Large T-Shirt to Fitted Tee Tutorial
I have these two t-shirts that I love. They're soft, comfortable, and have good worn (and sentimental) designs on them. But, I never wear them for anything other than around the house because they are large men's t-shirts and look completely shapeless on me. Then I found this great tutorial on YouTube for how to make a big t-shirt a fitted shirt! - T-Shirt Surgery: How to Make a Shirt Fit
So, while I was staying with my mom at her camper this summer (she lives & travels in an RV), I asked her to help me try it out. So yes...we broke out the sewing machine next to the campfire. Strange, I know, but it gave us a project to work on!
First, a before & after look at the t-shirt we did. Oh yeah, I know you love those electric blue fingernails. :)
So, here's how it's done.
-
Start with a t-shirt you love that's just too big
-
Turn the shirt inside out and lay a shirt that DOES fit you on top of it, lining up the collars so that you can be sure it is centered over your large t-shirt.
-
Trace the shirt that DOES fit you onto the large t-shirt. Turn both shirts inside out so that you don't mark on the front of the shirts. I used a sharpie, but you'd be better off to use a washable marker, chalk or a fabric pen. When you do the sleeves, try to make your line parallel to the top shoulder.
-
Next, fold the large t-shirt in half to make sure that the armpit marks line up. Mine did match up, but if yours don't, you can just re-mark them to match.
-
I went ahead and pinned the front and back of the shirt together, so that it didn't slip while we were sewing.
-
Sew along your traced lines. Or, in my case, have your MOM sew along the traced lines. :)
-
Try on your shirt (inside out) to see how it fits. Mine was still a little big, so we sewed it up again about a 1/4" more on each side. Then it looked like this:
-
If you like the fit, then you can trim off the excess fabric.
-
Turn the shirt right-side out and try it on. You can leave it as is, with longer sleeves, or you can cut & hem them - which is what I decided to do.
-
While I was wearing the shirt, I marked with a pin the length I wanted the sleeves to be. Then I took it off, turned it inside out again and drew a line. Okay, two lines, because I remembered that I wanted to angle the sleeve a little bit. Then I cut about 5/8" past the line (to allow for a hem).
Try it on and make sure it looks the way you want it to look.
-
Fold the shirt in half and cut the other sleeve to match.
-
Hem both sleeves.
-
You're done! Try it on & love the new look - preferably with cute jeans...not gym shorts and bright blue fingernails. :) But hey...we don't all do our crafting while looking our best, right?
Thanks to brianagayle for the video tutorial & tips! I'll be using this technique often I think. :)
No time to make your own? I love these tees (and no sewing machine required):
104 comments so far:
Woonaccessoires (not verified) says: Great idea! Saw your post on
Great idea! Saw your post on pinterest!
Jass Saini (not verified) says: Best tutorial I have ever
Best tutorial I have ever seen. Nice Work. This tutorial Solved my problem. Thanks
Sybil (not verified) says: Thats a great advice on how
Thats a great advice on how to tweak your oversized shirt! I love it. Thanks alot.
Greets Sybil
Landelijke Woonaccessoires
Patty (not verified) says: Why didn't I think of this?
Why didn't I think of this? I sew! I've lost 75lbs and have lots of t-shirts that are baggy but I don't want to just toss them and have to buy new ones. Now I don't have to! Thank you!
Linda (not verified) says: Thanks for helping save a
Thanks for helping save a desired T-shirt, and hopefully many more!
Anonymous (not verified) says: Thanks!!!!
Thanks!!!!
Lauren Monsey Nagel (not verified) says: Wonderful article!!! thanks
Wonderful article!!! thanks so much for making this easy.
Jen (not verified) says: LOVE this - I just saved a
LOVE this - I just saved a tee from 10 years ago that was bound for Goodwill. Thank you so much!
Charlotte (not verified) says: Thanks for sharing. Will try
Thanks for sharing. Will try this for me and my daughters. I have skinny daughters that I can't buy for. If the length is correct then it is huge in the waist. Or too short and correct size. Wonder how this would work with sweatshirts?
Amy Carter (not verified) says: It's amazing how much shape
It's amazing how much shape the redesign of the shirt makes your figure stand out so much more! It seriously looks like a 40 year old and 20 year old difference in the picture. What a great idea. I love home solutions to things like this. Goes to show that it pays off to do some things yourself.
