My friend came to me with a printed out version of a photo of a product on the internet. It was an Inuit-styled poncho for a little one. She asked if I could make it. Being me, I said "sure" and off we went.
So, she measured the baby as I'd requested:
-arms straight out, fingertip to fingertip AND wrist to wrist
-crown of head to base of neck
-crown to toe
And, I used my most basic cloak making patterns (slightly modified to accomodate a baby's big head), hood patterns (we did have some difficulty with this), and went to work.
My friend ordered the fleece from a retailer online. When it arrived, I matched it with 1/4" double fold bias tape in baby blue, and utilized a white, knit frog closure for the split.
All in all, my first attempt was just super-simple. I did learn, however, through the process of measuring, that babies are generally much longer than they are wide, so the traditional concept of a poncho being nearly a perfect 1/2 circle doesn't work for their bodies. It becomes more of a rectangular shape with milder curves on the corners.
Have fun! Sew and Live with abandon and CREATE in fearless love....
