T-Shirt made from ready wear Dress

I have been on the hunt for the perfect t-shirt sewing pattern. The closest perfect t-shirt I have found that is almost perfect is the Plantain Shirt from Deer and Doe. I wanted a different look so I tried tracing a ready-to-wear knit dress. I wanted the fit without buying another apparel pattern and wondering if the fit would be right. I laid the ready-to-wear dress on a large piece of paper on the floor and traced the front and back of the dress. I traced the whole dress in case later I wanted to make one, then I folded the paper template so I would have the correct size for a t-shirt. I traced the sleeve carefully by using the fold line at the top of the sleeve and drawing the curve. The neckline did not have a collar, so I had to add enough extra fabric to fold the neckline twice to create a finished edge.
I love the fit and the pattern cost was $0!!! I have a bad habit of buying new patterns when I have the same one just with a slight style change. Of course, I like to read patterns like some people read recipes.

Happy Sewing!

Comments

Robin said…

Great (and economical) idea! I do the same with clothing and existing patterns. If it's the same basic shape and you've got the fit, just make some minor alterations and voila! -- you've got a new pattern.

May 30, 2016 at 10:50 AM

Sweet Coin Purse Tutorial for Teacher Gifts

This time of year is so special to me because I get to show my gratitude for all of the hard work that goes into teaching my daughters. I love to make handmade gifts and this year is no exception. Since money does not grow on trees around here, I looked at my stash (I keep my scraps in hat boxes ) and tried to see what I had a lot of; small zippers, trims, Peltex strips ( from making iPad cases ), fabric scraps and some hardware for key fobs. So I set to work. Materials: Plastic multipurpose 5" Zipper Fabric Scraps Lightweight interfacing 808 Pellon Trims (We clipped key fobs with 1.5" swivel hooks onto our coin purses . There are tons of tutorials on making key fobs .) Step 1: Print out the Coin Purse Template PDF. Cut 2 main fabric, cut 2 lining and 2 interfacing using the template. Optional: Cut a 2"X2" square of your choice main fabric or lining. This strip of fabric is used to clip a key fob to your coin purse later....

Veruca Salt Dress

Every year we perform a musical and one of the highlights for me as a theater mom and seamstress is I get to make costumes! I love sewing and when I can sew for a show or for a music reason it is awesome! This year was Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and I was able to recreate Veruca's red dress. The first step is to find a sewing pattern that I can manipulate to look like what the character needs. I wanted to make the dress out of Pont de Roma fabric so it moved with the actress. Then I remembered the Marianne Dress by Christine Haynes , it is perfect because it also had a peter pan collar. The peter pan collar did have some issues. I did not want a t-shirt binding. Also, the back of the collar did not have a collar. I drafted a back collar piece and since the opening was not stretchy, I created a keyhole with a button and loop closure. I lengthened the sleeves and used the cuffs from the pattern for long sleeves. Next, we added the buttons! We al...

Fun in the Sun Mermaid Tutorial

Sewing Materials: 1/4 yard of Lycra or 5T or larger old swimsuit Thread Stretch Needle (helps) Sewing Machine and Sewing Notions Print the PDF patterns pieces out and tape them together. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Step 1: Cutting Layout- Place the templates over the fabric and cut. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Step 2: Fold the top edges of the mermaid tail and sew across. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Step 3: Place the mermaid tale pieces right sides together. Sew around the mermaid tail using the stretch stitch, it looks like a bolt of lighting. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Step 4: Flip the mermaid tail right side out using a chopstick. Option: You can add Poly-fil to make the end of the tale puffy. Set aside. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Bodice Step 1: Cut a bodice measuring 4.5” X1.5” or use template. ✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄ ✄✄✄✄ ✄✄ Step 2: Fold the bodice right sides together and sew the short ends making a loop. Use the e...

Sew Spoiled

Search This Blog