Kassie (not verified) says: I JUST got a sewing machine,
I JUST got a sewing machine, do you recommend this for beginners?
MK (not verified) says: Love this and can't wait to
Love this and can't wait to try this! I have broad shoulders so have to buy large shirts sometimes, but they swallow me. If it wasn't for my shoulders I'd be a small. And have a long torso. So shirts are hard to fit. Have some nice blood donation t-shirts that I don't wear because they are too big! And find some nice shirts I want at goodwill but are too big, so this might solve the problem! And my 8 year old has a long torso like me, but is tiny. So will put this to work for both of us! Thanks for the tip! And for those saying buy a new shirt...you can't always find a new shirt that is in your size and fits like you want. And what a great way to make those too big shirts that you just wear at night into day time shirts! And a great way to recycle or upcycle clothes!
Anonymous (not verified) says: Good job girl !! Very nice
Good job girl !! Very nice of you to share. This is something I've been doing for years (having 7 kids will force you to a lot of tricks).
As an additional note (maybe ?): If you have a serger, that really helps with finishing off the side seams, and a twin needle will give you an "unwavering" hem for the sleeves (you can use these on any home sewing machine).
Anonymous (not verified) says: I was just going to say the
I was just going to say the same thing. I work in an alterations shop and a serger is just what you need to be sure your seam stays together. If you have a cover-stitch machine for your hem or even a stretch stitch on your machine you'll get a smoother hem.
Also, make sure that any logo on the breast doesn't get pulled too far over... the one on the shirt shown is nearly under the armpit. If the shirt is super big, the neck will look too wide. But overall, this is an easy way to get more wear out of your t-shirts, and feel better while wearing them.
Christy, The Simple Homemaker (not verified) says: Terrific tutorial and great
Terrific tutorial and great tip! I'm pinning this!
Jeannine (not verified) says: Love this. Thank you
Love this. Thank you
Jennifer (not verified) says: I just worked my way down a
I just worked my way down a size and was wondering what I was going to do with the L shirts I still love....hooray! Thanks!
Bonny (not verified) says: Thanks for a great tutorial.
Thanks for a great tutorial. Like everyone else, I also have a few of those huge boxy shirts that I won't wear because they aren't flattering. I'm going to give this a try.
Momma Frans (not verified) says: This is fabulous!! My husband
This is fabulous!! My husband is a youth pastor, and I have so many big baggy t-shirts from different youth events. I will absolutely be doing this to about half my shirts ASAP. :-)
timetochill (not verified) says: thank you! i've always had
thank you! i've always had problems with my too-big shirts and never wore them as often since they were too big. never again. :D
Claire (not verified) says: that's a great idea for all
that's a great idea for all of the guy t-shirts i love that don't fit a woman & are too big
Smashinbeauty (not verified) says: Excellent idea :D
Excellent idea :D
Shanaan (not verified) says: Great tutorial & so thrifty!!
Great tutorial & so thrifty!! I hate to shop for clothes & I have recently lost quite a bit of weight so the the thought of having to go shopping is a nightmare for me! I'd much rather take up all my favorite shirts than go buy new ones :) !!
I also take up my button up blouses like this too. I press them out, wrong side out & sew 1/4" along the existing seams until the fit looks right. I've done 2 & so far they've turned out fine.
Anonymous (not verified) says: Just by one that fits. Why go
Just by one that fits. Why go through all that when you can buy your right size? Dos Muchos!!!
Anonymous (not verified) says: Because most t-shirts made
Because most t-shirts made for women (and all t-shirts made for men) DON'T fit women the way many of us want them to - if they are fitted through the bust and waist, they are too short in overall length. If they are long enough, they are too baggy. So, doing this may be a little extra work, but well worth it to have a t-shirt that is both long enough AND fits well!
Anonymous (not verified) says: Because it saves you
Because it saves you money...Duh...
