Tutorial: sundress from two contrasting T-shirts
I had those two oversize T-shirts, and I thought "why not?"
This video
Then there were a number of patterns that involved using two T-shirts. Such as this adorable pattern for two-Tshirt little girl's dresses.
And to make it more fitted and interesting, a lacing-up on the side, inspired by one of my favorite evening dresses:
Top T-shirt: Cut as shown.
In addition, cut straight across the bottom to match the placement of the waist.
Bottom T-shirt: Cut as shown. At this stage, you need to determine how long you want the skirt to be. This will determine how tall you make the rectangle. The bottom hem of the shirt will be the bottom edge of your skirt.
Unfold both pieces and line them up according to the side fold (the left side on each we left uncut). Pin together and stitch. The two T-shirts do not have to be the same size. It's OK if there is extra fabric on the sides for one of them, this will all be trimmed off further below.
Next, we work on the lacing on the side of the dress. Mark the location of the center of what you have so far with pins.
Using scrap fabric from the top and bottom to match color, make 12 small tubes.
Fold the tubes in half, place them as shown below and stitch in place. If you have a lot of curve to accommodate, place the loops further apart at your narrowest point, so that they gather the fabric when laced up.
Lace up the loops in the tight position (but not scrunched up). Fit the dress, pinning it closed. Cut the skirt in an A line, mirroring the shape it makes on the laced up side.
Stitch the side seam closed.
Hem the sleeve hole and the neckline, following proper knit fabric hemming techniques (I used fuseable interfacing)
Make a shoulder strap and sew in place.
You will need 2 wide, long rectangles in the main color (mine were 10 cm x 52 cm), and 2 rectangles of the same length in the contrasting color. They can be as wide to begin with, you can trim off excess fabric later. Attach all the rectangles lengthwise, alternating colors.
Once that's done, join the last seam. You now have a tube of 4 stripes of alternating colors. Trim off excess fabric and turn the tube inside out so that the seams are inside the tube.
Lay the strap flat. The main bands will be flat and the contrasting bends will be folded in half, on the edges. Press the strap. Top stitch along the sides of the main bands. Put on a bra (or whatever strappy underwear you want to be able to cover), pin the strap where you want it and sew in place.
Cord
I made the lace cord myself, from thick cotton thread and a large crochet hood (I made a chain). I attached glass beads at the end. It's a nice finishing detail and it weighs the ends of the cord down.
If you have leftover fabric and want to go crazy, you can add ruffles at the neckline.
Inspirations behind the design
Two brightly colored, slightly oversize T-shirts.
This video
Then there were a number of patterns that involved using two T-shirts. Such as this adorable pattern for two-Tshirt little girl's dresses.
And to make it more fitted and interesting, a lacing-up on the side, inspired by one of my favorite evening dresses:
Tutorial
Put the top T-shirt on and mark where you want the waist of the dress to fall (mine is low-waist), adding half an inch for seam allowance. Turn the T-shirts inside out and lay them flat.Top T-shirt: Cut as shown.
Next, we work on the lacing on the side of the dress. Mark the location of the center of what you have so far with pins.
Using scrap fabric from the top and bottom to match color, make 12 small tubes.
Fold the tubes in half, place them as shown below and stitch in place. If you have a lot of curve to accommodate, place the loops further apart at your narrowest point, so that they gather the fabric when laced up.
Lace up the loops in the tight position (but not scrunched up). Fit the dress, pinning it closed. Cut the skirt in an A line, mirroring the shape it makes on the laced up side.
Stitch the side seam closed.
Hem the sleeve hole and the neckline, following proper knit fabric hemming techniques (I used fuseable interfacing)
Make a shoulder strap and sew in place.
Embellishments
Two-tone shoulder strap (shown)
You will need 2 wide, long rectangles in the main color (mine were 10 cm x 52 cm), and 2 rectangles of the same length in the contrasting color. They can be as wide to begin with, you can trim off excess fabric later. Attach all the rectangles lengthwise, alternating colors.
 |
| The four strips attached together, right sides shown. |
Once that's done, join the last seam. You now have a tube of 4 stripes of alternating colors. Trim off excess fabric and turn the tube inside out so that the seams are inside the tube.
Lay the strap flat. The main bands will be flat and the contrasting bends will be folded in half, on the edges. Press the strap. Top stitch along the sides of the main bands. Put on a bra (or whatever strappy underwear you want to be able to cover), pin the strap where you want it and sew in place.
Cord
I made the lace cord myself, from thick cotton thread and a large crochet hood (I made a chain). I attached glass beads at the end. It's a nice finishing detail and it weighs the ends of the cord down.
 |
| Closeup of the lacing |
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