Tie One On

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This past Christmas I had 3 new boys in my life that I wanted to give something a little special to. I had saved this pin awhile ago - before any of the boys arrived - and thought it would be perfect!

This idea was too cute and it was something simple that I could make for them myself. And simple was important to me when it comes for sewing since my skills are less than perfect. By less than perfect, I mean that I have a hate-hate relationship with my sewing machine.





The first step was to gather everything I needed.

• 3 sets of onesies in different sizes (I was making 3 set for 3 different boys) so the little guys could grow into them
• Sew-on snaps
• Fabric and coordinating thread

For the fabric I purchased two stacks of coordinated fabric from Walmart.  I think they are meant for quilts - but there were perfect for this project. I went with a puppy theme (what little boy doesn't love puppies?) and a Christmas theme.



To make the bow ties I pretty much followed the instructions int he original pin.
I cut the fabric into a set of bigger strips (approx. 5" x 9") and smaller strips (approx 1"x 2") - in the end I could have made them a little smaller since I trimmed them down a bit after. The actual size can vary and will depend on the size of the shirt on onesie. Since I was  making them to fit on three different sized onesies I settled on a finished size of 4" x 2" and found it worked well.

The larger strips were folded in half length-wise (finished sides together) and sewn down the raw edge.


Fold length-wise and sew down raw edge

Finished bow ties were 4" x 2"

















Then I turned them right-side out and sewed the ends together. The same process is then followed for the smaller strips. These smaller strips need to be large enough to fit over the larger strips but small enough to to gather the material and give the appearance of a knot.


Sew ends together
 

Fold the larger strip to make it easier to slide the "knot" over

The longest part of this project was sewing the snaps onto the bow ties and onesies. If I make these again I would try to find grommet snaps to use instead - though the sew-on snaps will make it easier to move the snaps on the onesie or shirt over to a new one.

 

In the end this project turned out really cute.  And I only got into a few fights with my sewing machine.

 

In conclusion this was a simple and easy project, and everyone who receive one loved them. If you want to give this project a try here are a few tips:

1. As mentioned above I would suggest using grommet snaps if you are making multiple sets like I was
2. It is important for the spacing of the snaps to be the same for all of the bow ties on on the shits/onesies - measure and mark where the snaps will go when you can lie the large piece flat before you put the small "knot" on.
3. I placed the bow ties on the onesies a few inches below the collar so they would not be in the little guys faces and hopefully avoid some drips and spills.