inside of the neck so it would lay flat. I sewed around the new neckline and cut off the excess collar material.

Inside the new neckline

I decided to give the waistline some more definition, so I pinned and sewed some pleats in the front and back. I had never done pleats before, so I tried to follow the style already on the shoulders of the original piece.

Pinned and pleated

Closer up view of the back pleats

Next, I took a seam ripper to the strip around the sleeves.

So long GB

I wanted to cover up the insignia, so I decided to go all out Santa on this piece. I found these off-white fluffy socks at the dollar store that I thought would work well for the sleeve cuffs.

I love these kinds of socks on cold days : )

I cut them in half long ways to have enough material to wrap around the sleeves, pinned them onto the sleeve to measure the length, then sewed the ends closed.

Cut lengthwise

Pinned to the sleeve

Then I sewed the fluffy sock onto the sleeve itself at both ends. The cut sides of this sock shed so much that the lint roller and I were best friends by the end of this project.

Shedding like crazy

I picked up this awesome gold and red velvet holiday ribbon for 70% off at Michael's that I used for the trim. My sewing machine didn't like this ribbon, and I spent a good while un-jamming it from inside. 

How festive!

I lined the sleeves to cover the edges of the frayed sock and sewed it on.

Pinned and ready to sew. More festive, no?

Then used the same ribbon to line the two sides down the front of the piece and sewed it on.

Almost done!

I had been baking Christmas treats for nearly 3 days straight and didn't have any time to work on this piece, but I wanted to have it done before going to visit my mom. I was so eager and excited to finish this piece that I literally stayed up until 6:30am working on it. Since I was turning it into a jacket (surprise!), I needed something with which to keep it closed, but I didn't have any buttons that seemed to suit the style, so I improvised and sewed on some of the gold ribbon right over the front pleats to hide the pleat seams and keep the jacket closed.

Improvised sash

And there you have it! The final product ended up feeling very Christmas-y to me. I had considered lining the neck and front with the same sock material on the sleeves, but I realized I would have looked too much like Santa, so I toned it down a bit and went a little more with a Mrs. Claus look. Though I wouldn't wear this any other time of year, I felt it appropriate for a Christmas event with my family. My little cousin wore it around as she "played Santa" and passed out gifts to the family.

After: It's straight Santa up in here!

After: from the back (the collar is the shirt I had underneath)

I wish I had had some festive buttons or a broach because I feel like the sash made it look more like a robe than a jacket, but my aunt loved it enthusiastically just as it was, so I gifted it to her : )

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

I also made the outfit I have underneath, but I'll save that for tomorrow's post ;) Until then, enjoy last minute holiday shopping, baking, gift wrapping, and all else the holiday brings! And if you're grieving, may God's peace, comfort, and joy be with you this Christmas. Blessings to you and yours.