Out with the Old Sleepwear, I Think

Have you ever fantasized about sitting at a vanity, powdering up before bed in a long bias-cut nightgown with a matching housecoat? I think there’s one such scene in Holiday Inn but I can’t be sure. I was pretty obsessed with that movie’s clothes as a teen, so to me 40s glamour will always mean Ginger Rogers floating around a piano.

I wonder if the lure is not just the glamorous style but the whole concept of a bedtime ritual. The time it takes to undress as much as it takes to dress.

{Carole Lombard}

Then there’s also the long-gone distinction between boudoir and the rest of one’s wardrobe. I mean, how could those beautiful buttons be wasted on sleeping!

When we were first married, D bought me some becoming camisole nighties but they have languished in my closet in favor of the old t-shirts and yoga pants. The thing is, I get cold at night, even in the summer. There was the minky pajama set that I wore to death for two winters straight, but finally threw them away for diplomacy’s sake. They were not D’s favorite, to say the least, and I’ll spare you from the names they suffered. He wants to talk to someone other than a fuzzy potato creature putzing around the house late at night. Fair enough. I want to be warm. It goes back and forth.

I’m trying to come up with some pajama ideas that combine the best of both worlds. Clothes that gives me a hint of that nighttime ritual, feel pretty enough, but still putz-friendly. As much as I love silk, I just don’t like wearing it in bed, so I’m thinking about what I can do with knits.

I have this cotton knit fabric:

Which needs some kind of drapey design for the big swashy print. For the top, I like this popular pattern from New Look, with the kimono sleeves and hip bands:

But I don’t need a new pattern to do this. It looks so easy to draft and I’ve already created a batwing-like top from my Lydia t-shirt pattern. It would just need a few modifications.

For the bottoms, I waded through all my Burda issues and found a couple elasticated waist pants that are slightly wide-legged. This is from the November 2009 issue, made for a woven but I’m sure would do fine in a knit:

I also have this Kwik Sew pattern but I think these bottoms with that top might be a bit too banded and harem-ish? Perhaps I’ll save this pattern for another pajama experiment.

Do you ever get in a pajama rut? Do you keep your night clothes separate from day clothes?

7 comments

  1. Amy says:

    My husband and I had a conversation on just this topic earlier this week. It’s gotten cold here (relatively, of course), so I’ve taken to sweats and wool socks at night – not very fashionable at all. But, I’m so cold otherwise. Maybe I should also hunt through my patterns to find a cute pattern and then search out a really warm fabric. Thanks for the inspiration!

    • Amy says:

      My husband just came back from Marin area and he said it was very fall… we’re still not wearing coats here yet. I’m a sweats girl, too, so I understand–and I will never give up my wool socks! 😉

  2. Alison says:

    I confess that I have seriously neglected the sleepwear segment of my wardrobe–especially since having kids. Something about wearing fancy pajamas while wiping a kids butt at 3am or even nursing seems, well, incompatible. So I’ve stuck with tank tops and boxer-stlye sleep shorts; it’s the look I’ve held on to since college really. When I’m done with this rearing-small-children season I may just chuck my whole collection, burn my nursing bras and reward myself (and my husband) with some pretty nighttime stuff. It’s interesting to think about sleepwear reflecting seasons of life…

    I love the look of those “harem” pants.

  3. Tia Dia says:

    Thanks for stopping by my blog, Amy! And your post couldn’t be more timely. I’ve always hankered after a separate boudoir wardrobe and actually spent the effort to have a really nice one way back when. Then babies arrived, and silk and babies do not mix. Period. My youngest is 8 now, and although I’d love to have something pretty and becoming for bedtime, practicality is my first concern. So I’m stuck in the yoga pants rut for now. I love your fabric choice, BTW.

    • Amy says:

      Yes, silk does not mix… with a lot of things. I love the photos but then I think about stains and all the handwashing–argh. Thanks for visiting!

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