I love finding a fantastic dress with it’s own unique details. I was given this white and tan striped linen dress that was much too big for me. I learned this technique in a tailor shop, and it’s a technique that I use over and over again. Here’s a quick overview of how I fixed it.
If you had a dress that doesn’t fit well you can also just add back darts!
I love the fun stripes and the linen texture. It’s the perfect summer dress. If you are sewing stripes this is how to match stripes.
1. Cut off sleeves. Mark sides. I wanted to keep the skirt flared so I only pinned under the arms and at the waist. Mark where you want the sleeve seam.
2. Sew in sides and trim.
3. Finish edges and iron seam open.
4. Cut two armhole. I cut on the black dots.
5. Check width of sleeve to the new armhole. I had to take in my sleeves about half the amount as my sides. Trim and finish edges. Iron open.
The next part of altering a suit is to change the stride. Here is a better picture of pinning the excess out of the seat. These pants must be old with the style of low crotches because I pinched a HUGE amount out. To measure, measure both sides of the pinch. For example if one…
Make a DIY Chenille heart tee perfect for Valentine’s day! The heart t-shirt doesn’t scream Valentine, so it can be worn all year long! My youngest daughter had a t-shirt that had stains on the front so I quickly covered it up with a pretty Chenille heart. She can wear the heart t-shirt for Valentine’s…
Learn how to line a dress for modesty and coverage you are comfortable with. Line the bodice of a lace dress or the sleeves of a lace dress. I love wearing lace and sewing with lace. Lace has such a beautiful texture and can be so feminine. And there are so many different styles of…
Upcycle an adult t-shirt into a romper or a dress with this sewing pattern in toddler and baby sizes. There are three views with lots of different options. I’m so excited to share this pattern with you! The Upcycled T-Shirt Romper and Dress pattern comes with six baby and toddler sizes and three views. I…
New suit=$0 I want to first of all thank my husband for letting me take pictures of him in his awesome new suit. He’s not one for pictures, but he looks amazing! I’m really happy with how the suit turned out. Click through these to see how to do the alterations: Pinning and Marking (This one…
Make your dress that is too short fit better with one of these two great sewing tutorials. Learn how to make a dress longer with lace or with fabric. If you are like me you don’t long wearing dresses that are too short. I’m taller than average and have a really hard time finding dresses…
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dana
9 years ago
So did you sew up the side seams all the way to the shoulder? And then completely cut out new armholes??
I really like your blog – you give so many great sewing techniques! Thank you!
I sewed up the side seams until I hit the armhole. Because of the shape of the armhole, this raises the bottom of the armhole so I cut mine down. Does that make sense?
Keit
9 years ago
Indeed, a lovely summer dress. And with the cute, white belt is even more lovely!
concretenprimroses
9 years ago
Good tutorial. Thanks! Kathy
Kasey Campos
9 years ago
This is great, I think I must put my baby in my after photos too! I like it 🙂 SO cute!
Found you from the co-op…your new follower. I can't wait to see what is next!
Jenny
9 years ago
awesome! I'm going to save this tutorial for later. I love thrift store shopping and sometimes see fabric I love in dresses I don't.
Nelson Scoville
10 years ago
Good job!
Kristie
10 years ago
Way cute. Wish I was brave to just chop into stuff. Also, was that tailors chalk in the picture? Where might one pick up stuff like that?
So did you sew up the side seams all the way to the shoulder? And then completely cut out new armholes??
I really like your blog – you give so many great sewing techniques! Thank you!
I sewed up the side seams until I hit the armhole. Because of the shape of the armhole, this raises the bottom of the armhole so I cut mine down. Does that make sense?
Indeed, a lovely summer dress. And with the cute, white belt is even more lovely!
Good tutorial. Thanks!
Kathy
This is great, I think I must put my baby in my after photos too! I like it 🙂 SO cute!
Found you from the co-op…your new follower. I can't wait to see what is next!
awesome! I'm going to save this tutorial for later. I love thrift store shopping and sometimes see fabric I love in dresses I don't.
Good job!
Way cute. Wish I was brave to just chop into stuff.
Also, was that tailors chalk in the picture? Where might one pick up stuff like that?
VERY cute. I'd like one like this for church!
that is an awesome dress! love the details.