Custom designed pajamas

Pajamas are the most comfortable clothes for me at home. Because as a freelance illustrator and surface pattern designer, I spend most of my time at home: working, eating, creating, doing yoga, etc. That's what I decided to sew, with my print.

I like to combine comfort and meaning in design. So, I put into the design the first associations that came to my mind — the rituals of my morning. I wake up very early, usually at 5 am. After waking up, I wash my face, brush my teeth and tongue, and drink water. The day has not yet gathered speed, which is why it is a very quiet and energizing time.

At a leisurely pace, I meditate, read and drink tea. Before my son was born, I also practiced yoga.

And I literally trained myself not to open Instagram in the first hours of the day. That's why I ironically drew an old-fashioned phone, which simply does not have such a function.

As a result, I settled on the following pictures of the back of the pajamas:

• old-fashioned telephone;

• a hand with a mug of tea;

• a girl is reading a book;

• a naked girl on a unicorn with a brush smeared with paint (because the morning is magic);

• downward facing dog asana.

Images for sleeves:

• a girl eating a raspberry with a Vivienne Westwood choker around her neck and a handbag from the same brand standing next to her.

I love the energy and rebelliousness of Vivienne's brand and the fact that she was an environmental activist;

• hand with "f*sk": the meaning is not in aggression, but in the ability to express and understand negative emotions. This image of "f*sk" stuck with me after the start of the war in Ukraine. I decided to soften it with the flowers of Venus slipper.

Below is my first sketch of the idea.

The next step was to choose the fabric and sewing pattern. To print the print, I decided on natural cotton Popelina with a width of 147 cm. The printing company has:

• GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) and OEKO-TEX® Standard 100 certificate;
• green printing technology with minimized consumption of water, energy and chemicals.

I also bought a black cotton fabric to accompany my print. For the pajama pattern, I found inspiration in the movie The Talented Mr. Ripley, where the main character, Marge Sherwood, was working on her book in her pajamas.

Still from The Talented Mr. Ripley, 1999, written and directed by Anthony Minghello

When the design was clear to me, I began to draw the details of the print on paper at a scale of 1:1. Due to technical limitations (the size of my A4 printer), I glued the A4 sheets together. It turned out to be a picture on the wall of my apartment. It was always in sight, so I could start drawign at any time.

I then scanned and made a digital image. Below are images of what the finished print and printed fabric looks like.

The final stage was sewing. This process stretched for almost 3 months. Because I bought the pattern online and the smallest size was too big for me. I had to cut off a piece of the print on the sleeves. The perfectionist in me had a hard time accepting these shortcomings. Although, in sewn pajamas, these little things are not visible. In addition, I did not sew at home, but only in courses at Slow Fashion Café, where there is a teacher who can always help.