I really love the summery style of having a flowy, slightly see-through shirt that you wear over a tank top. So I was really excited to come across this pattern, and then even more excited to come across this knit fabric:
That whole process is incredibly simply and shouldn’t take you more than a couple of hours. Here are the steps I followed (though you might have to make alterations depending on the fabric you use and how you want it to fit):
1. Buy 3/4 of a yard fabric and thread of a matching colour.
2. Fold fabric in half so it creates a large square. Then move the trim of the top half up so it is about 5 inches shorter than the bottom half. If you are shorter or just want a shirt that isn’t too long, trim off a few inches of the fabric along the top (meaning you will be cutting off the fold). If you are tall or want a long shirt just cut directly at the fold. You should end up with something that looks like this:
3. Pin pieces together along the top edge. Sew halves together, leaving hole in middle – this hole will become the collar so make it as wide or as narrow as you would like the shirt to be. I made mine quite wide because I like the fall off the shoulder effect but you can also make it high neck if you would like.
4. Lay the fabric flat on the floor again. This time pull the top piece down so the bottom edges of the pieces line up. Beginning at the bottom left corner start pinning the two pieces of fabric together from bottom to top – you don’t need to go all the way up because you will need room for arm holes. Repeat on right side.
5. Stitch pieces together while leaving 8-10 inches on either side for arm holes.
6. I was lucky in that my fabric was already closed off at the bottom but if yours isn’t you may want to zig-zag hem to make sure it doesn’t unravel. I also zig-zag stitched the collar and arms just to make sure my shirt would last.
7. You’re all done! When I finished mine I discovered a few fabric related issues like the collar not hanging right but they were quick fixes. So if you try this out and it doesn’t come out quite how you wanted just let me know and I’ll be glad to help out! Here’s a look at the final product:
I find it makes your average tank top and jeans just look so much more dressed up so I really hope you get a chance to try it out! Happy sewing!
Impressive. I am so happy that you are using your birthday present.
That looks great! I love your fabric.
Thanks so much! Couldn’t have done it without you!