Anonymous (not verified) says: yeah!!! Thanks so much for
yeah!!! Thanks so much for this tutorial. I'm NOT a sewer. I don't even know why I own a machine. It took me about an hour to do the first shirt, after I figured out how to thread the machine, etc. Now I've done 6 shirts, including a peasant style with ruffles on top and on the sleeves, and a golf shirt. I've lost 70lbs since last summer, so this has saved me some money and the shirts look fantastic. Now I'm going to try to take in some cardigans. I can't wear them anyway, so if they don't turn out it's no big deal.
jeams1985 (not verified) says: Very like this style of Tees!
Very like this style of Tees!
Robyn (not verified) says: Great ideas and detailed
Great ideas and detailed tutorial.
Anyone have ideas for how to turn the crew neck to a v-neck?
Amber (not verified) says: After looking at this I
After looking at this I thought ok that looks easy enough. So after 3 hours of sewing unstitching and resewing I finally had it completed. It isn't easy if you ate just shortening the sleeve and moving the armpit up. I think if I was making the shirt not as wide it would have helped because there would have been a seem the entire way. It bunched up and looked terrible in the armpits. Anyway long story short it finally worked but it was a lot harder than it looked for a beginner.
Jessica (not verified) says: I don't know what kind of
I don't know what kind of stitch you were using, but it might help to use a zigzag stitch with the knit fabric... that is, if you weren't doing that already. Knit can be tricky to work with and likes to bunch up a lot.
Rachel (not verified) says: Love it! I have so many
Love it! I have so many t-shirts that I love that fit me well back when I was 150 lb heavier and now when I try to wear them, well, they look like muumuus. But I don't want to throw them away! Definitely going to try to put my mom's sewing skills to use! Ha!
Rachel
turborachelfitness.com
Pati (not verified) says: CONGRATS on your AWESOME
CONGRATS on your AWESOME weight loss, Rachel !!! I need to lost about 40 lbs and I KNOW how VERY HARD it truly is !! Been there,done that...lost 45 last year ! Again, congrats !!! No matter HOW you did it I am sure it wasn't easy. ;o)
Smile (not verified) says: Very interesting info!Perfect
Very interesting info!Perfect just what I was looking for!
Karyn (not verified) says: Had I found this a couple
Had I found this a couple years ago, I could have made myself so much happier in all those baggy teeshirts I had to wear for work! They only came in the unisex style, and because I'm big-chested (but not big anywhere else), they never fit right!
I can't wait to go to town on the shirts I have left!
jb (not verified) says: Fantastic tips. Its given me
Fantastic tips. Its given me some ideas. Will sort that wardrobe!
Mannee Nixon (not verified) says: Great Tips, thanks i have so
Great Tips, thanks i have so many unfit t-shirt. so now its look better thanks..
Anonymous (not verified) says: Great idea.. I have a
Great idea.. I have a T-Shirt.. My husband's first gift its little bigger to me.. Ill sew it.. Thanks for posting..
Beth (not verified) says: Wow! Thank you for the
Wow! Thank you for the simple, clear instructions. A half hour after seeing this I dug out my sewing machine ( I pretend to sew) and I changed a boxy style souvenir shirt into one that I will actually wear!
LazySusan (not verified) says: Great idea. Never thought to
Great idea. Never thought to use a fitted shirt as a pattern. So smart. Hate the unisex sizes because of bagginess. This is a perfect solution. Thank you very much for the smart tip.
Anonymous (not verified) says: I think this is great! I have
I think this is great! I have heaps of large t shirts that could work out well :) thank you
JsTim-Nva (not verified) says: just for fun...lol
just for fun...lol
Anonymous (not verified) says: Beyond Stupid!! Who has this
Beyond Stupid!! Who has this much time??
Pati (not verified) says: What a MEAN comment on a very
What a MEAN comment on a very HANDY tutorial !! I LOVE to sew and I have lost weight as well and have some sentimental shirts my family has given me over the years that I will use this in order to be able to wear them !
If you have no use for information such this,why did you read the tutorial then make an ugly comment ?? You OBVIOUSLY have enough time to be ugly. If I were you, I would use my time more constructively. ;o) Such as telling folks how to sew their tshirts to make them form fitting. GRIN ;o))))
Anonymous (not verified) says: um...obviously you do, not
um...obviously you do, not only did your read this, you replied, so I am thinking if you have the time for that you have time to sew up a quick t shirt.
