Fall Fashion Preview

I got tired of Sam not fitting into any dog clothes or costumes, so I decided to make him some myself. I made my own pattern out of newspaper custom-fit to Sam's measurements. It's pretty simple, but I haven't really sewn in five years (when I made cloud-fleece boxers in Home Ec). Now that I've got a bit more practice, I will be sewing Sam more interesting things in the future. (Like his Halloween costume, for instance, which I won't be making until the middle of October, in case he grows substantially in the interim.)

For the pattern's maiden voyage, I made Sam a Jaguars coat so he can root for his home team on Sundays (they're currently losing abysmally to San Diego):

Go Jaguars! Try not to lose so much!


Ready for game day!

I used sew-on velcro for the closures, and I learned from this go-round that you need two strips at the neck instead of one, because otherwise the edges flop over. But that black Jags fabric with a black lining was very forgiving to my mistakes, thank goodness.

Second up is a Halloween-ish fabric: orange, black, and gray skulls and crossbones. I fixed the neck closure on this one so it fits better.

Halloween pirate?

Much better fitting neckline than the Jags one

Third is a patchwork dog-themed fabric with a matching striped lining. By this time I had the process down pretty well, so it came together much more easily than my first attempt.

Pretty in patchwork!


Sam is mesmerized by a treat I'm holding

After making the coats, I had a lot of scraps I didn't want to toss, especially the bib-shaped cut-outs from the neck openings. So, I sewed them together and added a channel at the top for Sam's collar to slip through. That way he could wear them as kerchiefs even though they weren't wide enough to tie around his neck.

Dog-pattern kerchief (Sam was sleepy by the time
the kerchiefs were finished)


Halloween-ish kerchief

You'll notice there are only two kerchiefs here: that's because the first attempt was the Jaguar one, in which the top channel ended up being way too small for his collar to fit into. Again, the Jags fabric was my guinea pig, and the following two kerchiefs came out much better. (And yes, they do look a bit like bibs, but honestly, the way Sam eats and drinks, a bib would be just as useful.)

So there you have it! Sam's a stylin' dude. Plus I got in sewing practice for when I make his Halloween costume, so remember to vote in the poll to the left to choose which outfit you'd like to see!