Cheers To Sewing Fails And Husbands Who Wear Them Anyway

So after making my yellow off the shoulder top and having much success, I admit to getting a bit big headed to the point where I oversimplified other sewing projects I have yet to try. I appreciate the confidence that the project gave me but it was too much and I needed some humbling and I received just that in the form of this t-shirt project.

 

For the longest time, I have always wanted to learn how to make a basic white t-shirt. It’s a wardrobe staple that I currently don’t have in my closet and my husband is always in need of as an undershirt and as a regular top. I watched a video on how to create one some time back and actually thought I remembered enough to make it without guidance.

First and foremost, the fabric that I bought which I shared in an earlier post, is a t-shirt-like, stretchy cotton material but thinner and a lot stretchier than the average t-shirt. In fact, I am almost certain this is the material they use on those cheapy-cheap white tees that they sell in flash-fashion stores. I honestly should have gotten a thicker material that wasn’t so stretchy, but chile, I had no clue what I was doing when shopping for fabric. Your girl just wanted something that looked nice.

Any who, this material is tricky (not to mention the jams it caused in my machine), so please don’t be like me and underestimate the difficulty in working with stretchy fabrics. Don’t get me wrong – it started out well, with just a little hassle in trying to pin the seams together. I did a rolled hem again but the stretch made it hard to keep the fabrics aligned well and fold the seams so I won’t be attempting that next time around. It didn’t come out as neat as I wanted it to but it was still decent. It caused a little ripple affect in the seam though and I think a zig-zag stitch would be more appropriate to seal off the ends of the raw edges, so, note to self.

However, the real down fall was the collar. I don’t know why I didn’t just follow instructions and not go off of my vague memory but once again I was overly confident and therefore this sewing fail was birthed. I was all over the place with this one and even discovered I used the wrong color thread. I mean, it came out so bad that I didn’t even bother attaching sleeves. It was like a faux collar that you find on a mens sweater. When my husband tried it on, it fit him well on the body but he said his neck felt warm! Like what?! 

We both laughed out loud because it was pure sadness to see what should have been a v-neck collar come out as an infinity scarf (*face palm*). Despite this, he still modeled it for me anyway like the MVP he is. Work that camera, hunny!

This moment was both humbling and entertaining and just what I needed to learn how to take my time and appreciate the learning curve of this craft. I am from the generation of instant gratification so forgive me for thinking that I should be an advanced sewer after one beginners project. I will take a break from using this material for now but to you, stretchy fabric: don’t sleep because I will definitely be back. After all, you have been paid for and therefore will be worn (*in my Igbo accent*) by force or by fire!

Hope this post cheers you up if you too experienced a sewing fail of any kind. Just know there will be more where that came from but even MORE masterpieces. Look forward to the lessons learned on a project that I’m drafting to come soon. Until next time loves!

Love,

Christine