I’mSewing a wearable hoodie for cosy lounging days
The wearable blankets are so popular with everyone and when I saw the different fleece fabrics available at Northern Monkey Makes, I thought that I could try making one.
Fortunately, Copper Creeks Patterns have a free pattern
and they have a free adults pattern too.
This pattern has a few options and I went for the lined/fully reversible hooded option; with pockets of course.
The Northern Monkey makes Fabrics and other supplies I’ve used are:
- Christmas cuddle fleece
- Red cuddle fur
-sewing clips & pins
-scissors
-universal sewing needle
The two warm fabrics are quite different but worked so well together. The red cuddle fur has a definite right side. It has a good amount of stretch in both directions and is thinner than it looks. This made it perfect when sewing the two fabrics together as it doesn’t cause too much bulk as you sew it through the machine.
With the patterned cuddle fleece it’s harder to tell which is the right side of the fabric but when looking at the pattern, the print is sharper on the right side. I’ve got to highlight though that this fabric is so lovely and soft on both sides so would be great for the unlined version too. It’s doesn’t have stretch but does have slight give.
I started by washing them separately and popped them in the tumble dryer for about 10 minutes to fluff them up and just left them to dry on the airer.
After measuring my recipient, I went for a size 4 graded to size 7 for height. I used the projector and it was quite hard to see some of the projected lines on the fabric but I managed it fine. I used I in scissors to cut and had no problem at all. The fabrics doesn’t fray but one thing to be aware of . . . there will be fluff everywhere once you cut it! 
I used clips rather than pins (apart from for the pockets) as I found that the pins got lost in the fabric vec it is so fluffy. 
As the fabrics are quite different in stretch and thickness, I used a walking foot and a universal needle. I had no issues with skipped stitches. I used a normal straight stitch but did increase the length to 3 with the cuddle fleece and 3.5 when topstitching the two fabrics together at the very end. I used the overlocker to finish the edge of the pocket but used my sewing machine for everything else.
The pattern does require a small amount of hand stitching when attaching the cuff to the lining. Fortunately, the cuddle fur is quite forgiving and covered my stitches so it didn’t matter how neat it was. 
I’m really pleased with the result. The instructions for the pattern were easy to follow and it’s a great fit. The fabrics were perfect for the pattern and it’s so warm and cosy and looks exactly the same as the ones I’ve seen in the shops. These would make lovely Christmas gifts.
Sewing a matching Hot water bottle cover
Since I had some fabric leftover, I made a self drafted hot water bottle cover to create a cute cosy set.
How extra special would this be as a gift set for Christmas? The beauty of sewing it to make matchy matchy items surely.
It was really quick and simple to make:
- To create the front piece, I used the hot water bottle that I wanted to cover as a template and cut around it adding a 1cm seam allowance.
- I used the front piece as a template to create the two back pieces by adding 4 inches to the length and then cutting horizontally to create the top and bottom back pieces. I hemmed the horizontal cuts as this will be the pocket opening.
- I put the front piece right side up and placed the back top piece on top, right sides together then placed the back bottom piece on top right side facing the right side of the front piece. The hemmed pocket opening of the two back pieces overlapped slightly. I then sewed around the edge and flipped it right side out to finish.
- To make the pom-poms, I cut two circles in the contrasting fabric and sewed a gathering stitch around the circumference. I then pulled the threads to create a sphere and put some stuffing in the centre with one end of the ribbon finishing it off by hand stitching it closed and stitching it to the front of the cover.
