Christmas FO: Lukey's Lizard PJs

I've made my nephew all kinds of toys and whatnot over his 3 years, so I really had a hankering to make him something different. My sister used a PJ onesie that already fit him to make a pattern for his Halloween costume in October (he was Curious George), and I had picked up a large piece of this super cute lizard print knit at a thrift store this summer so I decided to make him some fun pjs :)

So the pattern my sister gave me was just for the body and sleeves and I had to make my own gusset - I've never sewn a true gusset before, but after a little internet learning I was good to go. It's not really that hard, you just need to take your time. The fabric is a knit, but it isn't incredibly stretchy. I believe it's a polyester blend French terry because it has a loopy texture on the wrong side. It makes it nice and snuggly though.

I was going full stash on this project, so I dug through my box of thrifted zippers and found a bright green one that matched the green lizards = perfect! Luke really likes doing zippers up himself, and I likes that this one is colorful.

Details! Here you can see the crotch gusset and the color of the zipper. I did stabilize the zipper opening with knit stay tape, but that was the only precaution I took. Everything else was just sewn with a lightning bolt stitch. The neckline was just turned over and stitched with a straight stitch, while the hems on the sleeves and legs were stitched with a twin needle.

All in all this was such a simple project and Luke really likes them :) As soon as he opened his present, he asked if he could put them on. I was worried I would be "that relative" who gave him clothes, but he was really excited about his lizard pjs. The only fit issue is at the sleeves - I may borrow these and add a gusset at the sleeve hem because they're just barely big enough, so they are a smidge tight when he tries to get them off. That didn't deter him though :)

So, I've officially made toddler pjs :) He was dancing around and spinning on the floor (they made for a great slick texture on the tile), and he loved that he could get in and out of it by himself (he's potty training so this is very important, lol). I'm so glad he liked them so much and now I have the confidence to make him more clothes in the future. Merry Christmas, Lukey!

Summary:
Fabric: 1 odd cut yard of poly blend French terry lizard print knit - $0.25
Pattern: copied from rtw
Notions: 18" zipper - $0.10, knit stay tape - $0.15, thread - stash
Hours: 2
Total Cost: $0.50