A reader answered a question on my sewing survey just the other day that got me thinking.
First of all thank you, to this reader and the many others of you that have taken the time to fill out the sewing survey. It is so great to get feedback from you!
I relate to this reader and have struggled with sourcing fabric for doll clothes over the years too.
Fortunately, in my pattern making this year for my upcoming book I spent a lot of time sourcing fabric and discovered a great source for a particular fabric that I want to share with you today.
I am hooked. It comes in a variety of trendy colors, it is great to sew on, the price is right and it is widely available. Here is a sample of my stash.
Wait this is not regular fabric yardage! It is a stash of t-shirts that is my “fabric” for sewing doll clothes.
Let talk about why t-shirts make great fabric for doll clothes.
Trendy Colors
Every season t-shirts come out in a variety of new colors. That means you have a constant source for new trendy colors for your sewing projects!
Great to Sew On
T-shirt knits are some of the easiest knits to sew on. They are stable (not slippery). The only thing you need to keep an eye out for is a decent stretch recovery. (Stretch recovery is the fabrics’ ability to return to the same shape and size after being stretched. It is super simple to check, just stretch a 4″ section of the fabric moderately. When you release it, if it returns to about the same size, it has good stretch recovery. After stretching the fabric if it stays stretched out, the fabric has poor stretch recovery. Poor stretch recovery can lead to stretched out seams and that is frustrating, so it’s worth the simple check.)
The Price is Right
A plain t-shirt is often $5. I bought a few t-shirts at a recent sale for $2 each. I scooped up a bunch at an end of season sale for $1. Buy the largest sizes for the most fabric for your money.
Available at a Variety of Stores
T-shirts are a staple at your local clothing store and you will even find them at your local craft stores.
Fabric Options
I love flexibility and options when I’m sewing doll clothes. For my last pattern, the Lucy Gown, I knew the dress would be beautiful in many different knit fabrics but I wanted to design a pattern that would be amazing in a t-shirt knit. It was a personal challenge for me because I wanted this dress at the very core to be a project that could be made from something as easy to find as a t-shirt.
In a way this pattern and fabric option is mind blowing. The two stand in contrast, a t-shirt and a ball gown, but voila, it’s like magic, the drape of a t-shirt is beautiful on the skirt of the dress!
I’m just getting started when it comes to using t-shirts for doll clothes fabric. I feel like the options are endless to design more patterns that will work with t-shirts as the fabric. Of course there will always be a variety of options for what fabric you choose to sew up the patterns. At the heart of it I’ve come up with one solution to the reader’s frustration of sourcing fabric for making doll clothes. Yay! I hope you will try using a t-shirt as fabric for an upcoming doll clothes sewing project! Let me know if you do, I would love to hear about it!
-Anna
P.S. Don’t worry I haven’t given up on my local fabric store. I still love to peruse the isles. T-shirts have just opened up another source and alleviated some frustration in sourcing fabric. In fact my next pattern the Kylie Party Gown was inspired by tulle fabric from the fabric store but also uses a t-shirt knit for the base of the dress! You can find the Kylie Party Dress here.
Wow! Thanks for the post. I knew about using T-shirts as knit fabric, but somehow didn’t think about using new ones. What a great, simple idea. I love that Lucy Gown but didn’t buy the pattern, because I said it won’t look as nice as that without that perfect type of fabric. I can’t believe that was made with a purchased T-shirt. Now that pattern will have to be on my wishlist.
Thanks Terry! You said what we all feel, “it won’t look as nice as that without that perfect type of fabric”. It has been an eye opening discovery for me too and I’m so excited to further explore this easy-to-access fabric source more in my pattern making!
I also knew about using t-shirts, but my thinking wasn’t as open to the possibilities as yours. Great idea! Last year I found Santa hats at the Dollar Tree with Disney character designs on the fleece band. I immediately saw my dolls dancing around wearing those designs on their pajama tops, so I bought six! The body of the cap was just cheap felt, but those fleece bands were wonderful. I was able to cut the fronts and backs out of the band and used a knit for the sleeves. By the way, this year they’ve shortened the band on the caps.
