tshirt Archives • Jessica Smith Creates

August 8, 2016August 22, 2022

Compression Coil

My backup costume is pretty much done!

Woot!

I figured I’d get the backup costume done as quickly as I could, but realistically this has been mulling around in my brain for awhile.

The flightsuit/jumpsuit got to me in April, I think. Maybe March, but a long time ago. I actually went to my local surplus/costume/knick-knack store, and the owner sized me up and said that I would probably fit well in the child’s extra large. Which worked out nearly perfectly!

Realistically though, when I found the adult flightsuits at the back of the store they were as tall as I was. So the child’s size made sense.

It’s a lightweight poly-cotton, and straight from the package it fit well in the shoulders, and the chest, etc. Even the length from the crotch to the hem was good. The problem was the four inches of extra torso length. Four inches!

It did take me three or four months to actually fix this. And to be perfectly honest, I might have gone a little too far, but it looks great when I’m standing. And I can deal with it pulling a bit when sitting. There aren’t sleeves to deal with after all.

The patches are wonderful! I got them from Ebay, and here’s the teddy bear, and the heart/flower combo. You can get the combo of all three here…

I sewed them on using a normal back stitch, but around the teddy bear I also added some fake blanket stitching. Then I took a normal marker to draw on some Chinese characters. Luck and love, if I remember correctly…

I made the top using the Nettie pattern from Closet Case Files, like I do all my t-shirts, and this weird stretchy fabric. It’s rather plastic-y even for polyester… But it is very Kaylee!

The sandals are not nearly the same as Kaylee’s but I did make them! There will be more on those later this week though.

Add in some pigtail buns and my parasol, and it makes a pretty smashing Kaylee!

December 14, 2015August 19, 2018

Princess-Style Fake Corset Knit Top

This may be my favorite shirt. I may say that a lot, but this time it is more likely to be true…

It’s also a Nettie hack. Or really, I guess its a hack of a hack. It’s a hack that I’m making t-shirts from the bodysuit pattern, and then taking that pattern to make the new hack with the fake corset appearance. Really its just a colorblocking option that is vaguely shaped like a corset

Starring in this shirt is a black drapey knit that I used in a shirt Nettie, and some kind of cream colored tissue knit. To be honest, I forget where I found both of them.

So I took my altered tnt version of my Nettie shirt, shortened it slightly (and perhaps a smidge too much), and then drew in the hack.

I pulled on a Nettie version, and traced out where the seamline should be. I took this and transferred it to a traced copy of the pattern. I then added seam allowance to the top and the bottom of the new pieces, shown here.

Then I managed to squeeze the lower portion out of the remains of the black drapey knit. It’s amazing what you can do with 1 yard of fabric if you’re super (painfully) thrifty. In this case, I’d like to say I made 2 shirts out of that yard.

And the rest of the fabric was minimal, but luckily I had plenty of that fabric!

I sewed together the top and bottom of the front and back, and then sewed it up like normal!

To be honest, I sewed this up the week before Halloween in about 3 hours, and wore it that night to a costumed swing dance.

I like to think of it as a Disneybound level Ariel. Definitely got lots of compliments on it that night. It would also work nicely for an Aurora one as well.

Subtle cosplay is my jam!

Also, I am definitely out of tune with slang these days (which is ridiculous because I’m still kinda the age to get the slang, I think, maybe…). Do people still say that? Or is it just me?

Regardless, I love this version, and it will probably not be my last!

September 15, 2015August 19, 2018

Syrah and Netties

At least for midseasons, so Fall and Spring, I have fulfilled my wearable blanket dreams.

Meet Syrah, version 2.

This fabric is fuzzy, and yummy, and just barely stripey. It was also free, since my parents gave it to me as a gift. Actually the same gift as the green one, so I got two maxi skirts for nothing as basically a gift. Did I mention its fuzzy?

I just want to pet it.

Forever and always.

I made this Syrah in nearly the same way as my green version.

I changed up the pockets in theory. I tried to make them flatter, which I did succeed at. They’re a bit too small now though, so I’m not sure it worked well. I can still fit my keys and phone, but my hands don’t fit.

The waistband is also the flat one. I like the ruched one, but I can’t wear a shirt over it, if I’m having a large tummy day (because isn’t food wonderful?). The flat one works much nicer for this purpose. I like wearing shirts tucked in with it, but its nice to have the option.

It’s just such a comfy skirt!

Plus, it works really well with my new Nettie shirts!

