Add Ruffles to a Shirt

 Hello Readers. I wanted to make a fun shirt and used a ruffle to jazz up a simple t-shirt. This was a pretty easy sewing project. A beginner could do this easily. Let me show you how I did it. 

  

Before and after.  

I used the ruffle from this blue and white dress. I had to shorten the dress anyway and saved the ruffle for this project. You can also use a ruffle that is pre-made for you. (Similar here.) I used approximately a yard and a half of ruffle on each side of my shirt. I needed a bit less than that, but that is a good estimate. You will need to adjust the measurement based on the shirt you are using for this project. 

 

I cut the sides of my shirt open. I needed the sides open so I could attach the ruffle to the shirt on each side with my sewing machine or serger. 

 

I cut the sleeves and shoulder seams off too. I made sure my ruffle pieces were a bit longer than my t-shirt so I could sew the ruffles and shirt together and have enough extra length in the ruffle to hem it to match the length of the shirt. An extra inch to make a hem will do nicely.

 

I used my serger to sew the ruffles on the sides of the shirt. You can also used a zigzag stitch on your sewing machine. A serger and a zigzag stitch will give and stretch a little bit so they are both great for knits like this t-shirt. I sewed my ruffle to my shirt, with the right sides facing each other, from the bottom of the shirt front, up the shirt, over the shoulder, and down the back of the shirt. I did this on both sides. 

 

It looked kind of like this. I liked the shirt in general but this is the time to match the length of the ruffles and the shirt. You might have a long tunic or a more cropped length. You can fold the edge of the ruffle under twice and stitch it down. 

  

I turned the edge of my ruffle under and made a small hem at the bottom. I used my basic sewing machine and a straight stitch to sew this. 

 

When the ruffle and the shirt are the same length, it will be even all the way along the bottom when you lay it out like this. The ruffle will hang down a bit when you wear it and have some movement when you move. It's really lovely.

 

This shirt needs sides and sleeves. I spread out the shirt and made sure all the edges were even, then I pinned the ruffle in the middle, where I wanted the new side seam. I sewed a straight seam on the outside of the shirt, on the ruffle, connecting the front side of the ruffle and the back side of the ruffle. It was hard to see in the pictures, so I put the tools on top of the seam. This seam ends about 5-6 inches from the top, that makes the "sleeve".

 

I tucked the shirt in here but it can be worn out too. I love how it turned out. Adding the ruffle adds to the size of the shirt and makes it more roomy too. Who doesn't love more room? Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ruffles for Dressember

 Hello Readers. I hope you are having a happy holiday season. I have been talking about the Dressember fundraiser all month. I have been wearing (And refashioning!) dresses all month to participate. I am on a team with my daughter. You can learn about our team here. It isn't difficult to participate, consider joining us next year. All you have to do is sign up and wear a dress. (Approx 75% of the victims of human trafficking are women. The dress is a symbol of those women.) 

This is my last refashion of 2023. It is a fun project to end the year on a cheerful note. I do not remember where I found this dress, it was from a thrift store or a clothes swap, I know that much. (Scavenging, that's how I roll.) 

Before and after.

This dress was too tight in the bodice but the ruffles! I had to save the ruffles! The only way to do that was to make this into a skirt. 

I cut the dress to remove the top. I left enough fabric to make a casing for some elastic. These ruffles are made of chiffon. I hate working with this fabric. It frays like crazy and slips around a lot. All I had to do was make the waistband so I tried to just get it done quickly. 

 

I put the edge of the chiffon through my serger to keep it from fraying. 

 

I put the elastic through the casing. I connected the ends of the elastic and then stitched the casing closed. You can see the lining of my new skirt here. It is a nice cotton knit material, like a t-shirt. Whoever made this didn't choose the cheapest nylon/polyester lining material they could find. They actually chose something comfortable! 

 

My new skirt is so fun! And it matched this flower pin that I have had for years and years and never wore. What a way to end the year. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

 

***Year End Update- I caught a cold for Christmas so going out was not going to happen. I love these ruffles and they will be worn soon. 

