Tutorial Tuesday: Muumuu Top

Today's tutorial is another from our friends at Stitch Lounge - this time a refashioning adventure! It's a slightly more complicated project than the ten-minute top, but the results will be worth it. Plus you get to take something that is mostly unwearable, though horribly comfortable - the muumuu (I used to have a real thing for muumuus) - and turn it into a still-comfortable, much more wearable, adorable top! :) Click here for the tutorial.

Tutorial: Ten Minute Top

Well, I've been trying to find us a good tutorial for a while, and today I think I hit the jackpot. Stitch Lounge created this adorable and easy top that just involves two squares of fabric and ten minutes of your time. I have some green-striped jersey I'm eager to try this with (I got it at Wal-Mart... three yards for 1.50. That was a good day.), so if it works I'll be posting pictures soon. Click here for the tutorial.

Modest Tip: "Unshrink" a Shirt

Sometimes you have the cutest t-shirt, but it's just too small - it rides up, it constricts, and all in all it just ain't modest. Well, the Household Hacker has come up with a solution for us. Here's a tutorial on how to "unshrink" a shirt, using vinegar and heat.

Make Your Own Layering T-Shirt

So, they're a big deal these days - shirts made specifically to go under other shirts/dresses/tank-tops/what have you. The problem for cheapskates like me is that, heck, they can get kind of pricey. All for a shirt you're only going to see the bottom of, or maybe the sleeves. So, what can a cheapskate do about it? Well, if that cheapskate has a sewing machine, that cheapskate can now take advantage of (dun dun duuuuuun)

The Great Layering T-Shirt Tutorial

Step One: Find yourself a big ole t-shirt that has your desired color, stretchiness, and softness. Maybe someone in your family can donate one to you, maybe a trip to your local Goodwill/DI/Savers will do the trick. I got mine at Savers. The t-shirt should be many sizes too big for you.


Step Two: Remove the sleeves. Cut them off, leaving about an inch beyond the seems.


Step Three: Turn the shirt inside-out. Find a shirt or tank top that fits you well and line it up with the t-shirt so that the collars are in pretty much the same place (I think the picture makes it easy to understand). Trace the sides and pin.


Step Four: Sew along the lines you drew, then trip the excess.


Step Five: Iron down the seams, so that they are open. Then, sew a top-stitch on either side of the seam. This gives it a nice detail and makes the shirt fit you more comfortably, with no bunchy seams.


Step Six: The sleeves. For this, just fold down the inch of sleeve material, then fold it under. Or you could fold it halfway, then fold it again. Just look at the pictures, hopefully it will make more sense. Then, sew down that hem.


If you want, you're done! You can also cut off the collar to make the neckline more to your liking (as I did) and you could also shorten the t-shirt if you feel it's too long. But there you have it - your very own layering t-shirt.

Getting Ready for Fall: Hoodie Tutorial

So, I love Threadbanger. Love, love, love Threadbanger. And today's episode was no exception. They took us on a fun tour of the American Sewing Expo, then taught us how to make a hoodie out of an old flannel and an old t-shirt. I am thinking I'm going to have to raid Savers/D.I. and find an old BYU T-shirt and blue flannel and make mine soon! Fall is here, and I am anticipating the cold. Anyway, here's the video so you can get to creating yours:

Two Ways to Sew Sleeves

I think the photo takes the place of any snappy intro to today's post. It also makes up for the fact that it's 10pm. That guy is awesome.

So yes, today's post is about sleeves. I found a site today (whatthecraft.com) with two tutorials on how to attach sleeves to existing or homemade shirts: the easy way and the harder way. I hope that these will be useful to you in your modestifying endeavors.

Tomorrow: Some of my recent projects. I know you're all on the edges of your seats.

Keep Cool Secret #3

Choose the right shirt. A great modestifying tip is to layer your shirts - if the shirt is too short, add a long tanktop underneath; wear a shade shirt underneath a cami; add a ModesTee to your slightly revealing attire. These are all great ideas - when it's not a hundred degrees out. Sometimes just the thought of all those layers is enough to make me sweat. So, one way to avoid that is to carefully choose a shirt that is both modest and cool, without having to add any extra insulation. My favorite shirt is a black tuxedo top style that I found at a used clothing store (Plato's Closet) - it's made with a thin fabric so it's deliciously breathable, it's modest, and it's cute. I love that thing. So, I went on a little search and found a few more modest, one-layer-covers-all, cute, breezy shirts for summer:

From Chadwick's:




From Delia's:




Hmmm, I think I have a thing for white. Most of these come in other colors as well, but I'm partial to white (which isn't so great when you somehow manage to spill all over yourself every time you turn around). I think it is key, though, to choose a light color and a light, breezy fabric. Stay cool!

For Instant Modesty: Part II

For instant modesty,

Add one of these:



To any of these:





















































Check out the ModesTee, wearable under any current fashion, here.

I Made This!

A while back I posted a tutorial on how to modestify a shirt that is too short (here). Well, this weekend I decided to try my own medicine and see how it worked. I had a really cute/funny shirt (I bought it from a used clothing store a while back), but it turned out it was a bit too tiny - it always rode up and exposed my back, which I just didn't enjoy. So, I did my best to follow the tutorial, but I went a little crazy and added my own ideas to it. I think it turned out all right. Here's what I did:

1. The shirt was a little too tight, so I added panels to each side. I had to rip open the side seams then sew in a strip of black t-shirt fabric from a shirt my husband was willing to part with.




2. I then used the bottom of Husby's shirt to add about six inches to the bottom of my shirt. Unfortunately when I cut the fabric, I didn't take into account the extra room I would need for the panels I added and the hips I was born with. So, I was left with big empty spots on both sides.




3. I solved this issue by sewing three button holes on each side of my big empty spaces and using the bottom hem of the original shirt to lace through the holes. Ta da:




Feedback?

Fun With T-Shirts

Here's a really cute video from Threadbanger on how to make a frumpy ol' ugly ol' t-shirt into a cute fitted one (with a boat neck, which is happy for me, since I hate t-shirt necklines, as previously mentioned.)

How-To Tuesdays: Darting T-shirts

No-Sew Fitted Tee

I've been posting a lot of tutorials and projects lately that all involve sewing. I realized today that this could be rather frustrating for those who don't know how to sew, who don't have a sewing machine, or who (like me) have a broken one. So, I found this neat little tutorial on how to make a cute fitted t-shirt out of a big ol' baggy one without one single stitch.
I'm coming in to a giant bag of t-shirts today (love freecylce) so I plan on trying this project soon. Hopefully I'll be able to expand on this and do something with the typical t-shirt neckline - which, as previously discussed, I can't stand. Anyway, enough about my t-shirt issues. Here's the tutorial from instructables.com. Enjoy, and please let me know if you try it!



P.S. Don't you love that she's wearing a Napolean Dynamite shirt? I surely do.

Modestify Your Tanktop

Do you have a tank top that you absolutely love to wear, but you've recently made a commitment to modesty? Don't say goodbye to it just yet: you can have your tank and wear it too--if you modestify it. This is a neat little how-to from Ohmystars Craft on how to add ruffled sleeves to a tank top.

Shirt Too Short? Modestify It!

Here's an awesome little tutorial from Ohmystars Craft on how to take a too-tiny t-shirt and make it into a really cute layered look.