Me-Made-May '17 (3/4 Length Sleeve Top)

One garment barely qualifies for Me-Made-May and while I didn't take the pledge, I thought I would share with you the first garment I've made in probably 15+ years.  It's a 3/4 length sleeve knit tee shirt that I totally hacked.  I cut apart a knit tee shirt that fit pretty well but was worn out.

I actually made this knit tee back in February and wore it for the first time at QuiltCon 2017 in Savannah, GA.

First thing that morning, I met Monika Huelsebusch on the boardwalk while waiting for the ferry to take us over to the convention center.  Monica and I 'met' while participating in Modern Quilts Unlimited year long challenge when I made Navigating to Pluto.

And then, while on the ferry ride across the Savannah River I sat right down by Sophie who blogs at Luna Loves Quilts.  Check out Sophie's posts about QuiltCon 2017 Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Notice my bag sitting on the floor...I could have a thing for limey chartreuse green.

After I cut out the bodice, I realized the neck looked too wide.  So what was I to do?  I decided to add at pleat or tuck to the neck line and hopefully it would end up being be a design element.

This is what it looks like with the tee wrong side out.  To reduce the bulk in the neck line seam, I snipped the tuck or pleat just a bit.

It had been so long since I had sewn garments, I found this neck band tutorial, How to Bind Knit Edges, by Colette.  I followed the directions for the Self Fabric Band and on my first attempt I made the divot in the band to deep, and rejected this one.  The purpose is to reduce the bulk in the back of the neckline so it will lie flatter. The second attempt turned out great.

Self band reject

I was even pleased with the top stitching around the neckline.

I should mention that the fabric is Alison Glass Jersey Knit in Lime.  I love the weight of fabric. Although it too thick for the heat of summer, it's great for three of the four seasons.

Although my eyes are closed, here's a fan girl moment taken with Alison at her demo at QuiltCon.

This bright lime green needed just the right thread and I found the closest match in a Gutermann 100% poly used for garment construction and top stitching.  Although I used a ball point needle, I still had a few skipped stitches.

I made vents in the sides and top stitched around the vents and the 1 1/8" hem.  For surging the raw edges, I used Aurifil 50 wt. 1147 (Light Leaf Green).

As if you haven't seen enough green, here's a picture of my varigated canna lilies just coming up.

Linking to Let's Bee Social with Lorna at Sew Fresh Quilts.