McCall's: 6427 (Toddlers' Lounge Sack) - Type:Toddlers  | | Viewed 61 times
| 1 more reviews | Review rated Very Helpful by 3 people | | Reviewed by: | pamxch | 
| | About pamxch | | USA | | Member since: 12/24/02 | | Reviews written: 1 | | Sewing skills:Intermediate | | patterns reviewed: 1 | | Bio: more... |
| | Posted on: | 3/4/13 11:51 AM | | Last Updated: | 3/4/13 12:02 PM | | Project Photo: |  | | Pattern Photo: | 
McCall's Pattern Info | | Pattern Rating: | Recommend, with Modifications | | See other patterns in this category: Toddlers | Available for sale on PR: $10.46 (See envelope)  | | | | Fabric: | Fleece [See other projects in this fabric] | | Related Links | Click on  to add a link |
| My daughter already has one ready to wear Halo sleep sack that I got on clearance. I thought it would be nice to have another sleep sack on hand so that I don't have to rush to do laundry when it gets dirty.
Pattern Description: Wearable blanket/sack with legs for toddlers, similar to the RTW Halo Early Walker sleep sacks. The pattern envelope has the caution that it is not for sleepwear. I assume for legal reasons. I made view A, the one without the sleeves.
Pattern Sizing: 1/2 to 4, chest sizes 19 to 23 inches.
I made size 1, corresponding to chest size 20. The size 1 ended up fitting my son who wears 2T to 3T clothing.
It was intended for my 17 month old daughter who is 20 lbs, wearing size 12 months to 18 months clothes. I could have made the 1/2 size for her, or if using size 1 for length, I should have raised the neckline and armholes.
The Halo Early Walker sack I was using as my model is size Large, for 12-18 months, 22-28 lbs.
Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing with it?
Yes, although the photo makes the neckline look higher than mine turned out to be.
Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes
What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern?
Like - Saved me from having to trace the Halo sack and figure out order of construction.
Dislike - Runs big in the neck and armholes. While overall body size is similar to the Halo sack, maybe a smidge bigger, the neck on the Halo one is 1 inch higher and armholes about 3/4 inch higher which fits my kids better. Comparison Halo vs McCalls
The leg bands are 1/2 inch longer in finished length. The leg band pattern is for the whole unfolded piece, so I would trim the pattern 1 inch shorter next time.
Both my size 2T/3T son and 12-18 month size daughter can wear the Halo size large sleep sack. There's just extra bagginess at the bottom on my daughter. I think the size 1 McCall's may be too large, even though the sacks' body sizes are about the same. This is because of the lower neck and armholes on the McCall's.
I didn't really like how the armholes are finished at the bottom. They are turned to the wrong side and stitched down, which is fine, but there is the transition to the side seams which are expected to be pressed open. I wanted to trim the side seams to 1/4 inch and zigzag together. (Too lazy to set up matching thread for my serger.) I kept the armhole seam allowance to 5/8 inch and just fudged the transition from armhole to a trimmed 1/4 inch side seam. Looks better on the RTW Halo sack.
Fabric Used:
Main body made from really poor quality polyester fleece from one of the chain fabric stores. My mom bought it to make regular sleepsacks for my first child. She made a few but left me with this piece. It must have been an end of bolt yardage because there were runs, uneven patches, and dark marks on one end. I didn't have enough yardage to not include these areas and I didn't want to waste the fabric. I figure if it lasts one season of use, I will be happy.
Leg bands made from cotton ribbing from Joann Fabrics. Next time I would use a thinner, limper knit for comfort.
Pattern alterations or any design changes you made:
I added a rectangular band to act as a zipper guard. Cut fleece 3 inches wide by 26 inch long, folded in half, laid against the zipper and fine tuned the length so that it covered all the zipper tape but wasn't too long. Then I sewed top and bottom seams, just angling the top a little to mimic the curve of the neckline a bit. Attaching the band to the already installed zipper in the fleece took some maneuvering as the layers were getting pretty thick.
Zipper guard on my version
Zipper guard on Halo version
Hmm, looking at the Halo version, I should have sewed the band to the other side, the one with the zipper pull.
I added vertical stitching below the zipper to mimic the Halo sack. It helps tack down the extra zipper tape. Halo sack bottom
Would you sew it again? Would you recommend it to others?
I will likely make another sack for summer in a lightweight knit as I already have kiddie fabric in my stash suitable for it that I don't know what else to do with. I bought it when my son was a baby and now it's too babyish for him. It should be easier to sew since it won't be as thick as fleece. I will definitely raise the neckline.
I would choose a different separating zipper type. I bought one that said "sport" on it with large plastic teeth. It was a bit chunky. Next time I would get a coil separating zipper that is more flexible. Probably try to get a zipper 1-2 inches longer than the specified 22 inch one since I'll be raising the neckline.
Conclusion:
Useful pattern if you want to make this style garment.
Runs big.
Raise the neck and armholes.
If you want to mimic RTW, add clear elastic to shoulder seams.
Consider making a zipper guard and shortening leg bands.
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3 Comments
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you did a great job. I bought one of the Halo ones for my daughter but it was so big my 5 year old could wear it. Glad to see they've adjusted their sizing.
3/5/13 6:26 AM
We love those Halo sleep sacs, and I even sewed a couple for my kids when they were smaller (using the Kwik Sew pattern). Yours came out well!
3/5/13 10:00 AM
Loved seeing the comparison!
3/5/13 1:59 PM