School Days and the Secret Button

Today was Indigo's first day of school.  School for Indigo is a familiar place.  When she was only a year old, I'd wear her in my Ergo while helping with special events for Jude.  As a toddler, she would cry when we'd dropped off Jude.  She couldn't wait for the day when she could go, too.  After much anticipation, she was finally able to attend last year.  Today we started again.  She didn't miss a beat.

 

This time it's Indigo who runs confidently to join her friends while Evie looks on.

 

A teacher asked Evie if she wants to come to school someday, too.  "Yeah, yeah, yeah!" she replied enthusiastically, jumping up and down.   Though that is at least a year away-- I covet our time alone together too much to send her just yet.

Starting school means early mornings filled with outdoor play.  In this part of Texas, there are only a few hours in the morning when you can enjoy the crispness of early fall.  I made Indigo a simple wool jacket for mornings such as these.

The wool is so soft and velvety.   It's from Mill End Store and they gladly mail swatches.  I've been impressed with the quality, price and variety in the wool they carry.

The jacket is lined with Anna Maria's voile, so silky and light.  The wool and voile combined make this jacket just a bit heavier than a cardigan.

Inside it has what Indigo and I call the 'secret button'.   Can't see it?  That's how it got it's name.  I'd recommend separating the wool from the lining when you sew on this button, so your stitching doesn't show through on the jacket front. 

I used this $6 pattern that I found on Etsy.

 

It runs up to size 4.  Since Indigo is 4 1/2 and tall, I added an inch to the sleeves and overall length.  It was a very tight squeeze getting this pattern to fit on the one yard of fabric recommended.

 

After sewing so many Oliver + S patterns, I have become a stickler on finishing.  So I deviated from the pattern and used a slip stitch to join the wool and lining on the sleeves.

Then I topstitched the sleeve before adding the two buttons.

I was talking with one of our neighbors whose husband recently retired.  Their children are grown and out of the house and as we talked I was reminded how quickly these years will slip by and how soon first days of school will be a thing of the past.  Watching Indigo's enthusiasm over her secret button jacket is one of the little joys that fill these fleeting days.