Sew-Along #24 - Sweet Polly Playclothes - Lesson #3

The Sweet Polly Playclothes by Izzy & Ivy Designs 

Please read through the Sweet Polly pattern directions before beginning this sew-along. You will need to keep these directions handy. If you have any questions, suggestions, or tips to share during the sew-along; please make sure to post them on our Facebook group.  Also, if you would like to see any of the images larger that are posted in this blog, just click on them to enlarge. 

Hello and welcome back!  

The Tee
Today is Day 3 of the Sweet Polly's Play Clothes Sew Along and we are going to be sewing the T-shirt.  I added a cascade ruffle to my daughters t-shirt and I will also show you how I did that in case you want to add one too!  So let's get started!

Shoulders, Sleeves, and Side Seams
The first step in sewing the T-shirt is to match the shoulder seams, right sides together and sew the two shoulder seams.  You will want to use a stretch stitch and a ballpoint needle if you are using a sewing machine, or use a serger (as discussed in Day 2 of the sew along).

Once the shoulder seams are sewn, I lay the shirt down, right side up and open it out flat. 

Then, place the sleeve, right sides together along the edge of the arm opening of the t-shirt. You can match along the raw edges and pin them in place if you want. 

I tend to not pin, but sometimes it backfires and I wish I had. :) Just remember that if you have pinned, you need to remove the pins before you get to the knife on your serger or before you sew over them if you are using a sewing machine.  I like to sew directly on my serger and position the garment so that the sleeve is on top and the bodice is on bottom. Some sleeves have a slight ease and this allows me to gently stretch the sleeve if I need to without stretching the bodice (I do the same thing with bindings; I always put the piece that needs to be stretched on top so I can see it.)

Once the sleeve is attached to the bodice, you will repeat to attached the other sleeve.

After both sleeves are attached, match your side seam up, from bottom edge to the bottom of the sleeve.  Then stitch along the side seam.

Binding and Hemming

Now the shirt is ready for the neck binding and hem.  Using the same method as discussed in Day 2 for the tank, apply the neck binding to the neck of the t-shirt and then press and top stitch the neck binding.  

Fold under the hem and the sleeve bottoms to 1" and press into place. 

Once my hems are ironed in place, I like to match the sides seams of my shirt bottom and under arm seam of the sleeves to double check that my hem is even on both sides and on both sleeves.

Once you are certain they are even, stitch at 3/4" from the folded edge.  

Cascade Ruffle
At this point, if you are leaving your t-shirt as is, you are done!  If you want to add the cascade ruffles, let's charge onwards.  I found a simple pattern for a cascade ruffle here and used it to cut out 3 ruffles.

Then, I found the center front of the t-shirt, folded it there and pressed a line to mark the center front.

Once my center front was marked, I lined up and pinned my first ruffle along the fold line and then sewed it along the pinned edge using a zigzag stitch.

This is what one ruffle looks like after it is allowed to cascade.

I added two more ruffles using the same process, one on each side of the center front.  You can add more or fewer, up to you!  Once the ruffles are all sewn in place, you are done with Day 3!

Make sure to come back tomorrow for Day 4 where we will sew up the cardigan!
Sarah 

* If you would like to earn entries into the prize drawing, please make sure to submit a photo(s) of your completed lesson three item(s) to the Facebook Album by 12:00 noon CT, Monday, May 11th.  Note: If you are making more than one item during the sew-along, please submit a separate photo for each item. Also, if you have any questions the Facebook Group is a great place to ask.