Anonymous (not verified) says: What a mean comment. This
What a mean comment. This doesn't take that much time....and it's surely cheaper than buying a bunch of new shirts if you have lost a bunch of weight. Please keep your mean comments to yourself.
Anonymous (not verified) says: Hmm, did you take the time to
Hmm, did you take the time to come here and look at the tutorial? And then take the time to comment? Just sayin' ...
Anonymous (not verified) says: i love this...i am a newis
i love this...i am a newis sewer, and now, your making it sooo easy!! and reading this and all the comments, i can only imagin all the wives who have a favorite shirt of their hubbies that will undoubtedly now no longer fit said hubby anymore...myseriously of course lol....hehehe...thank you so much!!! :D
sammysam (not verified) says: I LOVE this! Thank you for
I LOVE this! Thank you for posting the detailed and easy instructions. I did this in about 30 minutes and love the result.
KellyJean Gettelfinger (not verified) says: SO AWESOME!!! THANK YOU
SO AWESOME!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! I've been wanting to try something like this but just didn't know how to get started. Now... off to call my momma... he he he
Vicky (not verified) says: Wow - how simple, thank you
Wow - how simple, thank you so much for that
- it will be tried out :-)
Anonymous (not verified) says: Thank you! I'm a support
Thank you! I'm a support worker for people with disabilities so I wear a lot of tshirts from Goodwill to work. Usually mens, and always too big in some way!!! Thanks :)
Anonymous (not verified) says: I wish I could do this for
I wish I could do this for some jeans.. or pants in general. Haha..
:) (not verified) says: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS!!!
I am really short and small, so big t-shirts are always waay too long and wide and hemming them up to make it shorter looks awkward as well because it's short and wide lol but now I can actually make my shirts look good! :) and it's so simple!
Blogging Runner (not verified) says: This is such a great idea!
This is such a great idea! Thanks for all the pictures, I have to get to work.
R.Steed! (not verified) says: So I got to this page from
So I got to this page from pinterest .... and whoa you have the same last name as me?!?! No one ever has the same last name as me! Oh.. and yes i've tried this and it totally works.. i left the sleeves longer and it looks kinda like a baseball shirt :)
Anonymous (not verified) says: how cool. amazing how much
how cool. amazing how much more flattering the fitted shirt is!
LisaO (not verified) says: Love it! I pinned this
Love it! I pinned this months ago and finally got around to trying it today. I fixed 4 shirts already. SWEET!
ATasteOfMadness (not verified) says: Wow, what a great idea! I
Wow, what a great idea! I have SO many oversized t-shirts. I love them, don't get me wrong, but it's good to know that I have options :)
katrina (not verified) says: I love this !!!! I Hope you
I love this !!!! I Hope you dont mind but I linked this page to my inspiration for my own attempt at this ! I just started sewing and the idea of using a already perfectly fitting shirt was awesome. Here I was trying to pin it all over me and there you go telling me an easy way. I wore my shirt proudly today and told everyone that would care to listen haha
Laura (not verified) says: What kind of stitch did you
What kind of stitch did you use?
Andrea says: Just a regular straight
Just a regular straight stitch.
MOCK! (not verified) says: Some anonymous poster
Some anonymous poster wrote:
What?!? Who writes that? Why would...? Maybe it is a pose? Maybe it's the angle?
It reminds me of the Jim Gaffigan routine "I just wanted to make you self conscious for the rest of your life."
Perhaps it was well meaning, but it comes off really weird.
Rinn (not verified) says: Well that's stupid. You can
Well that's stupid. You can clearly see that it's just the way her hair is sitting on her shoulder, and the lighting is different on one side of her. That person might have been trying to help, but they failed.
Rachel (not verified) says: Maybe her hair and her
Maybe her hair and her shoulders are misshapen, too. j/k
Jacqueline (not verified) says: This is a fantastic tutorial!
This is a fantastic tutorial! Thanks so much for sharing!!!
Mom Prepares (not verified) says: Thanks for this great post!
Thanks for this great post! We loved your tutorial so much that we featured it over at Mom Prepares! http://momprepares.com/2012/05/17/nine-free-and-awesome-sewing-tutorials...
meredith (not verified) says: amazing - thanks - seem so
amazing - thanks - seem so simple - why didn't I think of that.
thank you - I will try this weekend
Anne (not verified) says: Andrea- Your mom and my
Andrea-
Your mom and my sister (Joan T.) are friends. Joan told me about this project and we are going to give it a try. I HATE how ill-fitting men's T-shirts are! Can't wait to try this out!
