7. BABY TIGHT

and then connect the center seam line:

And add 1″ to the top of your pattern for the waistband (shown in next photo for Step 4).

If you’d like to make a pair of tights the next size up from the ones you have, add 1-2″ to the bottom of the foot and 1″ to the top to size it up.

DON’T HAVE A PAIR OF TIGHTS TO TRACE?  My tights pattern for 3-6 months is herefor you to download.  It’s got modifications for 6-12 months, but that’s as much as I can help you with.   It’s finished, but I’m having some printing size problems with my new version of Adobe Reader. Argh. I’m giving up for now. Will work on it tomorrow.

Step 4: Cut out your fabric

Place the long edge of the pattern on the fold of the fabric and cut out your fabric.  You’ll get the best results if the stretchiest dimension of the fabric goes top to bottom on your tights.

Hint: The first pair of red-striped tights I made ended up being a little too small because the striped jersey didn’t stretch as much as I expected.  If you don’t have a super-stretchy jersey, add an inch or two to the top and bottom of the pattern.  You can always make them smaller, but not larger.  And remember to line up stripes if you’re using striped fabric!

Your pieces should look like this:

Step 5: Sew the center seams together

I did this on a serger, but you can also use the overlock stitch on your regular machine (I’ll show you that in just a minute).  Place right sides together and sew only the center seam using a 1/4″ seam.  DO NOT KEEP SEWING DOWN THE LEG!

Step 6: Sew Inner Leg Seam

Open tights up and line up center seams.  Starting at one toe edge, sew the inner leg seam together, again with 1/4″ seam.  On a serger it is helpful to pull the legs apart like they’re doing the splits as you cross the center seams.

Here’s what it looks like if you use the overlock stitch on a regular machine (the stitch that looks like a combination between straight and zigzag stitch). I backstitched a few times at the crotch (sorry!) to strengthen the seam there.  That’s where they’re most likely to split apart.

Not as pretty as a serger, but it’s going to be on the inside so don’t sweat it.  I’d recommend using matching thread though; when Clementine wears these they look slightly bumpy along the seams and the white thread shows a little.  Oh well, they still look great.

Step 7:  Turn tights right-side out and try them on your baby.  Make adjustments as needed.

As I mentioned in Step 4, after I tried the pair on the left on Clementine I realized this fabric wasn’t going to stretch as much as real tights, so I added two inches to both the bottom and the top, and tried it again (right).  If you use jersey blends with spandex or lycra, you shouldn’t need to do this.

Step 8: Cut and sew elastic waistband

Take a 3/4″ strip of elastic and cut it a half inch larger than your baby’s waist.  Clementine is 7 months old and her waist is about 16″ so I cut a piece 16.5″ long.  I used knitted elastic because it’s more stretchy than woven but I’m not sure it’s really that important.  Overlap the ends by 1/2″ and use a zigzag stitch to secure ends together.  This makes the elastic slightly smaller than their waist, but I find it stretches out when you sew it in the next step.

Step 9:  Pin elastic to tights

Find the center of the elastic and pin it to the inside of the front center seam, folding 1/4″ of the fabric over the elastic.  Pin the overlapped part of the elastic to the center back.  The tights are still right-side out, by the way.

Step 10: Stitch elastic to tights

This part’s a little tricky, but it’s not going to show.  With the 1/4″ of fabric directly under the needle as shown, place the back center seam under the presser foot.  Pull that pin out so it won’t get in the way of the needle.  Sew the jersey-elastic-jersey sandwich together with a zigzag stitch, stretching the whole thing as you go.  I use my left hand behind the needle to pull the elastic through and my right hand to fold the knit over the edge of the elastic and stretch it out.  It helps to stop and restretch/refold as you go.

It will look like this when you’re finished:

Step 10:  Zigzag around again.

This will hide your elastic entirely.  Fold the elastic under once more and zigzag around the whole thing again, stretching as you go.