Batwing Top Tutorial

      Isn't that such a great name?..."batwing"...whoever thought of that was a winner. Anyway, despite its rather dubious name, this style shirt is so comfy and you will love it.

pinterest

 
       Oh, did you notice I got the picture from Pinterest? Yes, I've fallen to the peer pressure...from my big sister. Thanks a lot sister dear, I hold you personally responsible for any and all consequences of this new addiction.  Now, what were we talking about? Oh yes, batwing shirts. Well, here is mine.

      Yup, I took the picture in my bathroom mirror. It was raining outside. Don't judge. Want to make one? Here's how. I'm going to rely on some awful drawings because black fabric is hard to see in pictures. Situate your fabric so it is folded length wise and then folded in half. This will give you four layers of fabric with two folds on the long side and one thick fold on one short side.

      Now then, take how wide you are divided by four. Mark that against the folded edges. Make it as long as you want the shirt.

      OK, decide how long you want the sleeve to be. I made mine 9 inches long. I planned to add a 4 inch cuff so that it would be a half sleeve. Also, measure how big around your arm is at that point. I wanted mine to be fitted, but not tight. My sleeve width was 6 inches. Measure these two things out from the line you just drew.

     Next, decide how far up from the bottom of the shirt, you want the sleeve to start. I measured up 9 inches. Draw a line connecting the sleeve to the shirt.

      Now cut that section out. It should look like this.

      Still tracking? OK, you need a cuff for your sleeve. Make as wide as your sleeve and twice as long as you want the end result to be. I made mine 12 inches by 8 inches.

      Now, we need a neck hole in the shirt. Measure 4 inches over and 4 inches down from the top corner.

       Cut that out in a curve. Cut one of the shirt layers a bit lower for the front of your shirt.

      You'll need a neck binding as well. I cut mine 30 inches by 2 inches. Now to sew it all together. Turn it wrong sides out and sew the cuffs on first. Sew down the side and sew on the neck binding. I didn't even hem the bottom of mine. Shhh don't tell! You may need to adjust the waist to be a bit tighter since that is the idea of the shirt. You want the waist to be fitted to compensate for the baggy top.

       That's it for today! Oh yes, before I forget, I placed myself on a blog schedule of sorts. My goal is to post on Mondays and Wednesdays, one sewing project and one "other". Friday's post will be a fun one...randomness that strikes my fancy. As much as I'd love to post every day, its just not practical. So, that's what you can expect to see around here...unless of course "life" happens. In which case, I'll just be happy if I'm showered and dressed.
See you Friday! =)

Psalms 145:8 The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.

Linking to:
Sew Much Ado
Sew Woodsy
Someday Crafts
Love Laugh Craft