Sewing my first garment: basic tank top

If you've been following me for a while, you've probably heard me say that I wanted to learn to sew, but it didn't happen. Earlier this year, I made progress in sewing stamps for my doll, which helped me sew with my own hands. But finally, a few weeks ago, I decided to take the opportunity to make a simple t-shirt.

My sewing inspiration isn't "this seems like a fun hobby" but "I need puppet costumes, I don't like what Mattel has to offer". Learning to sew can solve this problem. "I keep sewing all the time, probably because of mistrust (or just mistrust, loneliness) of my ability to sew, but I had to tell myself about it, because if it's really the Only then can you learn something. Something may be wrong, but I have to remember that it's okay to start something new.

This article is not intended to teach anyone how to sew, I just want to share my learning experience. I know some of my readers are very experienced seamstresses, so they teach me. I like to use this blog as a kind of "sewing diary" where I can track my progress, it will probably inspire me to sew more. This is how I get feedback and advice from those who really know how to sew, which I can improve on for future projects.

The dress I'm making today is a simple shirt from the Barbie fashion collection. If you read my blog often, you've probably seen my dolls wearing it countless times because it's one of my favorite outfits. I've always wanted to keep these shirts in a different color so I decided to start with these. I'm not sure this is the best design for beginners, but since my dolls often wear it under their jackets, if I don't do a great job it will hide flaws.

The first step is to lead by example. I don't know how to create a pattern, but luckily there is an April Fashion Doll Stylist article that shows how to create a pattern without breaking existing clothes. The post ( Touching Style ) is quite old, it dates from 2013, but since I found it, I think back to the clothes I have already made, that I want to redo.

This shirt is made in one piece և has no seam on the shoulder. I assume this was done to avoid large volumes. Since it will be difficult for me to get the pattern in one piece, I will make one piece for the front and two for the back. I hope I can continue to learn as I can all in one piece. 

Following instructions from the April Post, I drew the outline of my dress on paper. I use Manila paper, which is not as transparent as April paper for its message, but I got it right on my second try. I will try another paper next time.

I cut it out, compared it to the original clothes, and tried it on my doll to see if it was okay.

Then I draw again on the computer paper, so if I want to do some, it will be long! I fold the paper in half and mark half of the design to be symmetrical.

I'm using an old H&M t-shirt that doesn't fit anymore! I carefully transferred the design to the fabric. I use a mechanical pencil because I couldn't find any of my regular pencils after I moved.

I cut it in 1/4 with a seam allowance.

Now that everything is cut, I have no idea everything needs to be sewn. I checked Atelier ni Shasha's YouTube channel to see if there were any tutorials that could help me. To my delight, she had a video where she was sewing a shirt . Its pattern is a bit different from mine (with a piece on the back), but I think it will help. I sewed the shoulder part first

Then I sew the collar.

And then I sew armchairs. I work so lazily here. Later, I think my straps should have been sewn on first, as I found the straps too tight. At this point, I thought I should give up first, but decided to keep trying.

After doing the dirty work of the armpits, it was time to sew the sides. After this step, I'm more confident that it can look decent.

Now is the time for him to take it back. The side part has no edge in the original part, but my fabric tends to creep, so I roll it up.

Now it's time to sew the fasteners. I can find these little pieces և they always look huge compared to my clothes. I use plastics because they are lighter than metals. I will try to find children for future projects, but they will find them for now.

Let's try on the jacket. Since most imperfections occur in the shoulder and chair parts, the jacket hides them completely. I like this picture. However, I would like to recreate this jacket.

I did something wrong, but I think I learned from them. First of all, the fabric I used was quite stretchy and didn't match the pattern perfectly. Funnily enough, I threw away my old T-shirt as the fabric was "too stretchy" and thought it would cause problems. I have other shirts that look less stretchy so hopefully they fit the pattern better.

Rolling fabric can be a bit frustrating, especially when it comes down to it. Spaniard Sharon suggested that the next time I work with this type of shirt fabric, I could use fabric glue and then sew it to the fabric. This will help with other distortions of this type of fabric.

Despite the flaws, I'm glad I did, especially after so many years of promising to sew doll clothes that I read about. I try not to be too strict with myself, as this is my first project. I hope I can do better with more practice.

I have little hope for what I want to accomplish in my sewing journey. I don't try to be the most skilled seamstress, I sew the most detailed fabrics, I try to do simple things to tighten up my doll's wardrobe. I have a few ideas for future sewing projects but haven't decided what to do next yet.

Thank you for taking the time to read this post. While creating this, I couldn't help but think of a brand new color I'd like to use for the panel, so you'll see it here soon.

I hope you are all well և see you soon. You have a wonderful vacation floor.

monster ships