Today I’ve got my review of the Agnes PJs pattern by Paper Theory.

I have to admit that sometimes I have difficulty finding the motivation to sew pyjamas. I know, intellectually, that I probably wear PJs more hours of the day than I wear any other garment. But sometimes it’s just a bit tricky to get started.

It feels daunting.

It feels like two entire garments.

And, somehow, it still doesn’t feel like “real” clothes to boot.

So, I’m not going to lie, it takes me a while to work up to sewing pyjamas.

Well I’m happy to report that the Agnes PJs came together surprisingly quickly and it did not feel like a slog at all.

In fact, the PJ bottoms on Agnes are extremely simple – there’s no side seam (and therefore pockets) and the waistband is just folded down. So, really if you think about, sewing the pants is just 6 straight lines. So my fear that it’s two entire garments was unfounded when the second garment is so simple!

It didn’t really feel like a big project at all!

All about the Agnes PJs

My Agnes PJs are a bit of miss-mash of sizes, all based on my body measurements.

I made a size 14 for the top. For the bottom, I made a size 18 at the waist, but then graded down to 16 for the length of the leg. I decided on the latter grading down after measuring the size of the pattern piece at the widest part of the thigh and checking it against my body.

I’ve made every Paper Theory pattern in existence to date and I would say that the Agnes PJs feel as though they have a little bit less ease than some other Paper Theory patterns. I think that the amount of ease is spot on – these feel relaxed and comfy without being oversized. But just a word of warning if you might have been expecting things to be very oversized. It’s not.

Speaking of size, I feel as though I have always had a bit of a curse when it comes to sizing and sewing PJs. My first ever attempt at sewing pants was the pyjama bottoms from the first Tilly and the Buttons book.

Which I made too small and attempted to rescue with a triangle of fabric at the bum.

It did not go well.

Last year I sewed some Carolyn Pyjamas by Closet Core Patterns. Unfortunately, the Carolyn Pyjamas (at least at that time) didn’t include the full range of finished garment measurements that Closet Core Patternshave started including from the Blanca Flight Suit onwards. Which means that I didn’t realise when I made them that my thighs in Closet Core Patterns are two full sizes larger than my hips. So I actually never wear the Carolyn Pyjamas much because the bottoms are not sufficiently comfortable around the thigh.

Discomfort is just not something I will tolerate in pyjamas!

So, given these me-made pyjama sewing woes, I’m over the moon with the fit on the Agnes PJs. Everything corresponded with the finished garment measurements and I’m happy with the overall balance of the pyjamas.

I’ve also been wearing these non-stop and they are perfect for actually sleeping – which is really the most important thing of all.

I find the Agnes PJs roomy enough to be comfy both in and out of bed but not so roomy that they get bunched up or twisted around with night time twisting and turning (is anyone else out there a highly unsettled sleeper?).

These Agnes pyjamas really are the the most comfy PJs I’ve worn!!

I also have to say that, at first I was a little unconvinced as to whether the grown on sleeve would be comfortable, but it really is. The sleeve is also the perfect length so that it is warm and cosy but doesn’t actually get in your way when your cooking a late-night dinner in your PJs!

For me the Agnes PJs just really nails the proportions and look.

My version of the Agnes PJs are made out of a brushed cotton that I bought at the autumn fabric market.

My sewing experience

Sewing the Agnes PJs was all smooth sailing. I found it straightforward and didn’t experience any issues.

The only potential ‘downside’ of the pattern, in my view, is that the very simple pants means no side seam, therefore no pockets. If you want pockets on the pants, in addition to on the top, you could probably have to add a patch pocket.

Speaking of pockets, I decided to cut my top pockets on the bias, for visual interest. I interfaced the entire pocket with some lightweight interfacing, just to help prevent it from stretching out.

Speaking of interfacing, I also added lightweight interfacing to the entire facing, rather than having to interface just where the buttons would be going later.

The one area of sewing where I had some entirely self-induced problems is the hem. The top of the Agnes PJs is designed so that the centre of the hem (where the facing is) is shorter than the rest of the hem. You then create a wonderfully neat finish by bagging the shell and the facing together at the centre, and then you continue with a normal hem.

This is a great and neat way to do it.

As long as you are an accurate sewist.

Which I am not!!

Having done this, I ended up with some lumps and bumps over the front of my shirt because I had cut and sewed inaccurately so my shirt front and facing were not exactly the same size anymore.

So I ended up unpicking the bagged out part of the centre hem and having to re-do it.

Which is why, even if it is definitely a less classy finish, I kind of prefer it when there is just an ordinary hem all around because this is more forgiving for error. If things aren’t quite lining up right, I can adjust more easily to hide it.

Closet Core Eye Mask

The week after I finished these Agnes PJs, Closet Core Patterns released their free eye mask pattern.

Which felt like serendipity.

So I promptly made up one to match.

I have to confess that, due to self error, I found the eye mask more challenging than the pyjamas! I accidentally put by batting on the outside, not the inside (as I didn’t follow the blog instructions and was just doing it on my own).

I didn’t notice this error until I had graded down all the seams. Then I tried to unpick and resew, but everything had frayed so much that I couldn’t do it properly.

After several attempts, I ended up recutting and doing it all again.

Second time around was piece of cake!

The outer fabric is my Agnes PJs fabric (obviously). I didn’t have any quilt batting, so I used a thick wool scraps from this coat. For the inner layer, I put some nice soft linen. I was tempted by silk, but figured that fully washable makes more sense for an eye mask.

And, so, as is often the case with projects that I put off, when I actually sew them my overwhelming feeling is “why int he world did this take me so long”?

I love these Agnes PJs and have been wearing them, ummm, non-stop!

Are you on Team Sew-Your-Own-Pyjamas?

If you want to see more of my sewing adventures, you can find me on Instagram here.