Like Father, Like Son(s)

As much as I love my mommy-and-me matching outfits with the Princess (see examples here and here), my heart skipped a beat when Made for Mermaids offered the opportunity to create matching Daddy and me outfits for my husband and my twin boys. I love seeing how they look up to and emulate their father (except when he teaches them fart jokes!), and I knew all three of them would enjoy a set of matching tees.

The new mens and boys Dylan Tee is a great basic with a unique detail- a side panel that allows for colorblocking, piping, or even a cute pocket (not part of the pattern, but would be a fun hack!). While mens/boys clothing can seem less interesting at first due to the fact that they generally prefer classic, no fuss styles, I’ve found that the joy of creating is really in the details- finding the perfect fabric and adding in the right touches to make a comfortable and functional basic that will get worn again and again.

For my crew, this meant athletic shirts- we are an active family, and with summer coming moisure wicking clothing is high on the list of needs for my guys.

I used swim/athletic camo print fabric from Phee Fabrics, and a lighter weight athletic knit from Fabric Mart for the accent/main fabric, altnernating the placement of the camo/accent fabric on the boys and mens tees to maximize my fabric. I was quite hesitant to let this fabric go at first- I had earmarked it for a pair of swim Moxi’s (made here), but couldn’t resist the excited faces of my boys when they saw it in my stash.

I did find that I needed to add length to the tees for both my boys, but they have had a growth spurt recently, so this may be why. For the mens tee, I would reduce the neckband slightly in the future, to 2.5 inches wide (it gets sewn with 1/2″ seam allowance). We went back and forth on the neckband width during testing, and I think this is a personal preference. I would also recommend measuring and calculating your neckband based on the stretch of your fabric- my versions varied widely in what length they needed due to fabric differences.

After I made the camo versions, another set was requested, so I sewed up another three tees, this time using Knitpop tri-blend.

When I ordered this fabric I was sucked in by all the gorgeous colorways, and wanted some of each, but when they arrived I realized I rarely wear heathered blue or green. I had almost decided to sell these when my husband and kids stepped in and claimed them, and I’m so glad I kept them because the fabric was perfect for these guys!

They love the soft feel, and the thin knit is perfect for warmer weather. The fabric was somewhat challenging to work with- it curled alot, and my coverstitch machine got hungry just looking at it.

Still, I perservered, and was rewarded with the looks of gratitude from my guys, making any frustration melt away. My husband is wearing a size Large in this version (vs. a medium in the camo tee), which we both agree fits him better, as he preferes a relaxed fit, and you can see that the althletic/camo version pulls a tiny bit at his shoulders.

Shooting these photos was a differenct experience for us- I’m not used to being the one behind the camera, and hubby isn’t used to being the subject! The boys were hilarious, as usual, and I was blown away by Noah’s posing skills.

The kid is a natural- no wonder he got a marriage proposal on the second day of Kindergarten (we’re still trying to walk that one back!).

Oliver’s sense of humor lightens up even the most tense siutation, and though you can’t see her, Princess was making herself known scattering goldfish crackers around the park while we tried to capture our photos!

You can buy the mens Dylan tee here

The boys tee here

There’s even a family bundle with a women’s and girls version included here.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which in no way covers my full fabric budget, but it helps a tiny bit. Thanks for your support!

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3 Comments

  1. […] boys shirts, it was a relief to turn to the simplicity of the Dylan Tee for my husband (sewn before here), using the smaller scale King Dragon print for the front and back and black sparkles for the side […]

  2. […] for their last day of Kindergarten from the Made for Mermaids Dylan Tee Pattern (sewn previously here). See how he’s holding his pocket full of […]

  3. Sewing with Sarah on September 7, 2017 at 12:48 am

    […] and fabric as a small token of my appreciation. I haven’t sewn something for him since the Dylan Tees, which he wears every chance he gets, despite my shoddy hemming (which makes me cringe every time I […]

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