1.19.2012

(tutorial) My Favorite Tee Dress

I am slowly but surely making a dent into my striped fabric.  
I have this dark navy and oatmeal wide striped piece that I hadn't used any of, and decided it would make a cute dress.  So I got to work:
I have to admit, it turned out better than I thought it was going to.  Originally I planned to make it a little looser and have an elasticated/shirred waistline but it came out a bit more fitted, so that was unnecessary! 
I think it is more flattering this way. (Unless you are super skinny...)
The best part?  IT WAS SO EASY!

It is just a quick pattern using your favorite tee, with 4 seams and hemming.
The hemming was magically easy, because I used this technique!
The hardest part was dealing with the stripes.












**Linked up here**

Materials:
About 1 1/2 -2 yards of wide knit fabric
Your favorite Tee (Preferably sort of loose)
Steam A Seam
Ruler
Pattern Paper





Sorry, if this is a confusing step.
You will want to fold your fabric in half lengthwise, and then each half, you will fold in half again.  Line up the pattern piece on each of your secondary folds.  Hopefully that makes sense!



At this point, you will want to try it on.  I had to adjust my front neckline and make it much lower than I had cut previously. I also needed to cut a bit off of the arm length.  So I just cut away.  Just remember that when you hem, it will be lower/shorter, so don't cut off too much!
Go here to see the cool hemming technique using Steam-A-Seam.  It worked like a charm!  I did it with the neck, arm and bottom hems.

Add a skinny belt and you are good to go!
Posted by {jen} iCandyhandmade at 12:01 AM

36 comments:

  1. Looks gorgeous on you! Great job with the stripes! This is one of my favorite kind of dresses to make. :) Glad to hear I'm not alone in needing to adjust the front neckline and sleeves. ;)

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  2. Niiiiiice! Love the stripes.
    I've never sewn myself a dress before. Perhaps I'll give it a go. Thanks for the great tute! :)

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  3. your dress came out fabulous! I love it! This piece will get so much use, I love it with the sweater too!

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  4. Awesome, and looks so easy that maybe a complete novice like me could do it...Great tutorial!

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  5. Really awesome tutorial!

    Brooke
    www.TheAnnessaFamily.com

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  7. Oh great idea! I love that I don't need a pattern to make this. I'm bookmarking this one to try when I get a spare moment. Work is really interfering with all the things I want to do at the moment.

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  8. LOVE! So obsessed with stripes.

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  9. cute dress and I LOVE the mustard colored cardigan

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    1. I looked for a reasonably priced mustard cardi FOREVER. Then one day a couple of months ago, I found it at Forever21. Yea!

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  10. cute dress! thanks for the great tutorial

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  11. Super cute dress! It looks fabulous on you.:)

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  12. so cute what kind of knits do you use? when i am buying knits online what kinds should i look for?

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    1. Tara,
      I am not a knit fabric expert, but I think this is just a light-med weight jersey. I bought it super cheap in downtown LA. I actually need to wear a slip because it is a bit see through. So for a dress, you ideally would want at least a medium weight jersey. Sorry to be vague! I actually really need to learn more about the different types of knits....

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  13. I love it! You make this look so easy.

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  14. Hi Jen!! I just love this tutorial! Pinned! :) The stripes are so fun. I also featured you on my blog today! Come check it out and grab a button if you want! http://missloviecreations.blogspot.com/2012/01/these-are-few-of-my-favorite-things.html

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  15. Thanks for the great tutorial! I am just starting to try out my hand at sewing clothes, so this seems like a nice simple dress to start with! One question I have- where do you buy that paper that you make patterns out of? I looked in jo-anns and couldn't find it. They reccomended to by interfacing by the yard for patternmaking purpose. This didn't make much sense to me though.

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    1. Missluise:
      Thanks! I am glad you stopped by! I buy medical exam table paper. Go into a medical supply store and ask them if they will sell you a roll. I got the roll for $7.00. It lasts a very long time, and it is slightly see through so great for tracing.

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  16. Simply lovely! Looks like something that even I can handle - as I am no where near skilled with the sewing machine. I am pinning this on Pinterest - there may be others that can benefit from your great tutorial. :) Thank you!

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  17. Did you serge the seams? You dont say but it
    Looks surged. Is there benefits to it over regular stitching? Love it going to make it our of a heavier fabric or try to at least;)

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    1. I always serge my knits...just because it is easier. Sometimes I go back and reinforce the inner seam with the sewing machine. If you don't have a serger, no worries! It would turn out the same with a very narrow zigzag stitch.

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  18. Thanks so much! My friend and I just made some new tunic dresses. Thanks for the great tutorial

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  19. Thank you so much, I've been looking for an easy pattern for my first attempt at making a dress. I was struggling to find something I liked and was about to give up but this is EXACTLY what I'm looking for!! I'm so excited and can't wait to get started now!

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  20. Oh I so wish I would've come across your tutorial a few days ago. I bought some striped fabric with the idea of making something similar to this to wear over my swimsuit on the boat this summer. I already cut out a pattern that looks much harder than this. But I'm pinning this for sure and making something soon! Thanks for the good directions!
    I'm your newest follower.
    www.chicenvelopements.wordpress.com
    Happy Sunday!
    Beth

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  21. this is SO awesome! I feel like I could even do it. Great tutorial!

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  22. Is it hard to use the SAS on the neck line? How did you curve it around? I haven't tried it before, so maybe this is a silly question. Thanks for the tutorial! I am so excited to try it!

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  24. Thank you for this! I made one! So super easy and fits amazingly because, of course, it's based on a fave fitting tee! And the steam a seam was super helpful.

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  25. any ideas on where to buy striped knit fabric? I can't seem to find it anywhere!!!

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  26. That is so cool! I have several different fabrics that I've been trying to do something with, and this is a great way to do it! Thanks!

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  27. Made one of these today. Love it! Thanks! I'll be making more of these!

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    1. Awesome! If you feel like sharing, I would love to see a picture!

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  28. i love this... do you have any pics of how you seamed the neckline?

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  29. I love their playful take on this new trend. I especially love all the bright colored prom dresses from ycdress and dressesforbest

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  30. Thanks for the tutorial, I made one dress too, I simply love it! I refer to you on my blog:
    http://poppygoeshappy.wordpress.com/2013/06/19/summer-dress/
    Thanks again, I love your tutorials :)
    Poppy

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