The OU / Texas football game is a tradition in our house. Every year, we lug out the generator and multiple tents and grills and a giant television and set up a gigantic tailgate in the Dallas Fairgrounds parking lot where we watch the game with 40 of our closest friends mingling in and out through the day. We plan for weeks, our best friends split the shopping and prep duties, and we meet up way too early in the morning with coffee and breakfast burritos in hand to set up a ridiculously elaborate tailgate and spend gameday together. At halftime, we leave a group behind to maintain the tailgate, and we head into the fair for car shows, corny dogs, and fried anything-you-can-think-of… Rain or shine, win or lose, it’s one of my favorite days of the year. Thanks to the dumpster fire that is 2020, though, we’ll be watching OU / Texas from home for the first time since my early years of college. It’s a bummer.
The icing on the cake is that my team really isn’t doing so hot this year. The OU Sooners are coming into this weekend with a 1-2 record. To be honest, no matter what the record or which team is truly technically better, it never seems to matter come OU / Texas weekend, because it is just such a pinnacle of rivalry. But, admittedly, we do normally come in a good bit stronger than this!
All that aside, my little family is going to be gameday ready today. Decked out in brand new gameday gear made by me, we’ll be couch surfing in style as we yell our loudest “Boomer Sooner”s and enjoy some homemade tailgate fare.
I’ll start with the good looking, tall, dark, and handsome guy. Our anniversary was at the end of August, and I have struggled more than ever this year to be ahead of the game and ready with gifts for any occasion. We celebrated 7 married years together, and I discovered that the 7-year traditional gift categories are copper and / or wool. I am constantly hearing people rave about Merino Wool, so I ordered up the most expensive fabric I’ve ever paid for, and picked two cuts of fabric to make him a couple new tees – a charcoal grey Merino Wool (photos to come someday), and this beautiful merino wool / bamboo blend. This is a tad bit more red than our actual Alma Mater’s colors of Crimson & Cream, but I think we all blend together really nicely!
On Hubby:
Top: handmade by me
Fabric: Stonemountain & Daughter Fabrics – Chili Bamboo / Merino Wool Jersey
Pattern: Ellie & Mac Patterns – Straight Fit Basic Tee
Our mama / mini matching outfits are made of a ridiculously soft and comfortable brushed waffle knit from Stylish Fabric. This stuff is so cozy! It is a wide fabric, so when it arrived, I was pretty tempted to just curl up in it like a blanket rather than actually sewing anything… But the ideas in my brain won out, and I finally cut into it. Stylish Fabric carries QUITE an array of colors in this particular knit, and all have a really beautiful variation in colors throughout. This one is called “Red Deep,” but they also introduced “Ruby” and “Brick” this past Wednesday – slightly lighter and slightly darker in tone, respectively, but both in the same family as this. I’ve got a link to this particular colorway below, but you can also use code ELIZABETH15 for 15% off anything on the site!
Last autumn and winter, I kept seeing this button-front, tie-waisted, waffle knit top popping up in ready to wear fashion. I loved the idea, but wanted to make it myself! I ended up finding the Made for Mermaids Brenda Pattern at the time, and bought it right away. Of course, it sat in my Google Drive until a couple weeks ago, but I’m just a big fan of being prepared!! The pattern has lots of options – I chose the long, fitted sleeves, high-low button front, and curved back. I got lucky, and had the perfect amount of these wooden buttons leftover from previous projects in my button jar, too!
On Me:
Top: handmade by me
Fabric: Stylish Fabric – Red Deep Waffle Rayon Spandex (use code ELIZABETH15 for 15% off sitewide!)
Pattern: Made for Mermaids – Women’s Brenda Top
When I chose this fabric, I knew it would be my new gameday top for the year. What I did not anticipate was that I’d have enough leftover to make an entire outfit for the small girl. If you’ve been following my makes recently, you’ve probably seen this outfit combination before – the Lounge Sweatshirt and Bummies. I LOVE the way this little outfit suits her, so I was happy to cut out one more set. She falls squarely in the 18-24 months size range, but I’ve been sewing this set in a 2T in the hopes that it will wear a little longer. It is definitely oversized on her, and maybe even a bit too much so in this waffle knit. It is thinner and drapier than the French Terry fabrics I’d used for her previous 2 versions, so the fit is certainly different. She loves the feel of it, though – as soon as I handed her the top I’d sewn her, she gave me a huge smile and gave the shirt a big snuggle.
On Mini:
Sweatshirt: handmade by me
Pattern: Brindille & Twig – Lounge Sweatshirt
Fabric: Stylish Fabric – Red Deep Waffle Rayon Spandex (use code ELIZABETH15 for 15% off sitewide!)
Shorts: handmade by me
Pattern: Brindille & Twig – Bummies
Fabric: Stylish Fabric – Red Deep Waffle Rayon Spandex (use code ELIZABETH15 for 15% off sitewide!)
Key Ingredients:
Brother XR9500PRW Sewing Machine
Brother 1034D Overlocker
Schmetz Jersey Ballpoint Needles
Dahle 36×48 Self-healing Cutting Mat
Heat & Bond Soft Stretch (Lite)
So here we are – ready for gameday! If you’re watching along, who will you be cheering for? In this house, we say GO OU!
Thanks for reading my thoughts on our new outfits! The waffle knit fabric used for this post was provided to me by Stylish Fabric in exchange for photos of my finished garments posted on social media; all four patterns and the Merino Wool Blend were purchased by me. The words and opinions expressed throughout this post are my own, as always. Links provided throughout this post may be affiliate links – if you choose to purchase any products through these links, I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you. This simply helps me justify the costs of my sewing habit and the time it takes to share it with you!! Happy Sewing!
- XX Elizabeth