 

 

 

House Dress to Chic Dress

 Hello Readers. This big bold floral print really caught my eye. It seemed so bright and cheerful. It had a big ruffle at the hem and ruffled sleeves that made it look more voluminous than it really was. It made me look more voluminous than I really was too. 

Before and after.

This dress seemed like it would be great for a refashion. Could I make a shorter summer dress? Sure I could.

I decided to cut off the ruffle at the hem. It made the dress too long for me. It had to go.

I used this dress pattern to get the shoulder shape I wanted. The body of the dress was nearly identical to the pattern already. My work was going to be very easy.

I had my dress front and back ready to sew. I liked this new sleeveless dress.

I put the front and back together with my serger so I would have neat seams.

Those ruffles were calling to me. I decided to put the sleeve ruffles back on my dress. 

The ruffles added a nice touch and made cute little cap sleeves.

The skirt of the dress had a fun high-low hemline that I really liked. It was easier to see it with the extra ruffle out of the way. I loved how it all came together. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

***Year End Update- This is still a great light weight summer dress. It will come back when the weather warms up.

Puffed Sleeves and Ruffles

 Hello Readers. Button-down shirts are fun to refashion and they are always abundant and easy to find at thrift stores. 

I chose this striped shirt because I thought it would be great for summer. The black stripes were pretty neutral and the little pink dots were subtle. I cut the collar and neckband off and made a more open round neck. I thought that would be comfortable to wear. I cut the new neckline right above a button so the shirt would stay closed at the neckline. If the round cut was too far away from a button I would have a lot of extra fabric flapping around.

 I used bias tape to finish the edge of my new round neck. I stitched the bias tape to the outside and then turned it in. That makes the edge look finished. I top stitched the outer edge to keep the bias tape turned in. I thought this would be an easy way to finish the curved neckline I had cut.

I also cut the shirt into short sleeves. Short sleeves seemed best for summer. I took the sides in just a little. My new white background is great for photos. Unless I am taking a picture of a white shirt. It isn't as easy to see if the shirt is white. This was poor planning on my part. Apologies.

I tried some editing to make the photo easier for you to see. I am not sure it is really any better though. White on white is hard for me to photograph well.

To make the ruffled sleeves, I hemmed the sleeves and then added elastic. I tugged on the elastic a little so it would gather the sleeves into a little ruffle at the edge.

My new short sleeved shirt was done and perfect for work. I liked how it turned out. The little puffed sleeves were fun and easy to make. 

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Chickie's Year End Review-I liked this shirt a lot but it got too tight. Middle age? Snacks? Both? Oh well.

Refashioning a Refashion

Hello Readers. How are you today? Have you been refashioning lately? I like the constant change and creative fun of sewing. It doesn't always make sense but some of the things I make get worn over and over and sometimes, an item just doesn't get worn at all. I usually try and correct that by refashioning the piece again.

I made this gray top out of a big men's T-shirt. You can see how I made it here. I liked it when I made it but I didn't wear it often. I don't know why I didn't wear it, it just seemed to hang in the closet. It wasn't fair, it deserved to get out a little and have some fun.

Why didn't I wear this? I don't know. It was cute. I'm crazy.

I have had this skirt for a few years. I have always liked it. It is a heavy weight knit and it fits fine. It was very simple and classic. I like the heathered fabric. I decided to jazz it up a little by combining the shirt and skirt. 

I cut the ruffle off the bottom of the shirt. Snip, snip. It was done. I didn't have to worry about fraying because knits don't usually fray at all. 

I used my machine to stitch the ruffle on the bottom of the skirt. I can tuck the shirt in the skirt now with the ruffle removed. The ruffle at the bottom of the skirt is just fun. I am crazy about it. If at first you don't succeed (with the refashion) try, try again. Happy sewing to you, wherever you are today.

Thanks for reading, now go make something fun for yourself.