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Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Game Day Dress Tutorial

Like I mentioned in this post, I really had no idea what I was doing when I turned my husband's t-shirt into a dress.  I just cut, sewed, cut, sewed...until it turned into something.

I also got hungry often during this upcycle... so my attention wandered frequently.
Here's the tutorial.  I apologize that there aren't pictures of every step, eventually I got so tired excited that I forgot to take any pictures. 

Step 1: Choose an oversized t-shirt.


 
Step 2: Cut your neckline into your shirt.

Step 3: The sides of the shirt will be huge.  Put it on (inside out) and pin it to fit your body.

Step 4: Sew along your pinned line.

To keep both sides even, I only sewed one side, then I folded the shirt in half and marked the other side along the sewn edge with a pencil.
Step 5: Put it on and see what you think of it so far!  That's what I did anyways.  I discovered a few things from this step: 1) It was WAY too short! 2) The unfinished arm holes bothered me 3) I was off to a good start.


Step 6: Finish the dress to your liking!  I added bias tape around the arm holes, added a belt, lengthened the bottom with another fabric, and added ruffles around the neckline.

HOW TO MAKE BIAS TAPE: Sarai explains it WAY better than I can.





HOW TO MAKE A BELT:
 
1. Cut the fabric twice as thick as you want your belt.  I cut two strips, because I wasn't sure how long I wanted my belt. 

2. Fold the fabric in half (inside out) and sew along the long edge (leaving the ends open).

3. Pull the tubed fabric right-side-out.  Cut it to your waist size.  Finish the ends (fold the unfinished edge inside and sew).  Sew velcro to the ends so they close securely.

(No pictures, sorry.)

HOW TO LENGTHEN A DRESS: Sarah explains it way better than I can, and she takes pictures of her projects. (I'll have to simmer down next time and actually do that.)

HOW TO MAKE RUFFLES & FLOWERS: 

1. Take a strip of fabric and sew it up the middle.  Adjust your machine so it does long, loose stitches.
 
2. Pull 1 thread tight and scrunch the fabric down the length of the thread.  DONE!
 
3. I sewed several of these onto the neckline.  I also glued 2 of these in a circle on the belt to make the flower.
 
Now, let me wow you with the ridiculous quantity of pictures I took of the finished project:
I may or may not have a hair problem happening...

This is my "I have no clue how to pose for pictures" pose.


I still don't know how to pose for pictures... but I'm improving!

I'm not even posting the other back-side-of-the-dress pictures. 
My husband was the photographer, and the camera tended to wander...
 
 *Today I'm linked up at Handy Man, Crafty Woman. and Someday Crafts.


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2 comments:

  1. That is awesome. i love it. I came over from Whatever Wednesday link

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  2. Love this!!! And I'm a Purdue fan! And my daughter really hopes to go to Purdue to swim! Would you mind if I used your tutorial for a round up I'm doing? I will provide a link back to your site. Thanks

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