I just finished this top over the weekend. It is made out of the legs from a pair of jeans. I originally intended to make a dress following lucifers angel’s tutorial…..
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=247985.0I was having some problems and I really liked how the top part came out, so I decided just to make it into a top instead of a dress.
First I made the basic form of the top and added the grommets to the back. Since the top is a corset style it was really hard to put on with just the back lacing, so I thought adding hook and eye claps to the front would make it a more “casual” easy top to wear. It was my first time using hook and eye tape and I ran into some problems. I originally wanted the “hook” parts to face in, but had to have them facing out, because it was easier to sew on that way. I wanted to be able to wear the top with jeans, but I thought that would be a lot of blue denim for an outfit, so I dyed the top purple. I added black lace around the edges and over some of the seams. In the front there had been a small stain so I ran two rows of black and white lattice trim, to cover the stain and because I thought it really added something to the top. I did not use boning, that’s probably why it ripples so much, but in person it is not as noticeable in the picture.
Overall, I am really happy with the top and can’t wait to wear it out! I want to try making a similar top out of jeans in the future. It was surprisingly easy and a lot of fun to make.
Thanks for looking!!! Questions, comments, criticisms always appreciated.
TUTORIAL:
Ok so finally I have a tutorial to post, hopefully it is not to confusing. Feel free to ask any questions.
1. So start by following lucifers angel’s tutorial (link posted above). Use a pair of stretch jeans, and cut the legs where she does. Sew just the front together (if your jeans are super stretchy you can sew the back together if you can get the corset on and off; eventually you will remove these stitches).
2. Hold the corset up to yourself and figure out where to cut and put seams down the sides.
3. Slowly start taking in the front and side seams to make the corset conform better to your shape.
(note the double lines in the picture represents the double seam on a pair of jeans)
4. Now that the corset is more shape fitting, remove the first few inches of the front seam at the top (Only if you want the V shape above the bust, if you want it to be flat you can leave it). Hold the corset up to yourself. Pin down the edges where desired, to get the outline you prefer (Make sure you take the time to experiment).
5. Take the front seam and lay it flat and fold each side down. Fold the back edges over and sew down.
6. Add grommets to the back. About 1 inch apart works well. (You may want to make any final adjustments in the fit).
7. Remove the seam holding the front together (Remember the raw edge should have been sewn down, so you should be left with and nice edge). Add hook and eyes, or hook and eye tape.
8. Add lace around the edges if desired. Lace up the grommets. Make any finishing touches.
Done!
