It all started with this $5 jersey tee I bought at Target two weeks ago.
Since I’m petite up top, the neckline went dangerously low and was showing off stuff it should not. I have this problem constantly but I finally came up with a good solution! Simply sew around the neckline with elastic thread. This cinches it right up and allows for some much needed modesty.
Next, I cut about 5 inches off the sleeves. This provided material for the flowers and gave the top 3/4 length sleeves. The great thing about working with jersey is that it won’t fray so you don’t need to worry about hems. I then cut lumpy squares, pinched them into flower shapes, nested them into another pinched square, pinned them in place and sewed them on one after another, like this.
When sewing them on, I just pointed the flowers on their side and sewing the tips as shown below. They will naturally fall down and ‘blossom’ from the weight of the material.
THIS TUTORIAL helped me but I did a much sloppier faster technique that involved no hand-sewing (Who has the patience or time? Not I. Scarlett is my sleeping time bomb).
Not bad for $5, huh? I love the end result and it was quite rewarding to transform a boring tee into something quite fun. 
I love what you did here... I have the same problem with v-neck shirts!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great look.
ReplyDeleteDeb
very nice...and an extra shirt at that price is still a steal :)
ReplyDeletethanks for the tute
That turned out super cute, I love it! I just clicked over from Craft Gossip.
ReplyDeleteI love this technique. I am hoping to use it on some t-shirts and am pondering just gathering up the neckline minus the embellishments. Can you tell me what type of elastic thread you used? And what stitch? I am just a beginner with sewing.
ReplyDeleteMychaelyn,
ReplyDeleteI used this thread - http://www.fabric.com/notions-patterns-sewing-notions-thread-sewing-notions-gutermann-elastic-thread-white.aspx. It's cheap and you simply just wrap it around the bobbin (make sure it's not stretched at all) and sew normally, being sure to reverse really well in the beginning and end to secure the elastic. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Thanks for the information. I do have another question. First, I assume that you only use the the elastic in the bobbin. I put the regular thread on top. I tried it but it didn't gather very well. Granted my t-shirt is different. It's this http://www.jcrew.com/AST/Browse/WomenBrowse/Women_Feature_Assortment/instantgratificationunder100/knits/PRDOVR~13620/13620.jsp But I was wondering, if it is a straight stitch or a zigzag.
ReplyDeleteMychaelyn, It should work great for that t-shirt too. Have you used elastic thread before? I used this tutorial to walk me through it :http://portabellopixie.typepad.com/portabellopixie/files/full_shir_madness_tutorial.pdf
ReplyDeleteTry that and I think it should work!
This is great! Love it!
ReplyDelete