Crocheted clothing, but small

I have been commissioned to make a shag jacket, for a three year old! I am excited to be able to make something so quickly because the wearer will be so small. Maximum one week turnaround!

I have started by laying out the base;

After attaching the shoulder pieces, I have ended up making a vest. I will work the net stitch for the sleeves directly into the armholes of this.

I have made the sleeves approximately half-length, expecting that they will end up three-quarter. There are two reasons for this;

1. As I add the shag the weight of the wool will lengthen the base naturally so the sleeves will stretch out a bit.
2. I am taking into account that the wearer will be turning three soon. They are still learning how to feed themselves, wash their hands etc. The shorter the sleeves, the less they can be dragged through soup, slobbered on by dogs or covered in cobwebs. It is hard to plan for whatever bizarre adventures a three-year-old may take this coat on, but hopefully I have anticipated some of them!

After completing the base using some of my leftover white-and-pastel ombre wool, the netting needs a little bit of reinforcement for the weight of the wool that will to be added. Bearing in mind that the shag will be made with many shades of pink, I have chosen some complimentary purple and magenta wool to crochet a hem around the sleeves, front, bottom and neckline…

Please excuse the messy edges! I won’t be weaving anything in until I have finished making the shag. I believe this saves more time doing them all in one big push at the end, as opposed to doing them one-at-a-time, having to look for my sewing needle throughout.

Now with the base complete, I can start cutting the lengths of wool to make the shag! Even though this coat is quite small I expect I will use at least a dozen balls of wool from the stash. That is no issue, I love going to op shops and hunting down new(ish) wool for the stash…

Related;

I have been shagging coats and making unique and eye-catching jackets for awhile now, you can check out the archives here to see what other sizes, colours and styles I have been making!

Many years ago, (before I started leaning into wearables) I used this technique to make hard-wearing fairy-ring themed rugs from recycled fabrics, instead of wool.

If you liked this how-to and what I make, you can show your support for independent creators, unique pieces of wearable art and sustainable slow fashion here.