I've liked Babylegs legwarmers for infants, designed to keep an infant's legs warm when wearing one of those legless one-piece outfits, since I first spotted them years ago. They weren't available when Z was in her onesie phase, but I still like the look of legwarmers on little kids. Although Babylegs start out oversized and are meant to last into the toddler years, I wasn't sure the almost three-year-old Z would accept them now, given her increasingly discriminating tastes. I didn't want to take a chance at $15-$20 a pair (they've come down in price in recent years, into the $10-$15 range, in part due to new competition). So I decided to make my own.

You might discern from the pictures below that I was a child of the 80's. I can't count the number of times I watched Flashdance and Fame and I spent most of my time in dance class. Naturally, when I saw some women's knee-high socks on sale after the winter season for $2.50, I was inspired to make some homemade legwarmers for Z.

I was originally going to follow a tutorial for making them the "right way" (ie, with a finished hem at both ends) but in the end, I was lazy and the rough-edged style of Flashdance won out. So here's my two-minute, four-step "Babylegs" tutorial. Z loves hers - I wish I'd thought to make these when she was an infant and ran around looking goofy with pants pulled up over her onesies.


1. Carefully (or not so) cut the foot of the sock off at the heel in a more or less straight line.


2. Show your toddler how to put them on.


3. Wear on rainy or cool days. This shows the raw edge of another of Z's new pairs of legwarmers after a couple of washings. No fraying or loose strings!


4. Have a dance party in the toy store aisle!

This post from the ZRecs Archive was originally published on May 28, 2007. - Jennifer