I
asked my best friend what he wanted for Christmas and he said a homemade
t-shirt, which proved to be a little more than a challenge but I gave it a go
anyway! First of all I had to find some decent fabric as I didn’t want to just
make one with a plain design. I went on eBay and found a fun brown and
turquoise dinosaur print jersey fabric. This made deciding on the other colours
easy so I found plain brown and plain turquoise jersey and decided to have brown
for the front and turquoise for the back and then use the dinosaur fabric as a
contrast on the sleeves, patch pocket and the neckline.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEi_sB8p0P1Z5D63BLz_UQ73Roj42nbxSbVUYJBnGjfV0BfChuw40HCxKu5pD59fOjcaamL7AdN7MINyVzGBEGOCt_NIoSQz3FMh97J6iq5tSUlCCbsLPobK_nlkn0bnbTBvprWk1w1Ns/s1600/Alex+front+finished.jpg) |
Finished front |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuz-ge1zDXfeojKXbPrQQGABl4xY5EOPrRnF5RMUluFptOAhjCpgaWrVYKCFuTYi-VZkfYzXqXhwAPz7qizfj0ZyI5EVsCvCrke8n0l9i-NxNAzOBGxmWzQnrphzpVzTEV8wx1SJhvvQE/s1600/Alex+back+finished.jpg) |
Finished back |
As
normal I made my own pattern, which was relatively simple as I used an existing
t-shirt as a template to get a rough idea of size and then tweaked the pieces
to suit my design. I haven’t sewn jersey before so I was a little unsure about
if it would need extra/less seam allowance so I added a smidge extra, just in
case. I also didn’t change the needle I was using which I’ve since learnt is a
big mistake but luckily my little machine handled it well.
Cutting
the jersey was relatively straight forward but stitching it together was quite
hard as I was aware that it could stretch while stitching and end up looking
distorted. I also didn’t know where to use zigzag stitch and ended up doing
everything with a standard straight stitch – not the best idea on the neckline
where a stretchy zigzag stitch would have been useful.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_2Fb4q-gKSBqmAwi3wf6pB8WFap-k6ilS3breeNKNNRYL_woaZaBmax1OnjP7woW7K9Zy0hOOrT4Q9DruF0BV6OT8a_DkiugbuEHVVUzlDEIuKKrY3OKQez8x6VrGMbH2hhCUa_4cmw/s1600/Alex+top+sleeve.png) |
Sewing the edge of the sleeve |
I took
my time and did two rows of stitching for security because I thought the jersey
might fray with regular wearing and washing. Attaching the sleeves wasn’t as
difficult as I thought it might be, which I think was largely down to careful
pattern preparation because they matched up perfectly. I didn’t really have a
clue on how to attach the neckline and it’s a bit of a bodge job but when the
t-shirt’s being worn the dodgy stitching on the inside isn’t visible.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbns3hf6HJEflY14T5j1nD8lt2CNNgzKACFdjEoWVEC3YP5Jaj3kK9E9943fvYsrDISTrCuOV_jnwHyUfT6vX0yyfX5-QMG9gaXbhTyFiakscxamNI2iLE1-J8KGXfq9V0ojF_bEIHoeY/s1600/Alex+neckline.jpg) |
The dodgy neckline trim |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp4oIUsiJSRE39nMLvuMthJXjZyfMXATYFuLvXvAArNtvnpmckF144RVW1CmvSffyHMugC0Iwk6TKO-mkp-1eXKJqT97ap-LyxJ9shutdYZ1QUzzqNbeVJecQCTr2_tgjX0ZRUL9yfPVY/s1600/Alex+set+in+sleeve.png) |
The surprisingly well fitting sleeve |
The
easiest bit was probably the patch pocket because I left it with the raw edges
showing on the outside to give it a bit of an edge. I also put a turquoise trim
along the top of the pocket and a matching button to bring the whole garment
together stylistically.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcp_dnM-SfjhhrUzV-lufYDWn36svPAADzTa7HYbpTxwDeujpurEoloFw1rm8xLOSqwjGMxS_6tSPPa7ay2Iq12CAbntNoJiX8vsabH3YlLGzOFVnQQmnYsrfUvAWP3khxUgoW-sJWX-Q/s1600/Alex+pocket.jpg) |
Easy patch pocket |
All in
all it was a success, it’s been proudly worn lots of times and has survived
many spins in the washing machine too. The best bit is there was enough fabric
left over to make a mini t-shirt for his mini me too.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisLurEijuX8hCWO_fwwPtyTxFfcm-Kq6w93VYoIz1917gtEAAEKDzHkypRGQ-eeKg58wQnQ66oMSSe7zpnt4tMG7aEU9-Dl-WslYp91zoesZPHS75jTeWj9yHC88ci9AF9UAf58tCmtUM/s1600/alex+tshirt+and+mini.jpg) |
Very cute matching t-shirts |
All
blog content and photos are Copyright of Charisse Sayers Proofreader &
Copywriter www.charisse-sayers.com I
welcome all feedback and would love to know your thoughts so please get in
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