Cosy Cowls: Simple Sewing Project (easy for kids)

Co-written by Princess :D

We fell in love with some gorgeous foxie flannelette recently.  It was duly turned into PJs for various members of the family.

But I had leftovers.  And I got to thinking how cosy that could be as a neck-warmer, particularly for a young lady I know who lives in chilly Canberra and who rides her bike to school.

I got on to my trusty Pinterest, and searched flannelette cowls.  I wasn't sure whether flannelette would work for this project because it doesn't stretch.

I found some great projects, and in the end, made the design I found here, with one exception:  I made the lining and the outer both the same size - 12" x 30".  It worked beautifully.  I also had enough fabric to make another smaller cowl for Princess 6" x 30", which was still a great size to keep her warm.

You can't see the cowl too well, but she sure looks cosy!

I'm not too keen to give the cowl to her - I'd quite like to keep it!  Very cosy.


This is a good project for a beginner, because it's fairly simple cutting and construction.  It involves rectangles and straight lines!

The last seam is sewn as a top-stitched seam, which is easy to manage, although it requires pinning because the fleece is a little tricky.  I usually avoid pinning.

I was so pleased with how the cowl turned out, and fell in love with the fleece that we lined it with.
One thing led to another, and then we were on a mission to make some cowls for our snow holiday coming up soon.

Fleece is perfect for the snow because it doesn't absorb moisture, which means you don't end up wearing heavy, cold wet clothes that have absorbed snow.

Warmth = happiness when you're out in the snow!

First, we had to go back to Spotlight to get some more of the coral nursery fleece, which is extra soft and fluffy.  Warning:  it sheds dreadfully - our house is currently covered in multi-coloured fluff; and it tends to split a little along the cut edges, so you have to handle it carefully, and make sure you have a decent seam allowance.  Normal fleece is a little more resilient than this.

I had some nordic snowflake fleece set aside to make Husband and I some cheesy matching neck warmers for skiing (you can get away with all sorts of fun things at the snow!).

I could have made an ultra-cheesy matching set for the entire family, but the children had other ideas...

We looked up a few different tutorials, and worked out our measurements from there.

We made the fleece cowls a bit smaller, than the flannelette as the fleece will stretch, and we want the cowls to fit fairly snugly around our necks at the snow.

We also designed the cowls so that the contrast fabric creates a coloured border on the other side, as per the original tutorial that I used.

Princess has provided the instructions for you below: 

Cut two pieces of fleece:

measurements

Adults:
width:
decorative:12 inches
coral fleece:14 inches
length:
for both: 24 inches

Kids:
width:
decorative:6 inches
coral fleece:8 inches
length:
for both:24 inches

We copied from a pattern but changed the measurements  to fit better. These were our measurements.
I'm Justine's daugter and I chose a 'RAINBOW owls' fabric for me and my friends.
My brother Oliver chose doggy fabric and his favourite colour is ORANGE!there were orange doggies on it.



We are going to the snow soon so these will be good.
They make good presents too.
These neck warmers aren't just good for the snow they're good for cold mornings.



Try making one with these instructions
1. we cut the fabric to the measurements written above.

2.line up the edges, right sides together and sew down one seam.

3.line up the edges for the other side - mummy edit: you will be jiggling the narrower fabric across to do this - this will create the contrast border - sew the second long seam. 

4.turn it out the right way.

5.fold it in half lengthwise.

fold in half lengthwise, to match the short un-sewn sides

6. Line up the fabrics that match - you will be sewing a circle to create a tube...  It's tricky to explain. See picture below:   

start sewing around the narrow tube creating by matching up the short ends

The Purl Soho blog has a much better description of this process, and of the finishing part:  you have to finish sewing it up by hand.
HOPE YOU LIKE IT!

COSY COWLS!