Tutorial / Sunkissed Tunic

A couple month ago, I found this boys t-shirt at Target in the kids section. I think it was $ 3.49. For some reason I could not take my eyes off of this shirt, and decided to take it home...


I will share how I made the shirt into a girl`s tunic. The shirt was size M (and that is for an 8 - 10 year old) and my daughter just turned 6 and she is slightly small for her age. If you want to make a bigger sized tunic, you obviously need a bigger t-shirt. I hope this will give you a general idea for the sizing.

{you will need}

a t-shirt
matching thread
buttons (I used 4 small buttons, but you can do 3 bigger size buttons too.)
Lace type elastic

{How to}

1. First, cut rib knit around the neck and both sleeves off.


2. Cut open both sleeves at the seam and lay it flat. Out of one of the sleeves cut out two pockets. I made a template for the pocket out of a cereal box. Draw 4 1/2" X 5" square, when you cut, cut off the bottom corners to round it. Lay it on the sleeve, and add 1/4" seam and cut.


3. Look at the picture closely... from the tip of the shoulder to the marked point, it is 5". Draw a natural curve for the arm hole. From the marked point, draw a straight line to the bottom of the t-shirt. This will create an A-line on the sides.



4. Fold 1/4" seam towards the wrong side of the shirt and sew elastic on. With mine, I cut 2 - 8" elastic for the sleeves.


5. Sew elastic around the neck too. For the neck line I cut 17" elastic, but it is best to measure your child's head to decided on how long you will need.


6. To make the pocket, hand sew around the edge of the pocket with big stitches. Lay the template onto the fabric and pull the thread to gather the fabric. Press with iron. You will have nice curve for the bottom of the pocket.



7. Sew the sides of the shirt. Use your favorite method to treat the seams.


8. Pin the pockets on the shirt and sew. To decide on where to sew them it is best to let your child wear the tunic. That way it is easier to see where it is most convenient for her.


9. Cut up several 1" wide strips from the other sleeve to make ruffles for the front.


10. First, fold both ends and pin the 1" X 4 1/4" strip in the center of the shirt and sew.


11. To make ruffles use the largest stitch on your sewing machine and sew one edge of the strip and pull the thread. Use the pictures as a guide.


12.Pin them on both sides of the middle part and sew them on. As you can see, I used zigzag stitch to sew them on.


13. Add another layer to it using the same steps. I cut the bottom corners of the ruffles to create a more interesting look.



14. Sew buttons on. This was the fun but difficult part for me! I had several choices of buttons and I finally narrowed them down to these...


You want to see the final product?





Rachel had such a fun time taking pictures (believe me it's not like that always, I do not force her to do it, but when she is in the mood, it is so fun!)


Since I make the tunic a little late in the season, I will share one of the outfits planned for the fall.

I took these pictures on different days, but again, she was on a roll! She loved her brother's hand me down hat, maybe that made her feel like she is a "Model". :)

She was laughing, and air guitaring...


For some reasons, "walking"...


Cool dude?


...then my favorites. She absolutely loves her new tunic, she already wore it several times. Yea!




The summer is ending, now is the perfect time to find cheap t-shirts at the sales rack. Enjoy!