I love learning how to do crafty things from free tutorials! I finally decided to make one myself to show one of my favorite t-shirt modifications: boxy cut to ladies cut! This is super easy and soon you will be digging out all those old unflattering t-shirts and taking your scissors to them. If you have basic sewing skills you can do this!
**If
you’re buying a shirt to modify always go one or even two sizes up from what
you normally wear – so you’ll have plenty of
room to cut it how you want. I recently
modified one of my husband’s large t-shirts that he never wore and it turned
out great so there are really no too-big shirts.
Ok, down to business. Materials you will need:
-a roomy t-shirt -matching thread -a ladies-cut shirt for a guide (optional) -THAT’S IT!
Step 1: (Fitting & Pinning
the Sides)
If you
have another ladies’ cut tee that you already love, that can be a great sizing
guide (especially when we get to sleeves – but if not, don’t worry!)
Either way, I like to try on my tee first to get an idea how much I could
take off on the sides. Do this by
pinching fabric on both sides starting under your arms, then mid-chest, then
waistline. I know this isn’t a very
technical way to do things but I’m very visual and this helps me when I draw my
new seamlines even if I do use a guide shirt.
Turn your tee inside out and lay it out flat, front side
up. If you have a guide shirt lay that
out flat on top of it lining up the neckline and shoulders. Right now we’re only concerned with the sides
so forget the sleeves for the moment.
Remember how much you wanted to take off the sides when you did the
pinch-estimation if you don’t have a guide tee.
With a fabric-marking pencil (or just use pins) make a rough line from
the sleeve seam down to the hem and it should curve slightly inwards. When you have your new seams drawn, pin all the way down it. I put my pins in one right after another (much closer than I want for sewing) because when you try on your shirt it looks more like it will when it’s sewn without any bunchy gaps from too few pins. You can see it taking shape here.
And
yes, it’s a little dicey but you must
try it on to be sure you’ve got the fit right!
Make adjustments if necessary.
Step 2: (Sleeves!)
If
there’s anything worse than a boxy, regular-cut, too-big shirt, it’s the
sleeves! I can’t stand those roomy “short”
sleeves that go practically down to my elbows!
I always end up rolling my sleeves up a couple of times like we did in
the 80’s and it’s just not the best look.
So,
when we used our guide shirt before we centered it at the neckline to guide us
in making our new side seamlines. Now
we’re going to line up the shirts starting at the sleeve hem. When I make my new sleeves I like to keep the
nice hem and cut from the other side. I’m not always the straightest
hem-stitcher when it shows and really matters so if I can do my work on the
inside and get a better result, that’s the way I’m going to go!
So on
the left here, you see I have lined up the shirts by the sleeve hem. You’ll want to take your fabric marking
pencil and mark that curve between where the sleeve seam attaches to the main
shirt and the hem. Then, starting at the
top, pull back a little of the guide shirt at a time marking the seamline onto
your project shirt. Then add another
line about ¼” outside of that for your seam allowance as I have done (below
left).
If you are doing this without a
guide shirt you’re just going to have to eyeball it. A typical cap sleeve for a shirt like this is
going to be about 4” shoulder to hem.
You can see generally how to curve your line around to a point and
Next… get out your
scissors!
Step 3: (Cutting!)
This
is the moment of no return. I always
feel crazy-bold taking scissors to a finished item but this is what makes
modifying clothing SO much fun! You’re
going to be cutting the sleeves off just inside the seam.
Next,
cut out your new sleeves! Since I used a
guide shirt to draw the new sleeves instead of a pattern I had to lay my new
sleeves on top of each other and trim them a little so they were both cut the
same. You will also want to cut a very
tiny V (within your seam allowance!) in the very center of the shoulder side so
you can line it up with the existing shoulder seam on the main shirt. Mine is hard to see but it just needs to be a
small notch.
Step 4: (Sewing the Sleeves)
Ok,
you’re going to pin the new sleeve (starting at the notch) to the shoulder seam
(can you tell that’s it just behind my finger?) right sides together. Continue pinning around your sleeve on either
side and repeat for the other sleeve. 
In the above picture I’m stitching the shoulder seam. Below my sleeves are attached and I’m starting my side stitchline at the sleeve hem. When I get to the underarm seam I like to stich a little back and forth to reinforce that area before turning the corner and stiching down the side of the shirt to the bottom hem. Repeat all stitching for the other side.
Step 5: (Trimming Extra Fabric
& Finishing Touches)
Time
to turn that shirt right-side out and try it on! If you have any adjustments to make, this is
the time to make them. Otherwise, turn
your shirt back inside-out and trim off the extra fabric on the sides leaving
about ¼”.
Easy fix: simply
fold it over in half (to the inside), pin it and stitch (on the right side)
right on top of the existing stitching so it’s invisible (“stitch in the
ditch”).
This gives you a slightly larger neck opening while still
keeping that professional store-made look!
That’s it! 5 easy steps and one
afternoon and you’ve got a much more flattering shirt to wear (I got two at
once)!
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