Thank you Kathy! And what a delightful project! I love re-purposing and that project sounds so fun!
I keep a stash of new t shirts on hand all the time. I was given a lot of woven prints any I can always find a T-shirt to match for pants or tops.
Joann, I love your system. Since t-shirts make such a great fabric for doll clothes they are perfect to keep on hand because you know you’ll use them!
I do that too. My other source? Thift store knits particularly infant clothes for small patterns and trim.
Fabric stores are depressing when you have something in mind that’s not there.
Nonna, I’m glad you mentioned the infant clothes for small patterns. They are such a fun source. Sometimes you can get a decent amount of fabric on a piece in the upper sizes like 24 months. Yay!
I use t-shirts as well but also other items (leggings) always trying to buy the largest size available. For the AG boy I have bought men’s shirts as there is not a lot of shirt fabric for boys. Thanks for the hints.
Connie, I love, love, love leggings too. It’s crazy how much fabric you get when buying the larger sizes. I have been amazed at the t-shirt colors in the men’s section. Actually all the shirts in the photo are from the men’s and boys section. Love it!
I have to laugh. I believe that comment came from my survey, and I was thinking more of choices for sewing my own clothes, not doll clothes. But then I continued reading and laughed harder…Tee-shirts were on sale last week at Michael’s and I bought one in XL in nearly every color to make clothes for the AG doll I just bought my granddaughter for Christmas. By laying out patterns carefully, I make use of the bottom and sleeve hems to save a little work. I can get a pair of pants, a shirt, a skirt and a dress (or other separates like shorts or a tank top) out of one tee-shirt, and still have scraps left over for headbands, scarves, etc. I also found stretchy fold over elastic in the jewelry aisle in the same bright colors and use that for waistbands.
Yes Kathleen! I’m glad you added your own experience here! 🙂 So funny that you were thinking about sourcing fabric in a different context but your comment sparked a thought about my own experience sourcing fabric. Sourcing fabric is one of those things that is fun and at the same time can be frustrating. I’m so glad you got us all talking and sharing! I love that you recently picked up a stash of t-shirts! It’s great that you can get so many clothes out of one shirt. Using the hem of the shirt is such a great tip. I love the stretchy fold over elastic too! The jewelry section is a great place to check for it because you usually don’t need a ton and the colors are fun over there! Thanks for sharing and commenting! It totally made my day! 🙂
I also use t-shirts. A few years ago, I bought some patterned material I loved for leggings, but then couldn’t find any fabric I liked for the shirts. While looking for fabric paint at a craft store. I stumbled across plain brightly colored cotton t-shirts sold to decorate. One came in exactly the color I wanted … and was on sale for $2. I can find these locally at JoAnn Fabrics and Hobby Lobby.
Thanks for all the ideas.
Anne, I love that you shared how you discovered t-shirts for sewing! The craft store is such a great source for t-shirts in a variety of colors and that price! Wow, it can’t be beat! On another note, I went to Hobby Lobby for the first time last week. Now that is a mega craft store! I picked up a couple of t-shirt in a color that wasn’t in my stash, which was awesome!
This definitely helps me for my sewing projects! I just did my first sewing project and it went really well. I heard that knit fabrics are really hard so sew with, so I am glad that you said that T-shirt knits are better to sew with. Thanks so much for sharing!
~Kaylyn
Kaylyn, How fun that you did your first sewing project! I am glad you found this info about knits helpful. The uncertainty around knits is really common. That’s why I decided to include a sewing guide with every pattern to walk you through from choosing the right knit for the project to confidently sewing with knits. The secret is that knits really aren’t hard to sew on. Sewing knits opens up so much fun with sewing fashion! Good luck and keep sewing! 🙂