Anonymous (not verified) says: This is great, however the
This is great, however the thing I hate worst about men's t shirts are the collars. Do you have instructions on how to make the collars more feminine?
Anonymous (not verified) says: This might help you out!
This might help you out! http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=349525.0
Jillian @ Hi! It's Jilly (not verified) says: This. is. AWESOME! I
This. is. AWESOME! I definitely have to try it!! "Pinning" it right now!
Anonymous (not verified) says: Great idea, def. gonna try
Great idea, def. gonna try this!
Crali (not verified) says: Holy moley, this is
Holy moley, this is EXCELLENT!!
rebecca (not verified) says: This is a great idea and it's
This is a great idea and it's great to see so many people enthused by it. Another easy way to fit a garment is to put it on inside out and get someone to pinch and pin the seams until it's snug and then the sew along this line. I've done this with both t-shirts, but also a dress which I bought from a charity shop and was 4 sizes too large. It's now one of the best fitting dresses I have!
Another way I've seen to do it is to sew darts into your t-shirt. A girl I went to school with had her mum do this to her school polo shirt.
Vedette (not verified) says: Omg, thank you so much for
Omg, thank you so much for this!. I did this a while ago but to my dismay, it was a bit too snug. But hey, now I know what to do on my other shirts. Now I can wear my old favorite shirts again.
Anonymous (not verified) says: That is Great to know!
That is Great to know! Thanks! I have tons of t-shirts that need this make-over :) on a side note...i noticed one of your shoulders is way higher than the other. I recently had this problem and someone told me to visit the chiropracter. It took about 3 visits. He first took x-rays and then he straightened me up! It was amazing...i didn't even know i felt that bad until after. Just a suggestion :)
jenn (not verified) says: thanks so much! did this to
thanks so much! did this to a tee this morning!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/impromptukiss/7018014433/in/photostream/
Brea Gayle (not verified) says: :) Thanks for the credit!
:) Thanks for the credit! It's exciting to see my video pop up in so many places, my friend sent me a link to this! I'm glad I could help, and I'm glad you made a photo tutorial!
Jaime Kiser (not verified) says: I tried this awhile ago just
I tried this awhile ago just the way you did and it came out WAY too tight around the arms and chest. Any suggestions?
Totalcornflakes (not verified) says: Another suggestion, baste the
Another suggestion, baste the shirt on the lines (big hand stitching that you can easily remove) to test the fit before you commit to the sewing machine.
Dana (not verified) says: Once you make sure it's
Once you make sure it's centered by matching up the neckline, you may want to slide the shirt you're using as a pattern down just a tad. Perhaps the remade shirt was too tight in the chest and arms because it was too high up for where your curves are? Just a suggestion!
Silver (not verified) says: Wonderful advice, thanks
Wonderful advice, thanks heaps for sharing it! I can't wait to try this next time I unearth something fab but too big - for me or my daughters :)
Angela @ farragio (not verified) says: LOVE this idea! I have so
LOVE this idea! I have so many t-shirts I never wear because they don't have a flattering shape. Can't wait to give this a try!
janeowens (not verified) says: great idea as son has lost
great idea as son has lost weight we need to alter his ts
LISBETH (not verified) says: ME ENCANTOO SIGAN PUBLICANDO
ME ENCANTOO SIGAN PUBLICANDO COSAS FACILES
Patricia Streeter (not verified) says: Thank you posting this! I
Thank you posting this! I love to sew and have plenty of big shirts that are too big for me. I am getting ready to clean out my closet to make room for new garments. You may have saved some big t's from being evicted from my dresser!
Dbakeca - Annunci personali tutta Italia (not verified) says: Looks pretty easy to made...I
Looks pretty easy to made...I liked this post.
Anonymous (not verified) says: How to make Tee Shirt fit.
How to make Tee Shirt fit.
Vasim Khan (not verified) says: Nice Post.. Thank you very
Nice Post.. Thank you very much for such a wonderful tip..
Post new comment