Boy's Muscle Shirt Tutorial

Here in the Northeast, it has been exceptionally hot and humid. I realized one day that I've been dressing my daughter in tanks and shorts, but I didn't have any tanks for my son. I had picked up a "muscle" T in the clearance section and decided to make a few. Here's what I did.....

I used the tank I had, but you could also use a shirt to trace a pattern for the front and back without the sleeves. Remember to add a little for the seam allowance on the sides and shoulders, but to cut the armholes exact since you'll be adding ribbing later.

For this shirt I upcycled a shirt I bought at a thrift store. I try to find XL shirts, since you get the most fabric out of them.

If you're using a recycled shirt, cut along the seams carefully. I was able to make this tank using only the front of the shirt and the existing hem.

I like to trace patterns on knit fabric because it's a little easier to keep the fabric in place while you're cutting. But you could also just pin your pattern down and cut.

Next, sew the sides and shoulders.

I'm going to finish off the neck and armholes using a rib knit. Rib knits stretch a lot and I know there's a rule out there about how much to use....something like 2/3 of the opening size....I usually just fudge it. So I measure the neck and armhole openings and then cut the ribbing a little shorter. I cut my ribbing 1.5 inches wide and then fold it in half.

There are a lot of different ways to finish the arms and neck. I like the look of having the serged-edge like in the 90 minute shirt tutorial on Made. But I can't figure out how to get mine to not break apart when the neck stretches, you know what I mean? Anybody with tips, I'd love to hear it.

So I tried it with and without a serged edge on this shirt. If you want to see how to do the serged edge, go see the tutorial mentioned above.

Cut the ribbing to your desired length. Align the short ends, right sides together and sew, making a loop. Fold in half and press. Sorry, I didn't take better pictures of these steps....

Align the seam you just made with the side seam of the shirt. You also want to match the raw edges, so the folded edge of the ribbing is facing away from the arm or neck hole. Pin in place and sew all around.

Iron the seams flat to the inside and you're done!

Doesn't he look cute! And much cooler too!

I'm new at these tutorials, so I'd love to hear what you think. You could also do these for a girl, they're very simple and can be embellished with a cute applique.

Send me a picture if you make one, I'd love to see it!

I love the blogosphere.....

I must take a moment to thank all those amazing blogs out there that inspire me and keep me excited about sewing and creating. I am keep discovering new-to-me blogs and new patterns and I'm just amazed with all the creativity out there. It's very humbling..... For me blogging is somewhat self-serving, I enjoy putting my creations out there for whoever might be looking to see. And, I hope to inspire someone else, just as others have inspired me.

Having said that, here's a new-to-me blog with an amazing pattern. I saw Prudent Baby's One Shoulder Dressy Dress on Thursday and by Friday afternoon I'd already sewed up 2 and am thinking about doing another one in a jersey knit.







We have many little friends' birthdays coming up......there will be a lot of little Dressy Dressed girls around here!

Go check it out!

And thank you again to all those bloggers who put so much time into tutorials like this one! I admire and appreciate you!

Another Great Pattern!

If you don't follow the blog Made, you should! Dana is coming up with amazing patterns on a regular basis. Here's her most recent FREE pattern for the Warhol Dress (mine is a Warhol Shirt).

This is the first one I made. Father's Day is right around the corner and I have a tradition of making AC/DC shirts for my kids for my husband. He is a HUGE AC/DC fan, which may come as a surprise to those of you who know him. It's pretty fun to see how people react when they see my cute kids coming down the street in AC/DC shirts. Especially a pink one!


It was so fun and easy making my first Warhol Dress, that I had to make another. I made a few modifications to the original pattern the second time around. I cut the armholes a little deeper and made the sides less A-line so that it was a little looser around the middle. My general experience is that if you cut it more square at the beginning, when you gather the top it naturally ends up A-line. I added a little pocket to off-set the black and a cute little button for fun.


Now the only trick will be getting my almost 4-year old who hates dresses to wear it. I've been calling it the "not dress", think that will work? :)

Even if she doesn't wear it, it's super fun and easy to make, so go download the pattern now!