Kids Makes
I’m Frilled
Soft and romantic – an ordinary T shirt becomes frilly and feminine when perky ruffles are added to the neckline.
The ruffle is made from a long strip of T-shirt fabric that is gathered and sewn to the shirt.
Wear the ‘T’ with a navy cardigan for a serious ‘girl with a clipboard’ look or go for a ‘50’s look and wear the shirt under a pretty dress.
Either way, ruffles always lend a graceful touch.
MATERIALS
* 3 T-shirts: 2 tissue-weight and 1 medium-weight in white
* Marking pen
* Scissors
* Straight pins
* Thread (heavy duty machine)
Steps to make
1. Lay one of T-shirt on a hard work surface, front side facing up. Draw a curved line on each sleeve about 4 cm (1 ½”) from the hem as shown. Cut along the marked line through both layers of fabric.
2. Lay one tissue-weight shirt on your work surface, front side up. Align the edges of the bottom hem. Measure and mark a straight line across the shirt bottom, 2.5 cm (1”) above and parallel with the hem.
3. Cut along the marked line through both layers.
4. Measure and mark three more lines across the shirt bodice at 13 cm (5”) intervals as shown.
5. Cut along the marked lines to create three bands of fabric. Repeat using the second tissue weight T shirt to make three more fabric bands (total of six bands).
HANDY HINT: If you want to make a fuller ruffle, cut up another T –shirt into strips and add the sections to the strip before you gather it.
6. Trim off one side seam from each band.
7. Lay the strips flat on your work surface, wrong side up. Pin the short edges together, right sides facing. To join the strips, sew a scant 6 mm (1/4”) from the raw edge until you have one strip that measures about 3.5 m (140”).
8. Sew a running stitch approximately 13 mm (1/2”) from the raw edge along one edge of the strip by hand or machine.
Optional: Machine sew a narrow zigzag stitch along the opposite raw edge of the entire strip.
9. Lay the medium-weight T-shirt flat. At the centre of the shirt, measure and mark two 20 cm (8”) parallel lines below the neckband - connecting the end points at the top and bottom in soft ‘U’ shapes.
10. Position and pin the gathered edge of the ruffle along the marked line (shown below ruffle #1), beginning at the neckband, going down and around the ends of the lines, and coming back up and across the top neckband. Trim off the excess ruffle, being careful to catch the gathering thread on the remaining ruffle.
11. Sew the ruffle to the shirt along the gathered edge using a threaded needle and whip stitch.
12. Use the remaining ruffle to fill in the space between the ruffles attached in step 11 (shown below ruffle #2). Cross back and forth between the raw edges in an elongated Z-shape, pinning the raw edge in place as you go. Sew the ruffle to the shirt.
Variations: Make the fill in bright colours
especially tropical hues and pair up with Capri pants!
Further Information
Photos and text appear, with permission from T-Shirt Style 2007 Creative Homeowner Home Arts (www.creativehomeowner.com). T-Shirt Style – Super-easy Looks in no Time by Gabrielle Sterbenz (ISBN 9781580113434) banishes boring T-shirts from the wardrobe with the help of scissors, a sewing machine and the great ideas in this fun book. Presented in a handy stand-up format it includes a collection of 31 styles ranging from casual daytime styles to funky evening numbers in a variety of tops, dresses and skirts. Most of the designs are aimed at the young (or young at heart) and all are quick and easy to sew. Techniques include ruching, screen-printing, photo-transfer and embellishing with rhinestones, ribbon, fabric flowers and appliqué. Full instructions are provided along with close-up photos, templates and graphic images so only basic sewing equipment and a couple of plain T-shirts are required to start creating one-off originals. This title would make an ideal gift for a fashion-conscious teenager with an interest in design and is distributed by the Roundhouse Group and costs £11.99 in paperback. For further details or to source a local stockist tel: 01865 361122.
