Easy t-shirt dress!

Let's make a plain shirt into a really cute dress!

Want to? :)

Well, I searched for a tutorial for a t-shirt dress using a t-shirt and one fabric. I needed something SUPER CUTE and SUPER EASY! I couldn't find anything exactly like I wanted so here we are! :)
What do I need?
1 long sleeve T-shirt
1 yard of fabric (depends on size of dress you are making)
Sewing machine
Coordinating thread
Scissors or rotary cutter
Measuring tape or ruler
Marking pen/pencil
Pins

Fabric pieces for a 2T:
Sleeves: cut two pieces 4.5" x 17"
Skirt of dress: one piece 9" x 34"

How did I come up with the measurements??
For the skirt of the dress I measured across the bodice of the shirt where I wanted the skirt to attach. It was 11 inches across. I multiplied 11 inches by 2 to get the width all the way around the shirt. Then I added another 11 inches (width of the shirt) to make room for the ruffles.  Then I added 1 inch for the seam allowance. That gave me 34 inches.
Width of shirt all the way around: 11"x 2" = 22"
Width plus another half for ruffling: 22"+11"= 33"
Seam allowance: 33"+1"= 34"
Then, I knew I wanted the length to be a little below the knee, so I measured from the place I wanted the ruffled fabric to begin on the dress to below the knee of the little girl. That gave me 7.5". I then added 1 inch for the bottom hem and .5" for the top seam allowance. So, 9 inches. :)

For the sleeves, I basically did the exact same as for the skirt of the dress. I figured out where I wanted the ruffle to begin on the sleeve, measured width of front side of sleeve, multiplied by 2 to get circumference, added another width to allow for ruffling, plus 1 inch for seem allowances. Ok, is that about as clear as mud?? ;) 
Please comment if you have any questions!

Sewing Instructions:
Start with a plain white long sleeve t-shirt...


Sleeves:
Step 1: With RST, sew the short ends of the sleeve piece together. Press open seam allowance.
Step 2:  Fold up bottom 1/4" and press. Fold up another 1/4" and press. Sew a top stitch close to edge.


Step 3: Sew two basting stitches for gathering the fabric. Pull basting threads to gather. (Use your longest stitch for the basting stitch.  Then to gather, pull the top two threads...not your bobbin threads. Gather until it is the same width as the sleeve where it will attach.)

(As you can see, I took a short cut and didn't cut off the salvage edge. Shhhhhh, don't tell anybody! ;))

Step 4: Repeat steps 1, 2, & 3 for other sleeve piece.

Step 5: Figure out where on the sleeve you would like the ruffled fabric to be attached to the t-shirt.  I slipped my ruffled piece up over the sleeve to see where I thought it looked best.  Then I marked the sleeve with a frixion pen like this.....

Real professional, huh?  Haha!

What's a Frixion Pen? I found this at my local fabric store. It is awesome. You write directly on your fabric with it.  To remove the ink, all you have to do is press over it with your iron.  It completely disappears! Here is a picture of it...

My markings were very messy at first so I used a ruler to straighten my line before cutting...


And here is the sleeve after it's cut...


Step 6: For the other sleeve, I took the cut off piece of the first sleeve and placed it on top and marked it like this...


Step 7: With RST, slip the ruffled fabric piece up over the shirt sleeve and pin in place like this....


Step 8: Sew piece onto sleeve using a zig zag stitch and a 1/2" seam allowance.
Step 9: Flip the fabric piece over the right way.  Press seam allowance up toward the t-shirt and sew the edge of the fabric like this using a zig zag stitch.... 


Step 10: Repeat for other sleeve.

Yay!  You're done with the sleeves!  Let's move on to the bodice to finish your adorable dress!!

Bodice:
We will actually repeat alot of what we did for the sleeves to attach the skirt piece to the dress.

Step 1: With RST, sew the short ends of the skirt piece together. Press open seam allowance.
Step 2: Fold up bottom 1/2" and press. Fold up another 1/2" and press. Sew a top stitch close to edge.



Step 3: Just as you did for the sleeves, sew two basting stitches for gathering on the top side of the fabric. Pull basting threads to gather. (Use your longest stitch for the basting stitch. Then to gather, pull the top two threads...not your bobbin threads. Gather until it is the same width as the shirt where it will attach.)

Step 4: Slide the ruffled fabric skirt up over the shirt, pin, and sew using a zig zag stitch.
Be sure to place the ruffled piece where you want it to be attached.   My shirt was a little too long, so I moved it up and cut off the extra.

Step 5: Cut off the extra fabric.  Please be super careful doing this though! You do not want to cut the ruffled fabric piece.

 

Step 6: Iron the seam allowance up towards the t-shirt.

 

Step 7:  Using a zig zag stitch, sew the seam allowance to the shirt...

 

All done!!! 

Wooohoooo!  Look how cute!!! 

And SUPER EASY!!! :)

P.S....I added a little flower pin for added cuteness!  ;)

 

 

God bless you!!!

Love,

Staci :) 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easy and Super Quick Skirt using FOE!!!

FOE (fold over elastic) is the best invention since sliced bread!!!  Ok, maybe not the best invention but it sure does make my life ALOT easier!! :)

I've made skirts for my children and their dolls and it is so fast and so easy.  I want all my sewing friends to know about this stuff!!! 

