PROJECT #6: VALENTINE TOP WITH VELVET BELT

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Happy Vday! Here is another fun project you can do and wear on Valentine's Day or Any Day!
There is a bonus with this top! I will show you how to make a simple and pretty matching velvet belt to go with it.

 

See the before and after pictures below. What a difference a little creative thinking can do! Try it for yourself! 

Material:

1.) Long sleeve T shirt
2.) thread
3.) pins
4.) scissors
5.) measuring tape
6.) sewing machine
7.) velvet ribbon +/- 1 1/4" wide

Duration: 2 hours
Sewing Level: Easy, Beginner

1. Lay the T Shirt flat on a table and cut out the sleeves out around the armhole seams. Then cut a straight line at center front neck line down 6".

2. Take the 2 sleeves that you cut out and cut open along underarm seam.

3. Take one sleeve and start cutting in a circular direction about 1 1/2" to 2" wide as in the picture. Make sure to cut continuously. You may want to draw the cutting line 1st and then cut. It's up to your cutting skill level.

4. Take the other open sleeve and cut straigth as in picture about 1 1/2" to 2" wide. As you can see in the #4 picture above, the long circular strips you cut in #3 will be sewn along the center front neck and body.

5. Sew very loose stitching  about 1/8" to 1/4" along only one side of all the strips you cut out. This is done so you can shirr all the strips into ruffles as in picture #6 above.

6. Shirr all the strips into ruffles by gently pulling one string of the stitch to one end and tie the thread at one end so the shirring stays and does not unravel.

7. Start pinning all the ruffles starting with the longest at front from neckline down to the center of the body to about waist area. Take the shorter strips and pin straight under each end of ruffle from center to side of the body.

8. Lastly sew all the ruffles down to the T shirt as you take each pin out. You may want to baste (loosely hand sew) the ruffles then machine sew. It's up to your sewing level.

9. After sewing all the ruffles down, cut off all the loose thread everywhere. Congratulations! You have completed your lovely shirt!


Belt

1. Buy about 1 yard of velvet ribbon from the fabric store. 1" to about 1 1/4" width is good. Put the ribbon around your waist and customize the width to fit your waistline. Pin to mark the full circumference.

2. Add +3 1/2" to the full circumference of your waist measured with the ribbon. For example, if your waist measured 28", the total length of the ribbon cut will be 31 1/2".

Fold the end as in picture #2 above with 1/4" seam allowance. Stitch the folds down close to the edge, about 1/8" at fold ends. Hand sew the snaps as in the picture. The thread will not be visible on the outside of the velvet belt as the sewing thread will go through in between the folds. The outside of the belt will only show the straight machine stitched line holding the folds in place. The construction of your new velvet belt is complete!!

Lastly, wear it out and show off to your friends how pretty you look!