Shirts that are too loose can be unattractive. If you have a shirt or t-shirt that doesn't fit you, follow these instructions to reduce the size. You will need a sewing machine and basic sewing skills to get a modification that looks professional.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Method 1: Making a Shirt Fit
Step 1. Find a shirt that is too loose
Theoretically, it should fit well over the shoulders, but be too wide at the chest and arms. The shoulders, in fact, cannot be easily modified to improve their wearability.
Step 2. Turn the shirt inside out
Button it entirely. It would be difficult to button a shirt inside out, so do it before turning it backwards, as long as the collar is wide enough for your head to pass through and put it on.
If you usually wear a tank top under your shirts, you should also wear one during this operation
Step 3. Find pins and ask a friend to help you with the next steps
Step 4. Pinch the sides of the shirt, starting right under the armpit
With the pins pointing vertically downwards, fix the two sides of the side of the shirt together, which in this way come to meet.
Step 5. Ask your friend to pinch the fabric and pin all the way down the side of the torso
Measure the width of the stapled part. Generally, it should be about 3, 8 cm or even less to avoid problems with pockets moving too far from the hip.
With men's shirts, when making a waist height change, you should avoid pushing yourself too far in. On women's shirts, on the other hand, you can tighten the waist an inch and a half more to make it more snug
Step 6. Repeat on the other side of the torso
Once you've pinched and pinned your upper bust, measure your shirt to make sure the size exactly matches the opposite side. The goal is to modify the shirt equally on both sides.
Step 7. Pinch and pin the sleeves from the seam of the armpit to the forearms and cuff where it begins to thin
If the sleeve width is okay, you can skip this step. Measure to make sure you are removing roughly the same amount of fabric on both sides.
- Point the pins horizontally, with the tips pointing towards the cuff.
- Make movements, sit down, and wave your arms to make sure you can move comfortably.
Step 8. Unbutton your shirt and take it off
Step 9. Prepare the sewing machine
Make sure the thread fits the fabric of the shirt.
Step 10. Sew the pinched pieces of fabric together, from the armpit to the bottom hem, following the line of the pins
Make sure the seam follows the curved line of your waist if you are hemming a women's shirt.
Use a short stitch and topstitch on both the top and bottom
Step 11. Continue like this on the opposite side and on the sleeve
Step 12. Turn the shirt over to put it on
Try it on to make sure it fits. Sit down and move your arms up and down.
Step 13. Cut off the excess fabric about 1 cm after sewing
Use sharp sewing scissors.
Method 2 of 2: Method 2: Shrink a Mesh One Size Smaller
Step 1. Find a loose, baggy knit
Step 2. Also find a shirt that fits you well
You will use it as a template. Turn it upside down.
Step 3. Turn the large stitch inside out as well
Lay it out on the work table.
Step 4. Place the shirt of your size on the larger one
Line up the two links so that the collars match. Make sure the fitted shirt is well centered.
Step 5. With a fabric pencil, draw lines around the edges of the smaller jersey
You will be able to leave more space than the edges, to allow for seams, if the shirt is very tight.
If the loose sweater is dark in color, you will need to use a white pencil
Step 6. Pin the shirts along the lines you just drew
Step 7. Prepare the sewing machine
Use the correct thread for the type of jersey fabric you want to modify.
Step 8. Short stitch stitch following the pencil lines on the loose fit t-shirt
Make sure you follow the lines closely, sew straight and topstitch. This will leave several inches of excess fabric along the sides.
Step 9. Try on the shirt while it is still inside out
It should fit well. If it doesn't fit snugly, use a seam ripper to remove the seams you just made and repeat the process for a better fit.
Step 10. Cut the excess fabric about 1 cm after the new seams
Step 11. Turn the shirt again
Try it.
Step 12. Hem the sleeves if they are too long
You can turn the shirt inside out again, carefully measure the perimeter of the sleeves and then hem them with a fold of about 1 cm.
Advice
- If your t-shirt, or shirt, is too small, you can try unstitching the hips to sew a piece of fabric in the middle, in contrast or to match the fabric. Use an iron to fold back about 0.5cm the edges of the shirt, then do the same with the fabric rectangle (2 to 7cm wide). Pin it and then sew the parts where the folded edges meet.
- When modifying shirts, you can fold them in half vertically from the front to make sure the sleeves and side seams still fit together. They should always be mirrored.