In about an hour and a half, I was able to measure, cut, and sew three girls skirts and two belts!  That includes many "Mommy, mommy I need this and that" interruptions. It also includes a "how long are you going to be sewing" conversation with my husband.  So, needless to say, my husband was beyond happy when I got three outfits made in about an hour and a half.

Here's a not so good picture of the three little St. Patrick's Day outfits I made in an hour and a half...

As far as measurements for the little girl skirts, I just "mommy measured" by putting the fabric loosely around the girls, marking with my finger, then cutting.  For the FOE, I "mommy measured" by putting the FOE around their waist snuggly, marking with my finger, then cutting. Very professional, huh???  ;-)

 

Ok, so on to the directions!

I'm going to show you how to make this little doll skirt. The same directions apply to all other skirts, just the fabric and FOE measurements will be different.

 

 

Measuremets: 

7" - 7 1/2" of FOE         

17" x 5" piece of fabric

 

Step 1: With right sides together, sew the side seam together leaving a 1/2" seam allowance. Press seam allowance open.

 

Step 2: Serge the bottom of the skirt, turn under 1/2", iron, and top stitch. (If you don't have a serger, you can use pinking shears when cutting OR you can cut the fabric 1/2" longer, fold it up 1/2", iron, turn it up another 1/2", iron, and then top stitch.)

 

 Step3:  Start in the center of the FOE and work your way out.  To find the center of the FOE, fold it in half, and mark the center with your fingers. 

Step 4: FOE has a crease down the center of it (length-wise) for easy folding. Place your unfinished fabric edge on the crease of the FOE.  Fold the FOE over the unfinished fabric edge.

 

Step 5:  Carefully place the folded FOE (encasing the fabric) under the presser foot.

Step 6:  Back stitch to tack the FOE securely onto the fabric. (I use the zig zag stitch that tacks down 5 times each zig zag.  On my machine, it is number 05 but I'm sure every machine is different.)

 

Step 7:  Pull and stretch that FOE like crazy!  Well, you don't have to be CrAzY! ;-) 

(The raw edge of the fabric needs to be encased in the FOE.  Make sure you are stretching the FOE, not the fabric.)

Step 8:  Sew using the multiple tack down zigzag stitch on your machine.  You may have to help it out a little bit by pulling from the back to get it started.  Make sure the unfinished edge of the fabric is encased in the FOE. Watch carefully the entire time you are sewing to make sure the fabric DOES NOT come out of the FOE.  If it does, you will be upset because you will have to redo the entire thing.  :'(

 

 

As you can see, we have done one half now...

 

 

Step 9: Now it is time to sew the other side. Place it under the presser foot and tack down like this....

Step 10: Now repeat Step 8.

Step 11:  When you get to the end, you will need to overlap the FOE. (You may need to cut excess off if you have a huge amount of FOE left over.)

 

Here is another close up of another FOE waist line...

 

Step 12: All done!!!  :-)  Now give to your little princess and watch her smile as she enjoys playing with her new doll's skirt!!! :)

 

 

 

God Bless,

 

Staci

Doll outfit with FOE

One of my new favorites when it comes to sewing is FOE!  FOE stands for Fold Over Elastic.  Many people use it for hair ties or headbands.  Others use it for sewing.  I am enjoying finding all kinds of uses for it. 
McKenna is sporting this soooooo easy to make skirt, top, bracelet, and headband ALL made with FOE. Love it!! I made this today so quickly! I love a quick and cute sewing project!

How much does Jesus love us?

"As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love." John 15:9 KJV

Wow!!  You know, you always hear "Jesus loves you."  But how do we know that?  The Bible clearly tells us in John 15:9!  Jesus says that He has loved us as the Father has loved Him. Wow!  Are you a parent?  If so, I'm sure you love your children more than you could have ever imagined possible.  Well, think about this...Jesus is God's ONLY Son.  And Jesus tells us He loves us as much as God loves Him.  Wow!  That should comfort your heart knowing that the Savior of the world loves YOU that much!

Budgeting

Do you have a budget?  Do you try to stick to it?  What are some tricks you use to stick to your budget?  We tend to spend way too much money going out to eat.  Whether it's just picking up a Pal's tea on the way to a friends house, grabbing lunch at a drive through, or going out to eat at a sit down restraurant, we spend waaaayyyyyy more than we would like.  In a 30 day period, we spent $300 going out to eat. $300!!!!!!  Are you kidding me???  Do you know what I could do with $300???  Putting it down on the principle of our mortgage comes to mind!  Seriously!  $300 each month extra on the principle of our mortgage would probably knock off a couple of years of payments!
However, it is just not reasonable for us to think that we can easily not go out to eat EVER! We did it once for 3 months and saved $$!  That was great and all but with being on the go as much as we are, it just isn't realistic.  We've tried it numerous times since our "one time" of doing it successfully, and have failed at it ever since.  Sooooo, we've come up with a "new" plan.  We will have $30 per week to go out to eat on.  (That includes a tea from Pal's, a snack at a ballgame, anything and everything other than eating food from home.) If we spend $30 a week, that is $120 a month.  $120 is way better than $300, right?  That will be a savings of $180 month just on going out to eat!  I think this is a very realistic goal! 
Let me know if you do something similar.  I would love the encouragement!
Have a blessed day!
Staci