Have you ever converted a onesie to a regular shirt?

[msjd123]

My dd is learning to use the potty. Since I totally didn't see this coming so soon, she has a drawerful of winter onesies (long-sleeved T-shirts and turtlenecks) that I don't want to have to replace. I was thinking it might not be too hard to cut off the snappies and just turn them into regular shirts, but I'm wondering if anyone has done this before. Does it work out OK? How did you hem them? I have almost NO practice working with T-shirt material and am afraid it will get that crinkly stretched-out look from my mediocre sewing abilities. Any tips?

[fw221]

Just whack it off at the bottom. It won't fray because it's a knit, but you might want to reinforce the side seams a little at the bottom to keep the serging from unraveling.

[Lynski]

I hate onesies. My kids have long torsos and when you add the cloth diapers it's just not a good situation. The neck is always pulled down and they look like they are about to pop out the tops of their shirts. So all of the onesies people buy us get converted, it's REALLY easy. If you have a serger, you can just serge the hem, fold it up and then stitch it in place. My best advice for serging jersey is to stretch it a little while you serge, and use a wide stitch. That way the material will still stretch when you're done. Practice on the pieces you cut off to get the right tensions.

If you don't have a serger, I'd fold the fabric up once, sew it and then fold it up again. Then sew close to the edge of the fabric. Easy! Well, at least I hope so, sometimes my explanations of things is just confusing. I hope that helped.

[msjd123]

Thank you both! Lynski, yes, that made sense. I have a regular sewing machine, not a serger, so I'll definitely try what you suggested. I'll probaby start with one I don't like that much. My only fear is that they'll end up too short and she'll run around with a cold belly, but we'll see.

[happyfrog]

i'd encourage you to err on the long side - kids grow fast!

nak

[Pam_and_Abigail]

I did iot with all of our onesies since dd2 was 3 months old - much better for EC. Cut them as long as you can without going into the curve of the bottom. I've never finished a bottom, not even to reinforce the side seams. Plus I use the leftover bits: the snaps I cut out in little squares and sew onto my mama cloth by hand, and the fabric I've used to make littl waldorf-style dolls.

[northcountrymamma]

oh yes...many times!
I used to add some fabric to the bottoms to make them a bit longer...and hipped her out a bit!

Now I would serge the bottom on a tight rolled hem to make that flared kind of look.

Also...when I cut them, I made a swoop at the belly and back and the sides were a bit higher bc of the leg holes. Helps cover the belly.
HTH

[p.s]

Since DS uses the potty/EC, I converted all his onesies.

I cut off the "tail" parts, snipping the binding at 90 degree angle to the edge, and preserving as much of the binding that runs parallel to the floor. Just as the binding curves downward is where you want to cut.
Then serge (or fold over and sew) the exposed middle edge parts on front and back.
Trim the knit binding on the cut off pieces as close to the cut edge as much as possible, so none of the shirt material is visible.
Then lay over the serged/sewn edge and sew. If you use matching thread, only by inspecting close will you notice something different about the Tshirt edge.