I’ve had this black thin t-shirt from Forever 21 for years. It never fit very well, but it was necessary for my first job, and I’ve had no reason to get rid of it… except for the holes from acid and a few little stains.

But if I was getting rid of it, I needed to replace it. So when I went fabric shopping a few months ago, I tuned into the black jersey fabric. I actually found two, one that was very t-shirt stable and opaque, and one that was super drapey and silky with a hint of sheer. I couldn’t decide which was better, so I bought both, and they’re super comfy.

The pattern is the same as my turquoise one, and construction and everything are the same. By now, I can churn one of these out in just over an hour, if I set my mind to it. I am getting some wrinkles from the underarm, which I’ll try to fix on future Netties, but overall, these were a great choice!

Comfort is key, and all three of these makes are fantastic in that department.

Cause nothing beats a wearable blanket!

June 8, 2015August 19, 2018

Overdue T-shirts

It’s high time I show you these t-shirts. It’s been two months. And I love three out of four to death. So these are definitely long overdue.

Now I’m thinking about the fine on my library card…

First up is a plain Nettie t-shirt.

Remember the brown one I made last year?

It’s almost the same pattern but with a bit more room around the midsection. It really means I spend less time picking it out of my lovely belly rolls when I sit down.

Come on, I know I’m not alone in that.

But this time… it’s turquoise.

Or aqua. Some people like to tell me that my sense of color is wrong. I’m going with turquoise.

P.S. Whoever owns the eBay shop that I bought this fabric from: I need more of this. Lots more in every color. It feels like butter. Or nothing. Whichever is your ideal texture. I’m going with butter. I don’t even know what its made of. But its that awesome!

Okay, second:

The Nettie top for a dress. Using the ultimate fabric from above

Basically I took my Nettie top pattern, chopped it an inch from the “waist” measurement, added wide elastic, and then this skirt bottom.

Actually this was an ultimate refashion of me mades. The waistband elastic came from a skirt that I made before I understood that a rectangle elastic skirt looks painfully awful on me if the “lining” and the outer fabric are both puffy and not at all drapey. And the skirt came from a Big 4 dress that just didn’t look right. Mostly because the top looked a bit, how should I put it… mumsy. Now I’m 23. That’s a perfectly okay time for a person to be a mum, but I feel like many don’t want to look like theirs. Cause that’s what this dress did for me. It made it look like I had saggy breasts and no waist. So I unpicked the skirt, and used it here!

Isn’t that better?

Super comfy and has become my long car ride dress. Because it’s awesome.

Third one:

Plantain

So a few years ago I made leggings out of this odd fabric from Walmart. And I had a lot left. And I couldn’t figure out what to do with it. So I made a Plantain. Not my favorite, but it is summer now. And that shirt is hot. Perhaps when it gets a bit cooler? My last one fell apart, so I couldn’t compare, but the last one was arguably destined to fall apart. My serger needs some more tinkering.

It’s still kinda a meh look for me. I think that my opinion on Plantains is that the sleeve is awesome, and it’s a great pattern to hack, but on me I much prefer a Nettie to a straight up Plantain.

And lastly:

A grey Bronte.

I got this spongy grey wonderfulness a few months ago, and I knew it was destined to be a Bronte. In all fairness, it should have been a sweater. That’s the kind of sponge I’m talking about. But I looked past that and made it up to be my most favoritest top ever. Or at least this month.

Note: favorite fabric is the turquoise, and this is the favorite shirt. Just to be clear.

I think I might have added some extra room to the bust, since it was creating deep lines in the first one, and I winged out the below-bust to give me some belly room, like with the Nettie.

It’s super comfy, and great when the air-conditioning makes you want to wear winter clothes in the middle of summer. Because if you do, then you die when you go back outside, so… I like this option better.

Well, there’s my t-shirts! I’ll do my MMM15 round up soon.

But first I should find that library card…

April 3, 2015August 19, 2018

Bronte

This should be the last make that I’ve been holding onto forever.

Last fall I let a lot of projects fall behind on the blog because of the dreaded math class. But now that it’s over I’ve been posting lots!

Partially it’s in anticipation of beating the last month of school in this semester and that means it’s likely that I’ll have yet another spotty posting record. But you don’t mind, right?

Back to the point.

This is my first Bronte! It’s comfy and cute, though I should’ve decided against the baseball vibe. Also I’m definitely sucking in for these pics. In reality, it doesn’t much matter whether I am or not, since its not as noticeable in the real world, but in pictures I can see it terribly. Maybe it’s because I wear cardigans all year round, which hides all manners of extra cookie eating excursions, but sometimes photographs miss… the way that I want stuff to be.

