blue racoon summer shirt

At Christmas, my mother bought me a metre of this beautiful Tula Pink fabric from John Lewis - from the Acacia collection. For six months I uhm-ed and aah-ed over what to make with it that wouldn't cut up the racoons too much - then my mum bought me another metre for my birthday, and we came across an article in an old magazine about how to draft a "boxy tee" pattern for yourself.. and, amazingly, it worked! I can knit things from patterns but I never thought I'd be able to sew myself a shirt. Admittedly, it did involve a lot of help from my mother (like one of the instructions just said "sew a bias tape" and I had no clue how to do that from the fabric I had...). 

The pattern tells you to measure your bust, shoulders, arms, the length you want the shirt and the circumference of where it will sit, and the drop of the neckline, and it told me exactly how to cut it out.. We made a trial from an old sheet, adjusted sleeves, lengths, necklines etc, and then made the real thing! It was so cool to try it on for the first time. 

I went with a high neck in front, with a dipped neckline in back to keep it cool for summer, long enough to cover the top of my jeans (something I find permanently frustrating in store-bought t-shirts, I'm forever tugging them down because I'm too tall!) and with sleeves that are currently just rolled up, but I am planning on making a little tab and button for them... once I can figure out how to do a button hole (mum will probably have to help there, too!). But, basically, I am in love with it. It's cotton, which makes it really cool for the summer, and I've been wearing it everywhere, with my cut off jeans, faux-Birkenstock sandals and sunglasses - I feel like a kid who won't take off their favourite dress, because I want to wear it all the time.

My next step is to try and make a shift dress from the same pattern - I'm going to go look for some fabric today. There is a foxy print one that I've had my eye on at a local quilt shop for a while.. I never thought I'd be into dressmaking, thinking I wouldn't be able to find nice patterns for my size/height, but making your own pattern seems like the perfect solution.

Have you ever made your own clothes?

(PS - how bright does my hair look in these pictures? I had it re-dyed the other week and I didn't realise it had gone so red in the sun..)