Ginger Made: McCall’s M6016, or The Tiniest Magnum P.I.

September 22, 2012 By in boy stuff Tags: , , 91 Comments

This is, hands down, the best thing I’ve ever made.

Rock the hula, kid!

Before you’re all, “Hey, girl, enough with the hyperbole!”,  just stop for a second and look.

IT’S A TINY HAWAIIAN SHIRT.

I can’t even look at this without laughing.  There aren’t many things funnier than babies dressed like strange adults.  I’d like to imagine this shirt worn by a baby with a mustache and chest hair.  Possibly a crime-fighting, convertible-driving baby with a mustache and chest hair.

This is a gift for one of Man Friend’s oldest friends, who just had baby #3.  She and her husband met while living in Hawaii, and all three kids have lovely Hawaiian names, so this seemed like a good gift.  I used M6016 and a cotton print I scored during a sale at Jo-Ann.  The pattern was super easy to put together  and everything went smoothly and uneventfully.  The toughest part was getting over my fear of making buttonholes!  I did a few practice versions, and while these aren’t perfect, it wasn’t anywhere near as tough as I thought it would be.  I was all worked up over nothing (story of my freakin’ life…)!

I’ll have to get pretty comfortable sewing for little boys– it’s recently been revealed that my due-in-January niece/nephew is in fact a nephew!  Anybody have any favorite patterns or projects to make for boys?  My previous go-to boy gifts, if you knit, are The Brown Stitch’s Chunky Monkey Vest and/or Linden Down’s Baby Sophisticate sweater.  What about you guys?  Other than PJ’s for Man Friend, this is the first item I’ve sewn for a dude!

In other news, I found myself completely overtaken by a fit of insanity and signed up for a 5K yesterday.  This may not sound very eventful, but as Man Friend pointed out, it’s doubtful that I’ve run a total of 5 kilometers in the last 10 years (I was a bigtime runner in high school, but realized that I actually hate running and haven’t done it since)!  Here’s the kicker– it’s two weeks from today!!!  Am I totally screwed?  People!  I know!  This is crazy, but it’s a benefit raising money for walruses!  WALRUSES!  I can’t think of a more hilarious reason to run!  And my dear friend and also-reluctant-runner, KristyWes, is doing it with me (and inspired me to sign up!).  So.  We’ll see.

What about you guys?  Any novelty 5k’s on the horizon? Have you tried anything new (or done anything a little crazy) recently?

91 responses

  2. Hahaha and while he’s doing all that, he’ll also have diapers on XD Re kids patterns, Ottobre magazine and Knipmode have the best ones around-patrones also has two children’s issues a year, back issues of the last two=ebay, Ottobre sell their own back issues (with full previews) on their website. Burda has kids patterns in every issue (some kids, some toddlers so check the previews online before buying). I’ve got some of these mags on swap at the moment so let me know if there’re any you like. There’s also a lot of kids pdf patterns on etsy (heidi and flynn etc). I prefer magazines because although it involves tracing you get a lot more bang for your buck (patterns are super expensive here) and you can pass the trace on and do the next size up when needed..

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  6. The idea of a tiny Hawaii 5-O is hilarious! I hope your friends take some fun pictures with the baby… I mean, that’s what babies are for! You take funny pictures and then embarrass them when they’re older with them. 😀

    I also hate running, but I would totally run/walk for walruses. I did once do a 5k walk for breast cancer and my friends and I tried to wear the most ridiculous things we could find that were pink. There were also several men dressed in (really bad) drag, which was funny.

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    • It’s probably a good thing that I don’t have any kids because I would be ALL ABOUT taking ridiculous pictures! I should do a breast cancer 5k, too. It’s really a pretty easy way to raise some money and awareness for a good cause!

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  7. That is a pretty awesome shirt. Re: running, I’m about a week away from being able to run a 5K, through the couch to 5k program. Except, well, I haven’t run in about 5 days. I’m so close, but I’m falling off the wagon. Good luck with your run!

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    • Ooh, I was looking at the couch to 5K program! It seems like a much more reasonable way to get in shape. If you get the urge to run for walruses in Coney Island in two weeks, let me know! 🙂

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  9. I’m another high school runner who realized that I didn’t love it as much as I thought I did! But I’m always amazed and grateful to find that I can run at least a couple of miles without too much pain, even if I’m completely off-the-couch. Good luck! The walruses thank you in advance!

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  12. There are exactly two reasons to have children: the first is dressing them up in things like Hawaiian shirts and lobster costumes and the second is some mishigas about personal fulfillment and a larger contribution to the world. Whatever, everyone knows the former is better. That shirt! I hope the child wears a felt mustache and gold chain with it. One month until Halloween, right?

    All 5Ks should benefit sea mammals. Seriously.

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  16. Aaahhhh this is wonderful! Just about the best way to start my Sunday morning!! You should throw in a mini-medallion too!! I have an almost 4 year old boy so have been in the boys sewing predicament for a while – it’s slim pickins… Liesl Gibsons patterns Oliver + S are sweet, and knit-wise (no pun intended!) Pickles.no have some great boys projects. Other than that, I drafted a basic pants block and graded it and that’s been a go-to of mine for the last couple of years. I’d love to know what you find too!

    x Elisalex

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    • Ooh, thanks for the suggestions! I just checked out the Pickles blog, and they have some way cute sweaters! I’ve never used an Oliver + S pattern, but they seem so nice. I’ll have to give them a try.

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  17. Aw, what a cute little shirt. I love it! I have to say, I shy away from shirts because I share your fear of buttonholes – no idea why!
    Good luck with the 5k!