So the fabric is this t shirt jersey that I bought specifically for this. It’s got a bit of stretch, but it’s not the softest ever. But because it’s not fluid, cutting was easier!

The brown is yet again the mystery fabric that I made my comfy tee and chocolate bodysuit from. I’m almost out, I promise!

The shirt itself was quite easy to put together, and other than the decision on how to tack down the neck and, pretty simple from a decision standpoint. The seam allowance was small enough that you kinda have to follow the rules, which is good. I like to overthink things so whenever decisions are taken away from me the entire process comes out less stressful.

I’ve actually got another one cut out, ready to sew and hopefully post soon, so look forward to that!

November 19, 2014August 19, 2018

My Most Comfy Tee Ever

This fabric is one of the softest I have ever worn. Especially for a jersey.

I want to live in this fabric. Forever!

Unfortunately, I only have a finite amount, since it’s a mystery fabric find from a discount fabric store in New England.

So knowing that I only had a bit to work with, I wanted to make sure I used it well!

And I made a Nettie. Not this Nettie, which I still love dearly, and should remember to wear more often, but a Nettie shirt.

After seeing Lauren’s Nettie shirts, I had a plan to make a few for layering shirts once winter showed up, so I’m glad I started early.

Knowing that I wanted to use the higher back, I printed out a new copy of the pattern, and glued it together. I’ve begun to glue-stick my patterns, so I can easily take them back apart for better storage. Gone are the days of folding bulky taped patterns, at least for future pattern buys!

For sizing, I ended up using a slightly odd combo. I sized up one (from my mid-back pattern) at the shoulders, and through the armscye, but cut the sleeves a little skinnier to my original size, and after the waist I swerved out to two or three sizes up. I cut the bottom off around where the front turns into the bodysuit, and I attempted elbow-length sleeves, which is what all my long sleeve shirts turn into anyway, after I push the sleeves up!. In the future versions, I might even lengthen it, but this is perfect for this version!

I sewed it up according to the directions, but I left both the bottom and the sleeves unhemmed. I’ve given myself a policy that if it doesn’t need a hem, it shouldn’t get a hem. Most people around me already know I make my own clothes, and those that don’t will mostly not even notice!

There might even be enough fabric to squeeze out a Yellowtail, in conjunction with some other fabric, so I’m quite pleased!

February 6, 2014August 19, 2018

Meshy Mesh

There is about two feet of snow outside my window right now, and I’m about to tell you about a short sleeve mesh t-shirt I made.

In January. When there was snow on the ground as well.

This would also be a good time to mention that I’m behind on blogging. But instead of promising you to stay on top of it, I’d rather use it as a method to post more regularly, even if that means posting something much later than making and wearing it. A good key to knowing when I made it will be my “Stats” at the bottom that I’ll be including with all fabric related projects. I’ll probably include a stat or two for things non-fabric related, but the fabric one is the most important at the moment, with needing to stashbust before moving on to a new part of my life.

And now after that long paragraph, I present to you the meshy mesh t-shirt.

It’s tight enough. Not super tight, I’m going to get squares imprinted on my skin when removing. But also not, I can wear this over a bulky long sleeve top loose.

I had gotten the fabric from Fabric.com in September or October. It’s so soft, so I wanted to save it for something special, but at the same time I didn’t have a lot of it. In the end, I was able to make this shirt, and still have enough for a bit of a scarf.

I basically just used a t-shirt I had and placed it on the fold and used it as a pattern. I made it slightly wider on the bottom than the top, because I like having some space around the waistband, and made the sleeves a bit wider than on the pattern top, which honestly only had cap sleeves that weren’t going to make a good pattern. I probably could have made some set in sleeves, but I’m quite fond of it as it is. I simply sewed up the seams on the sides and shoulders, then cut strips of some beige jersey to use as binding. I’ll need wider widths in the future. Then I turned up the bottom hem and sewed. I promise the sleeve binding looks pretty nice when its on, as opposed to hanging limp and lifeless on a hanger on my wall.

The fabric makes this top feel nice. I forsee using this top quite a bit in the summer. Not when I’ll be outside a bunch, though it would make an awesome swimsuit cover, because I can imagine the sunburn, but I think it looks great over a tank top.

Unfortunately, I’m getting over a cold, so on my picture day of the week, I was in no shape to model. Think runny nose and intense sneezing attacks. Generally not a good picture plan.

So enjoy my limp lifeless hanging shirt!

January Project 6

Stashbusting – 6 fabrics used