My Tornado!

tornado

I first saw this fabric panel at Peek-A-Boo Pattern Shop (affiliate link) earlier this fall, and I knew when I saw it that it was perfect for my youngest daughter.  There was only one problem – I wasn’t sure if she would like it since she is nearly 14.  I was afraid she would think it was too “little kid”.   I finally just decided that she could wear whatever I made as a pajama top if she didn’t want to wear it in public.

I waited and waited to buy it because I just wasn’t sure about it.  Then, Amy had some seconds she was selling at a discounted price, so I went ahead and purchased the You are My Tornado Panel.  I just needed to figure out what type of shirt to make for my girl.  It is such a soft, supple fabric, and I really love the subtle diagonal stripe on the background.  The teal-ish blue color happens to be one of Reagan’s favorites, too!  Win!

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Not only had I not done a whole lot of pattern-making (I’ve made one pattern for a pencil skirt for my 17-year-old daughter), but I had never altered a pattern to create a color block right in the middle.  When this panel arrived, I knew it would be too small to use as the full front of the shirt.  It was really close on the sides, but Reagan has such a long body, it needed at least another 10″ in length.

In the end, I made a simple raglan pattern following this tutorial on It’s always Autumn, and it was a great tutorial with detailed instructions.  We have hard-wood floors, and I do anything (cutting) that requires a hard surface on them, but they kill my knees, so I spread all out on the area rug (ignore the jack russell and chihuahua sheds 😉 ).

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I made the pattern using one of Reagan’s favorite (and very well fitting) t-shirts as a guide.  I did extend the sleeve length from the original tee because it was more of a cap sleeve, and I wanted this shirt to have longer sleeves, but still above the elbow.  Plus, I have a ton of charcoal colored knit to use up.

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I used a 1/2″ seam allowance for the shirt because I planned on using my overcast foot and wanted a little extra give.  She is a skinny minnie, but I want this shirt to last as long as possible before she outgrows it.

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Creating the pattern itself was actually pretty easy, and then I added the seam allowance.  I learned a lesson making this pattern, too – make sure you’re NOT using permanent marker tracing your pattern on your cutting mat, or you’ll have permanent shirt outlines.  Doh!

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After I cut out the full pieces (two sleeves, the back and the front, I traced the outline of where I wanted the seams for the panel to be on the front, added 1/2″ seam allowance, cut out the section, and attached the panel.  I love how it turned out!

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The shirt looked plain and kind of odd until I added the trim at the neckline and the tabs on the sleeves.  I used the leftover fabric from the panel and attached the neck trim much like I do quilt binding.  The tabs are simple tubes folded in half and top stitched, and then I attached them to the shirt by sewing the button on.  I think it’s those little details that help make this shirt so adorable.

On another note, you can see my overcast stitching in the picture of the neckline above.  I don’t have a serger, but I bought the Brother SA177 Side Cutter 7mm for my machine, and this was the first time I tried it out on knit fabric.  It worked extremely well, and is sharp enough to cut through that shifty fabric without any problem.

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Judging by her reaction and the fact that she’s worn it several times since Christmas already, I’m guessing she likes it, and that buying the panel wasn’t a mistake!

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Todd and his shadow always have fun, and he had to add to the picture I was trying to take of her in her shirt when she put it on the first time. 😀

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She may be my tornado, but I love her and her spunk all the same!

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She was super nice the day I wanted to take pictures outside because it was only about 15˚F outside, and she was freezing!  Luckily, I’m quick pressing the shutter.