As we head ever closer to the Yuletide festival that cheered our ancestors through the long dark winter, the peaches and apricots are ripening in backyards across Melbourne.

We have had our first flushes of heat and in the scrabble for shorts and tshirts, I realised that whilst Our Dear Boy’s cup runneth over in the shorts department, Our Dear Girl has only two!  Two pairs of shorts do not get a four year old through one day between drink spills and craft activities.

We had an emergency sewing session.  Our Dear Girl selected the fabric from an edited stash collection and I ran up a couple of quick pairs.

I altered a shorts pattern I had for Our Dear Boy, making it narrower, shorter in length and rise. This pair is made of madras cotton I think.  It has a little seersucker type ripple through and smells slightly of dye which is curious.

This pair is gathered at the hem and has a pocket on the back.

Here is the other pair which I think might be a Liberty cotton.  It is very fine and has a slight sheen across the surface.  Both fabrics are small remnants that my mum found in a charity shop that she thought might come in handy for just such a purpose.

This pair has a pocket on the back too.  I reckon pockets are important in girl’s clothing but are often absent for some reason.  Our Dear Girl has asked for more pockets next time.

This pair is trimmed with the same fabric cut on the bias and gathered.  It adds a little bit of friz (she has reached the friz awareness stage) but is still practical for climbing into trees and over high fences as Our Dear Girl is wont to do.

Both pairs are have a non-twisting elastic waist in a self-casing.

They await their first paint daubs and food stains.  Viva la shorts!