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    • Buttonholes aren’t so bad, really. I have a 4-step buttonhole on my machine, so I just read through the manual carefully and did three practice buttonholes first. I slipped and cut into the buttonhole a little, but then I just went over it again with a zigzag. Not so bad. You can totally do it!

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  18. that is one fabulous shirt.. i love babies dressed like strange adults too, friend’s little son is often dressed in miniature leather motorcycle jacket, with all the studs and zippers, it’s hilarious.. buttonholes are piece of cake, as well as the zippers and interfacing and boning, and even the damn welt pockets.. i think some books and blogs talk about all those stuff too serious and too complicated, so we sometimes believe it’s more complicated than it is.. and running.. i should run, this time last year i did my daily 5 kilometers run, nowadays not so sure i can do it.. but i would try it for walruses.. and white rhinoceros.. and monkfish

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    • OH MY GAH, a baby in a motorcycle jacket?! That’s too amazing! I think you’re right– we get worked up about things and think they’re difficult when they’re really pretty simple.

      I would totally do a 5K for rhinos! I wonder if there is one… And I can’t believe you used to run 5K every day! That’s so great!

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  23. That shirt is as cute as a button!!
    Walruses? 5km? You mad woman. Couldn’t you just stitch them some all-weather capes or something?
    5km isn’t toooo hard. I’ve done it at quite a pace with zero training. Just depends how keen you are to get to the finish line 🙂

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  25. Oh Bless You, Sonja!!! (that came from the deepest parts of my inner old lady – btw) This is such a funny post – mini Magnum P.I. shirts and running for walruses?!? I had to read that walrus bit to my husband because he didn’t believe me. And I’m pretty sure babies dressed as strange adults is the best – my personal favorite is tucking t-shirts into sweatpants on babies…always funny!

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  26. Possibly a crime-fighting, convertible-driving baby with a mustache and chest hair. HA! Love it 🙂 I think you’ll be fine on the run, particularly if it’s a flat course- good luck!

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  27. Awesome shirt, Ginger. As a matter or fact, I used to own one just like that one. Kinda sad, but in my defense, this was during my hippie girl stage… Same stage as I when I tried growing dreadlocks. Don’t ask. Other than baby blankets, bibs and a robot quitl I haven’t really made anything for little boys. I find it as hard sewing for little boys as for big boys!

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  28. Oh that is so cute and the idea of a Hawaiian shirt wearing mustachioed baby rocks. Ha, I laughed out loud when I read you are doing a 5K for walruses! But they need help too 🙂 No chance of my running, as I’ve got a dodgy leg, but good luck with your race.

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  30. This is a funny post. Seriously. It’s 5:30 in the morning and I’m laughing. One, because you made a freaking Hawaiin (spelling?) shirt and two, because you signed up for a marathon for walruses. Holy shit girl, where do I even start?

    I’m an avid gym-going/cardio-lover/marathon runner… however you want to say it and my two cents is that you can definitely do this marathon. Pace yourself – start slow and jog for ten minutes, then walk for two, then jog for 10 minutes. Don’t look at how others are doing because THEY TRAINED AND YOU DIDN’T! I hope you go through with it. One, because of the walruses (lol) and two, because any challenge is a good challenge 🙂

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    • Ahahahaha, thanks! I figure people might get tired of getting the same ol’ baby gifts– I mean, how many burp cloths do you need? (I actually have no idea what the answer to that question is… maybe you DO need tons of ’em!)

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  36. Oh! I’m running for the walruses, too! IMHO 5k sounds much longer than 3.1 miles. So, maybe a little adjusting of your thinking will help get you over the finish line? It’s an intensely flat course – and since it is out and back, you’ll know when you’ve reached the half way mark. Good luck! I’ll say hi if I see you.

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  37. Haa I love your baby Magnum Pi outfit, reminds me of an episode of Father Ted where there was an outbreak of babies with facial hair. Don’t worry about your 5K – I did a fun run a few months back even though I am not a regular jogger and it was fine. I am sure you will have fun!

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  38. haha, I’m with you. I’d run for walruses. I ran a 5k once without really having run more than a mile at once. Needless to say I drowned myself with electrolytes later that day.

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  41. Holy.Cannoli. That is, without a doubt, THE BEST GIFT IN THE WHOLE OF THE UNIVERSES. Seriously. A Magnum PI baby needs to happen like whoa. Too, too much – I laughed out loud in my cube 🙂 Good luck on the 5K! My advice is to distract yourself! Type your pace into run.fm and find out songs that match with your running time – it will help distract your mind (if your friend doesn’t mind), or you could always use that time to ask your friend those personal questions you’ve always wanted to know: Best Muppet? Best food made with chocolate? The animal you would most like to be like? Worst song ever written? Just get your mind off of the running and the time will just pass by. Good luck!!

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    • Oh wow, thanks for the jog.fm tip! What a great idea!! I love it! Running is just soooooooo boring! But maybe with jammin’ tunes at the right pace, it will be more tolerable! Thanks, girl!

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  42. OMG!! This is so awesome!!! I would much rather the baby had chest hair and a stache than if his mama paired this with those tiny shorts Magnum liked to dash around in, lol!

    Also, I am always VERY impressed with people who run! For any reason. I try not to run because, apparently, I have the joints of a ninety year-old ;p

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  43. omg, i love it! i love tiny babies dressed strangely as adults! that’s gonna be a super cute baby.

    oh, and i started doing the couch to 5k app on my phone but i haven’t been brave enough to sign up for a 5k yet. perhaps if there was one for walruses i’d do it. 😉

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