A few years ago I experimented with fabric transfer paper when I made these winter pjs for the kids. This year I was trying to find something that didn't scream exclusively 'holiday-themed' since they wear these in July. Not that wearing Santa pjs in the height of summer has ever stopped us before.
Anyway, I found this talented Australian artist Rachel Lee on Etsy and promptly ordered two of her (instant download) prints.
One of my favorite kid's clothing stores is Primary.com and they have good cyber monday sales on solid-print pjs. My only beef (and it's a small one) is that the blues of Ben's top and bottom are slightly different hues. Different dye batch, perhaps.
Primary.com pjs have a snug fit (great for my string bean kids) and they're not treated with any flame retardant chemicals, which we avoid given how much time my kids spend in their sleepwear. Primary and Hanna Andersson are great sources for untreated pajamas.
The trick for dark-colored fabrics is to use the appropriate transfer paper and then to cut out the pattern. Which, for Emma's pjs, required a lot of cutting.
Worth it, though!
The one question that remains is how well the transfer will hold up after a year of intense use. I refuse to do any fancy handwashing when running kids clothing in the laundry machine so they'll be washed on a regular cycle and low dryer heat (our standard process for all clothing). The previous transfer pjs held up well but they had a lot fewer fidly bits that could potentially peel off. I'll do an update next November.
xo,
Sonja