Reverse Applique Top

I got an order for a top with a reverse applique flower on it, and got it out last week. I hope she likes it!

 I love the colors she chose.

I've got the picture lightened up quite a bit, but it's a navy blue top with a bright green flower. The colors really pop together.

I took my husband's shirt

I did! I took it right out of his side of the closet and cut it up to make a shirt for me. When he saw what I was doing he was like, "Hey! Isn't that my shirt?" And I said, "Yes, it sure is!" And I don't even feel bad about it. Because, the truth is, he has never worn it and it's been hanging there for at least 3 years. So I decided to put it to good use and make something for myself.


I saw this shirt on Pinterest and I went and checked out the pattern and tutorial at Craft Habit.

Isn't it cute?

But, I wasn't starting with just fabric so I kind of had to just wing it......so mine doesn't really look like that either.

I started with this shirt, which I shopped from my closet (on my husband's side).

See, if you look on the edge of the table by the sleeve, you can see the price tag still attached. Three plus years is long enough to wait to see if he'll wear it!!

Anyway, I cut off the pocket and the buttons. Then I cut off the area where the buttons were, the area with the buttonholes, and the collar. I cut all of that off in one long strip. But I kept it around just in case.....and it's a good thing I did.

Here's the shirt after I cut that part off.

Then I tried it on and marked where I wanted the neckline to come to. I cut off the excess so that it was v-shaped then seamed it together all the way down the front.

Because I'm kind of a lazy crafter I decided to use the strip that I cut off the front of the shirt where the buttons had been as my facing along the neckline. It had been folded over and stitched so it would give me a finished edge on the inside too, so why not? And it worked out great!

Then, I tried the shirt on again and marked how much to take it in under the arms and along the side and also where to cut it off under the bust.

I stitched it up and cut off the excess on the sides and put a couple of tucks under the bust. (Oh, and did you know you can use a fork to make your tucks so that they're always the same? You can see the tutorial here. Genius!)

Then I took in the bottom of the shirt at an angle (the piece that I had cut off from under the bust) so that it fit to the bust line and got wider as it went down to the hips. This didn't take long at all and here's the finished project.

It was still a little loose when I got it finished (it made the bust line poofy) so I added a band from the side seams across the back to pull it in a little.

For that I used a piece of the strip of fabric I had cut off the front that had the button holes in it. To make it look finished I stitched some buttons on also, but they're really only there for looks. :0)

I was really please with how it turned out. Especially since I didn't have a pattern. Just an idea in my head sparked by that Pinterest find.

Fourth of July Shirts

The girls made shirts for the Fourth of July. These were really easy to do, too.


We started with a plain white t-shirt and added a hand print in blue.

Next came some red stripes.

And that's it!! Then we just let them dry.

Easy stuff and it makes a really cute shirt.

All in a name

 The only thing I've actually managed to get done this week is a name shirt that a customer ordered.

I have to admit that this shirt was more difficult to sew. That's a lot of tiny letters for a 5T shirt.

I had trouble getting a good picture.....as usual. I'm certain that I need a big, fancy, expensive camera. Don't you think so too?

The last couple of shirts for little girls that I've made have been requested in purple. So I'm thinking the popularity of purple is on the rise.

My husband and I did have a little trouble with the police, this week.

Here they are trying to get my husband to leave. You wouldn't think it would take that many deputies for one guy!

Just kidding, now. That's part of the strike force that handles crowd control and they were doing training exercises. We were part of the volunteers that were there to be disorderly and refuse to leave when told. It was fun. It's not often that you get to ignore the police with no consequences. HA!

I've got a list of things to get done this weekend, so we'll see what happens.

T-Shirts

I recently completed an order for three t-shirts with the names on them.

One of them was for a little girl which is what I usually do so no big deal. I could use the loopy cursive letters which flow easily from one to the next.

But the other two were for little boys. So this time I decided to use letters that were more blocked and hopefully a little more masculine looking.

I also opted for fabric with bugs on it (even if they are happy, colorful, little bugs.)

Here's a closer look....

I thought it turned out pretty cute. I hope they like them too.

A new top

Okay, this one isn't a t-shirt refasion but it is another shirt I made for my girls.


This one started with two cotton dish towels that I bought on clearance last year.


I knew what I wanted to do with them, it just took me this long to actually do it. lol

There was one pink dish towel and one plaid. The pink one had the embroidery on one end.

So, I cut it off at one end, leaving enought to just turn it under to make the neckline, leaving enough room in the fold to run the tie through. I did cut it in a little to give it some deffinition under the arms.

I cut the long (already folded and sewn) edges from the plaid dish towel and stitched those togeter to make the tie at the neck.

Then I cut a piece of the plaid towel to match the sides on the pink piece and shirred the fabric. After that, all that was left to do was sew the back to the front.

Since I used the ends of the dish towels, this eliminated having to hem the bottom of the shirt too.

I thought it turned out pretty cute. And for once, it actually turned out the way I had envisioned it. lol

The girls really like it, and I think it cost all of $2.00 to make. Can't beat that!! And, I like the challenge of looking for 'fabric' in unusual items. It adds an extra touch of challenge to the process.

Yet another t-shirt refashion

I think I'm on a roll here.


This is another t-shirt I've had laying around forever.


I don't even remember why I bought it in the first place.


And I know that this is (at least) the third house of ours that it's lived in.


I'm glad i finally got around to doing something with it. :0)

I cut the shirt off under the sleeves and finished the raw edge with a zig-zag stitch using contrasting thread.

Then I put a few lines of shirring all the way around the top.

For the straps, I  cut the hem off of another t-shirt and turned it inside out. It almost felt like cheating. lol

I cut a flower design from that same other t-shirt and did an 'Alabama Stitching' type design on the shirt along with the reverse applique.

When I got finished, I felt like it still needed a little more pizazz (as my girls like to call it) so added the beads to the middle of the flowers.

The girls are happy with how it turned out, as am I. This is the first time I've done a design without copying it from somewhere else. Yeah me! lol

Another t-shirt refashion

This is another t-shirt that I had bought for ridiculously cheap. It was just a plain white t-shirt and I knew it needed a little sprucing up.

I wrote (one of) my daughter's name on a scrap piece of fabric.

I cut it out.


Then I sewed it onto the shirt sideways.

She loves it!

I just stitched down the middle of the letters so it will curl a little once I wash it.

Now of course I have two more to make after the others saw it.

I also took a little piece of the fabric and made the bow for the barrette. Maybe now we'll be able to see her face?

T-shirt refashion

I remade a t-shirt that I had bought on a clearance rack for $2 or something like that.


I started with a shirt that was too big for me.

I cut it off right under the arms.

Then I used the fabric from the back of the shirt top to make straps.

Then I used elastic thread in the bobbin to put in a few lines of shirring on the back.

That helps it to stay a little more tightly against me. That way I don't flash anyone if I bend over.

I'm pleased with the way it turned out. It fits well and is comfortable to wear. I made sure to make the straps wide enough to cover my bra straps so that wouldn't be an issue either.

I would think that if you are using a shirt that already fits you could avoid the shirring in the back.

I've taken the time to be busy in my sewing room studio (sounds more sophisticated) and I've been loving it. If only I didn't have so much other stuff to take care of too. *sigh*