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Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Free Super Cape Pattern!

I have a bunch of boys at my house. That puts me in the ideal position for designing boy patterns, doesn't it?  I absolutely love it. The only problem though, is that my baby boys keep growing up!


This little guy, for example, is turning three years old tomorrow!  How can that be?!  And he is all about superheroes right now.  So with his superhero birthday coming up I thought it was absolutely vital for him to get a shiny new mommy-made cape.  



 He is pleased!

And you can be too because today we are sharing the pattern with you!  Our super cape is reversible, sturdy, fits up to adult size necks, and it has several ways to safely close it without being a strangulation hazard. (Ribbon ties scare me!)  My little guy can put his cape on and off by himself, no phone booths needed!

 To make your own super cape, here's what you will need:


Your choice of closure (snaps, velcro, buttons, etc)
Scissors
Pins


Instructions: 

First you will print the pattern pieces (link above) and tape them together. Cut out the cape piece. 


Fold your fabric in half width-wise, and then again in half width-wise, so it looks like the photo above. This will give us two folds on the left side, one inside the other.  Lay the pattern piece on the fold and pin in place.  Cut around the curves. This will give us two cape pieces.  

Note: If you want your cape to be different colors front and back, you can repeat with your second fabric color (1 yard) and it will give you two additional cape pieces. You can now make two reversible capes! 


I chose to do red on one side and black on the other, for my boys' two favorite superheroes. I was planning to put a symbol on the red side until my older son pointed out that superman has a symbol on his chest, not on his cape. Good point.  Let's continue... 


Place your two cape layers on a flat surface with right sides facing. Pin in place all around the edges. Then sew along the pinned edges and curves, leaving a 4" opening at the bottom, as shown in yellow in the photo above. 


Clip the curves close to the stitching and then turn the cape right side out, using a dowel or chopstick to get into the small straps. Iron until the cape is nice and crisp around all the edges.  Pin the 4" opening shut.


Next we are going to top stitch all around the cape by sewing 1/8" from the edge. If you used two different colors of fabric like I did, you may want to use one color as your top thread and the other color as your bobbin thread. I used red on top and black in the bobbin. (Of course you could use all one color of thread if you want contrast stitching on the opposite side.) 


Finally we will mark where we want our closures on the neck straps to be and then attach them. You can use buttons, velcro, magnetic closures, etc. 


My favorite thing to use is Kam Snaps (see our tutorial here) because they are super quick and I love the look. Whatever closure you decide to use, please remember that for safety's sake it is good for the cape to "tear off" if necessary, in case it gets snagged while the child is wearing it. We don't want playtime to become a strangulation hazard! 
  

Look at this, I even had some of my cool Batman snaps left over to use on the black side of his cape!



 Happy superhero boys make for happy mamas!

Now all that's left for us to do is try to keep up with them...


Let's Create! ~ Kristen 

31 comments:

  1. Hi,
    I making this cape for an 8 year old do you think the next opening will be wide enough? Thanks

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    Replies
    1. Yes! The opening will be wide enough! Thanks for reading :)

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    2. No it wont be. I had to add ties to mine to make it fit an older chld

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    3. Definitely too small for my 7 year old!

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  2. Quick question - is it 1/2 yard per fabric if you do 2 fabrics for a cape?

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  3. Making these for great nephews Christmas present out of there hero material.

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  4. Thank you for sharing. These are perfect party favors for my son's 5th "Batman" birthday party!

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  5. Thank you for this pattern! I made a cape for my three-year-old son for Carneval to be superman :-)
    Greetings from Vienna/ Austria

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  6. Getting to work on this for my son's PJ Masks Birthday! He will freak out since his current capes consist of baby brothers muslin blankets tied around his neck....

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  7. just made my little great niece a pink camo,duck dynasty,batman cape love the pattern thanks

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  8. Love the pattern! Can't wait to make one or two for my Super Hero themed classroom! Thanks so much for sharing!

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  9. So cute! What size is the pattern or age of child? Thank you for sharing! Jaonie

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  10. I love the cape - but why have a comments/reply section when I notice there are never any replies by the author? Many of us have the same question but go on to another pattern when not answered (i.e. age/size).

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  11. I agree, the writer could have taken time to notice by now she's got a ton of questions here, but then again, most of the answers can be found easily if you read the blogentry thoroughly. So, maybe I can help (as a fellow sewing-mom)!
    She says her boy is turning 3, so that's the age of the kid wearing the cape. She also says the cape can be worn up to adult-age (because the neck/closing part is wide enough, I reckon), so it should easily fit an 8-year old, or any other kid's age.
    I don't think half a yard of fabric per color is enough. It takes two layers of fabric anyway, but you can decide if you want two different colors or both the same color. For the cape you need about a yard in length, but only about half a yard in width, so you could cut 2 times from that yard of fabric. If you want different colors you'll probably need 2 times a yard.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for responding Esther!!! Somehow we missed these comments!

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    2. This is still not clear. how much do you need for ONE cape???? A yard in length but half a yard in width, So cut two times? How much fabric should I buy please?????

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  12. I'm new at sewing and I have one question...if it's reversible then closures have to go on both sides of the cape...correct?

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  13. I am making one this weekend for my soon to be 4 year old granddaughter. I'm using pink paw patrol material and solid pink for the other side. Thank you so much for the pattern.

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  14. Thanks so much for this. I have never sewn anything like clothes (just quilts) and I've never used knits. This worked out well though and I'm pretty happy with the results. Thanks again!

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  15. Is it a 5/8 seam allowance?

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  16. Time to reply please! What is the seam allowance? And what exactly is the yardage required to make ONE cape? ONE yard? Less? Thanks for the helpful info!

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  17. I just used this pattern to make a cape, but sewed a Batman logo on one side, Superman on the other. I used a yard of each but had a lot of scrap. Could probably use 1/2 yard per side if you fold it right. The pattern was great.

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  18. Super Cute! I can't wait to make this for my grandson. Thank you for the pattern!

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  19. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  20. Grand Merci, c'est très jolie!!!

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  21. This is a great pattern!!! Thanks so much!!

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  22. Hi there, I'm confused by the 1/2 yard amount. I bought a half yard (width) of material for each side and folded them but the pattern is wider than a 1/2 yard (18 inches) it's closer to 24 inches. How is everyone making it work with a 1/2 yard??

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