DIY Tutorial: Fitted Cold Shoulder Top -

Hello Beauties! Happy Monday! I usually post tutorials for you all on Friday’s that way you have a fun project to work on for the weekend BUT I just couldn’t hold out on this one! Summer is going by fast and this top is PERFECT to rock NOW so I had to post. 🙂 This top is a spin off version of my last tutorial HERE. Which a lot of you seemed to love! 🙂

Enjoy the post! TAG me on INSTAGRAM if you recreate this look using the hashtag #ROSYPENA so I can see your creations! XOXO

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Supplies:

1. 1 yard of stable knit fabric. I used a scuba knit, HERE. Similar Scuba knits: HERE, HERE.
2. Ruler
3. Sewing pins
4. Calculator
5. Rotary cutter and mat or fabric scissors
6. Pattern weights
7. Cordinating thread
8. Measuring tape
9. Seam gauge
10. Seam ripper
11. Pattern paper, or freezer paper, parcel paper etc.
12. Marker, or pencil
13. BODKIN

Measurements:

Measure around your upper bust divide by two and add 1″ (ex. my upper bust is 33″ /2 is 16.5, + 1″ = 17.5″).
Measure from your upper bust down to the length you want your top to be and add 1″ (I made my top 17.5″ long, so I ended up with a square for my main body piece).
Measure around your upper arm (bicep) and add 1″ (ex. my upper arm is 11″ + 1″ = 12″).

Drafting: – If you need more helping figuring out the layout of the pattern visit THIS tutorial the drafting is the same just different measurements.

With these numbers you are simply going to create rectangles (or squares) as shown below. For the sleeve I used a measurement of 9″ for the length this will make a short sleeve version, if you prefer longer or even shorter sleeves then measure out the length you want and use that as your number.

Also be sure to write what pattern this is, seam allowance and how many to cut of each so you can re-use in the future! 🙂

Cutting: When cutting this out make sure your have the stretch of the fabric running across the width of your pattern pieces.

After cutting you should have pieces similar to the image below. 2 pieces for your main body, and 2 pieces for your sleeves.

Place your fabric right sides together and pin along the sides. The two body pieces are together and the sleeves are folded onto themselves along the length.

Take it to your machine and using a stretch stitch or a narrow zig zag stitch sew along the pinned edges using a 1/2″ seam allowance remembering to remove your pins as you go (do not sew over your pins).

1/2″ seam allowance.

Repeat to all the pinned edges and you should have something like the image below.

Take the pieces to your machine and press open all your seams.

Using your seam gauge measure and press in 1/2″ on all your open edges.

All open edges are pressed in 1/2″.

Take the pieces to your machine and sew very close to the raw edges using a stretch stitch or a narrow zig zag stitch (you can choose to serge all your raw edges and then press and sew close to the edge).

After you’ve sewn around the 1/2″ hem on all the open edges it should look something like below. Press the edges flat and then we can move on the the next step.

Grab one of your sleeves at the sewn seam, like below.

Bring it the sewn seam on your main body piece at either open edge, like below.

Pin in place.

Take it to your machine and sew within the seam line through all layers it should only take a few stitches, we are simply attaching the sleeve to the main body piece. Repeat the last three steps to the other sleeve and seam of your main body piece.

You should now have something like below.

To add the straps cut out 2 long pieces that measure 3″ wide by about 24″ long (you probably will not need this much length but we are going to measure to fit and it is always better if you have more to work with than less). It’s also important here to have the stretch of the fabric running across the width of the straps and not the length so it does’t stretch out as much when worn.

Pin the long edges right sides together.

Take it to your machine and sew 1/2″ seam allowance then trim the seam allowance to about 1/4″ inch.

Using your bodkin or safety pin turn the tube right side out.

Move the seam to the center of the straps and press it flat with your iron.

Turn your top inside out, wrong side of fabric is facing you. Measure in 4″ from the side seam of the main body piece. Place your strap there as a guide.

Turn the strap up and away from the shirt and pin in place, the seam of the strap should be facing up towards you just like the wrong side of the fabric is and the right side of the strap is facing down in the same direction as the right side of your shirt. Repeat to the other strap 4″ from the other side seam.

This is wear you are going to try the top on and finish fitting the straps. I had to take in quite a bit on mine. Once you have it on adjust the straps as necessary and pin in place you want it to be 4″ from the side seams just like the first time we pinned.