Monday, August 20, 2012

Sew an easy top or dress from two scarves

sew an easy shirt with two scarves
At the beginning of the summer I was on a mission to find 2 coordinating scarves to make into a swanky top, because of this tutorial.

I looked at every thrift store in town, but had a hard time finding them, until I stumbled on two matching scarves. Bonus!

They were 35x35 (larger than I wanted), but as it turns out, it's enough to even make a dress!


Okay, let's get to it.












Here's how I made a lovely breezy top 
from just two scarves 
(& a dress, just to show you how it's done).



find two thrifted scarves to sew into a shirt Start by finding 2 coordinating (or matching) scarves. My scarves are a soft polyester. Thrifted: $3.99 each.


Be sure to set your pressure dial to 1 (so your pressure foot is more gentle on the fabric) and use a small needle (I used a 9) so you don't leave holes in the delicate fabric.










sew shoulder seams but leave opening for neck
Measure how wide you want your neckline to be. Mine was about 10-11 inches.

Put your scarves right sides together. Mark the center.

Using the neckline measurement, leave measured space open in the center. Pin and sew your shoulder seams.







sew up sides of scarf, leaving sleeve hole open
Next, measure how wide you want your sleeve opening to be and mark it so you know when to stop sewing.

Pin and stitch from the hemline up to stop mark.



Sewn dress made with two scarvesTHE DRESS: If you wanted to make your scarves into a dress, you're all done (I tied a sash around it). Can you believe how easy that was??!! 

If I were totally hip I could see myself wearing this as a dress with dark purple leggings and black shoes.

Dang it! I'm not quite hip enough...so I'll be doing some trimming and turning it into a shirt instead.

But first, here are a few more shots of the dress, without the sash:

  
scarves sewn to make a dress is fashionably flowyWithout defining the waist, its pretty mumu flowy.  Some people can totally get away with that, but not me. I'm mumu enough as it is.



easy flowery shirt sewn from refashioned scarves
THE SHIRT: To make the dress into a shirt, it really is as easy as it sounds = Cut off the bottom.

And hem it. (blah). The purpose of this thrifty project was to find 2 scarves to easily sew into a top. There was to be no hemming. No hemming! It was almost all it was cracked up to be.

I ended up cutting off about 6 inches and hemming the bottom.
Then I added 2 belt loops on the side, to hold my sash in place (it's still mumu roomy without a sash).

Fashion flower pattern is in for fallI love the flow of it. And the flowery colored prints are right on for fall.

Top sewn from two scarves creates a delicate flowy feel

So feminine and pretty. I think I'll be wearing it with a black pencil skirt.
It even created it's own drapey cowl neckline. add belt loops to a shirt to hold a sash at shannonsews dot blogspot dot com

If you've made yourself a shirt or dress out of a scarf, I'd love to see it!
It's so darn easy. 
I'll be on the lookout for more square scarves, this time a little more my size (no hemming ;). ♥



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15 comments:

  1. I love it as a shirt. I think the black sash is the perfect look for it. It just brings it all together I think. I might try it myself, though shirt length would be better for me as well. Thanks for posting,
    Linda
    mysewwhatblog

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    Replies
    1. Hi Linda! Thanks so much for your comment! You should totally make one for yourself. It's so easy and if you find 2 coordinating scarves that are more medium sized, you won't have to do any cutting at all. Good luck! I'd love to see it if you decide to make one.

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  2. LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS!! But how do you find scarves large enough to cover body? I've only ever seen small ones. Maybe i need to pay more attention to the scarf section at tj maxx.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Emily! It's so incredibly easy, you could do it in a snap. I looked all over at thrift stores for 2 coordinating square scarves. I wanted it to be a thrifty project. Thrift first before looking at TJ Maxx. They're a lot cheaper. Hope you try it! :)

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    2. you could always up cycle a pretty duvet cover or just get two large pieces of pretty fabric and hem the sides, i have made great skirts from curtain material it works fine :) look at what you already have you will be surprised what you can turn it to

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  3. Very pretty! The scarves are great thrifting finds!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Jaime! I was lucky to find ones in such good condition - and it was a bonus that they matched!

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  4. Wonderfully done! I love the colors/print, too :)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Meream! It took a while to find the scarves, but I was lucky enough to find a couple of good ones!

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  5. I've looked at this kind of top a few times, but it hadn't occurred to me to use scarves for it. Something else to look for when I'm op shopping :).

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    Replies
    1. I didn't realize how easy it would be to make this type of top. Who knew?! :) Thanks so much for stopping by!

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  6. Thanks so much for linking up to Your Whims Wednesday, I featured this on my blog today! Stop by and grab a featured button :) http://www.mygirlishwhims.com/2012/08/your-whims-wednesday-74-and-features_28.html

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  7. This really is a neat idea!

    Helen
    Blue Eyed Beauty Blog

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  8. such a lovely project! im sewing mine this weekend! thanks for sharing!

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I'd love to hear what you have to say! Thanks so much for your comments! ♥

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