Four Shirts Four Ways ~Navy~

When I was brain storming some t-shirt refashion designs for the "Four Shirts Four Ways", I wanted to work with the navy shirt first, but I couldn't quite finalize the design.

I am so happy that I was able to make the shirt almost exactly the way I pictured it in my mind. It might look a little more complicated than my other ruffle shirt, but don't be afraid! It is quit simple, it is just a little time consuming when sewing the beads on, but the result is totally worth it!

Here is what I did:

{You will need}

2 of the same t-shirt
matching thread
two different kind of beads

{How to}

1. Take one of the t-shirt, lay it flat on the cutting board, make sure that there are no whrinkles. Cut 4 - 2 1/4" wide strips.


2. Cut one side of the 2 1/4" loops to open the loop and make it in to strips. Piece two strips from the bottom to make a slightly larger loop, and take the other two pieces put together to make a slightly smaller loop.

 
3. Using large stitches, sew 1/4" from the one side and go all around the loop. Pull one thread to gather the fabric to make ruffles.

 
4, Pin the larger ruffled loop to the bottom (little above the seamline of the bottom) and sew. Pin the smaller ruffled loop above the first ruffle (so that the second ruffle will overlap a little with the first one) and sew.

 
5. Cut 2 - 1" wide loop from the t-shirt. Cut oneside open to make strips.


6. Sew in the middle of the strips in the same manner as step 3 to make ruffles.


7. Place the ruffles as you desire and pin them. It will be helpful to play around with it for a little bit to see what you like. I did mine on the left side of the neck and the right side of the bottom.

 
8. I wanted to make this ruffle shirt different than my other ruffle shirt, so I sewed some beads to give it a little sparkle.

 
9. Finished!


If you are not keen on the bead work, I think it is perfectly fine to stop at step 7. It is all up to you! Play with the ruffle strips, you might end up with something totally unique that fits your style. :)


I couldn't help but try on my new shirt... Our anniversary is comming up, this shirt might be the "one" for our date.

  

Tutorial ~Ruffle Shirt 2 ~

The ruffle shirt tutorial I did a while back was the most popular tutorial I have ever done. I love the shirt so much that I wear it all the time. This time, I wanted to try something a little different but still with lots of ruffles.

At regular Down East stores, they have been selling their wonder tee for $5. I bought 2 shirts for this project. One shirt is one size larger, I wanted to cut out longer strips.


{How To}

1. Cut the sides of the t-shirts. You will have two pieces now. Lay them flat on cutting table and cut the fabric diagonally. (The strips are 2 1/2" wide)


2. Draw 1 1/2" line in the middle of the t-shirt, from the neck down.


3. Stitch the line and pull the thread to gather the fabric to make a sweetheart shaped neckline.


4. Take the strips you made from step 1, and cut the ends with a nice curve so they will have a nice smooth edge.


5. Then, cut the strips wavy.


6. To make ruffles, sew the strips with the largest setting on your sewing machine. (1/4" from the edge)


7. Pull the string to gather fabric. Now you have pretty ruffles!


8. To sew the ruffles onto the t-shirt, start from the left side. Please use the pictures as a guide. This is a little tougher than the other ruffle shirt.

a. Sew the short ruffles by the neckline.


b. Sew the medium ruffles below 8a. Make sure a will hide b's top part.


c. Sew the long ruffles.(part of the ruffles overlap each other, and that's OK)


d. Sew the long ruffles as in 8c, but to finish it off place the ruffles downward.


9. Now, work on the right side.

a. Sew the short ruffles by the neckline. Overlap the left side ruffles a little.


b. Sew the short ruffles below 9a. The end will lay between 8b and 8c on the left side.


c. Sew the long ruffles below 9b. From the middle section, the ruffles need to go downward.


d. Sew the long ruffles below 9c. Follow the natural curve that 9c made.


e. Sew the medium ruffles next to 9d.


I gave you the directions for what I did and how I did it, but of course, you can be creative and play around with the ruffle strips! You never know, what kind of design you can come up with.


I am pretty excited with the results, and wore it as soon as I finished it! I would loove to try this with silk or a more thin and soft material. Wouldn't that be fun? I know I am going to enjoy the shirt this summer!

Ruffled Shirt ~Vintage Dress Repurpose~

Note: I have a special surprize at the end of this post, it is somethig to do with the fabric I used...hint hint hint ;)

In the last few posts, I wrote about the vintage dress I found at a thrift store and the things I made out of it.


I still had more fabric left, so I decided to make a top for the upcoming season. I just finished it...


The close up...


I used a pattern from Simplicity(2415), but I changed a few things here and there to make it mine. I made thin strips of ribbon to use as a belt. Also, I couldn't resist to add a feminine touch by adding ruffles in front. I LOVE how it turned out!

I can think of so many different ways to wear this shirt. For example, with some denim...


or, capris and other bottoms, but I think my favorite outfit will be with a white skirt...


accompanied by my favorite white straw hat...


I have a little surprize for you all... The skirt of the vintage dress was made from 4 panels of fabric. Now I am down to 1 panel. Since I had so much fun with this fabric, I thought you would too. I am doing a fabric giveaway!


The rules are simple:

1. Leave a comment on this post (you will get one entry)

2. Become follower of my blog and show me your beautiful face on my side bar (second entry)

3. Blog about this giveaway on your blog and link back (third entry)

I will announce the winner on the night of Friday the 16th. What would you make if you win the fabric? A scarf? A bunch of flowers? The possibilities are endless.
I am really excited about this giveaway, I hope you are too. Have a nice week everyone!

Tutorial~Ruffle shirt~ Why Not Vertical

I found these t-shirts at Target the other day, they were $5 each. When I tried them on, they fit perfectly and I loved the color! I just wanted to add some personal touches to my spring wardrobe. I was thinking about all the other options, then one of my previous posts crossed my mind. I love the shirt and I wear it ALL THE TIME! It is perfect underneath a cardigan. I wanted to do something different this time though... well, why not a vertical ruffle shirt!


{How To}

1. Cut one of the t-shirts along the seam line. To have longer strips, I used the back of the shirt for the ruffles.


2. cut 3 - 2 1/2" strips and 3 - 1 3/4" strips. My shirt was xs, if you are working with a larger shirt, you can cut the strips wider or make more rows.


3. Lay 1 3/4" strips on top of the 2 1/2" strips. Make sure that the top strips are in the middle.


4. Cut several inches off of two of the strip sets, these will be your side ruffles. (I cut 6" off, you may want to do more or less.) You will have 2 - 18" long strip sets and 1 - 24" long strip.


5. Using your largest stitch, sew in the middle of the strips. Pull on one of the thread to gather the fabric to make ruffles. Remember, there are other methods to make ruffles, do whatever method you are comfortable with.



6. Fold the t-shirt in half and make a crease in the middle. Pin the longest ruffle set in the middle of the shirt. Sew the ruffle by using a regular stitch.


7. Do the same with the two other ruffle strips. Lay them right next to the middle ruffle. Once you wash the shirt, there will be more space in between the ruffles.


It was little chilly outside, but I enjoyed the shirt. I can't wait for Spring to come!