How to Sew an Afro Princess T Shirt Dress

RasTafari Blessings!!!!

I made this cute little babydoll styled T Shirt dress for Nile for Afrikan Liberation. It is a great and simple tutorial that can be changed up in so many ways! I have a tutorial to come on another style I did with a sash and circle skirt.Once you do this dress one time, you will be hooked and can make so many dresses. You can use an old or new T shirt and cut it and attach the skirt also instead of making a tee from scratch. But as you will see making the Tee is very simple!

 

 

I really want to get making some things for my new prince! He will be arriving soon in early August!

Have a blessed Sabbath one and all!
Senbet Selam!
Ila

High Necked Tank Maxi Dress Tutorial

Blessed Love!

I hope all Sistren are feeling upfull and bright these days. It is important to have your own time where you can create, Iditate, make decisions or just read or try something new. Time for self is really a healing time and restful time for the body, because it isn't about stress, but about things that make the I happy! As you know, for me it is sewing, crocheting, reading and going to the spring that really mellow my vibes right out! So if sewing is also one your "me-time activities" then you should love this simple tutorial to create an elegantly casual jersey dress.

This tutorial explains how to create a different neckline for the tank maxi dress and draw string dress.  very basic and easy! Hope you like it!

 

Bless
Ila

How to Sew Cute Girl's Maxi Skirts with Elastic Belt

Greetings,

Continuing with my sewing tutorials - as Ive been doing a little lately - here are two maxi skirt's for your princess that you can make to keep her stylish and proud of her Afrikan culture. one is moreo f a pencil-maxi, and the other is a puffy maxi.

Happy sewing sistren! Tank top tutorial to follow. I also made the black jersey shirt just by using a Tshirt, cutting the outline and sewing it up and hemming the neckline, arm and bottom.

   

Please note also that this tutorial teaches the SIstren how to make the elastic belted maxi instead of inserting the elastic into the fabric - this method is much nicer and more stylish: check out some that i have done - even my denim maxi with pockets I refashioned with this belt. (note the accessories in these photos are for sale you can check www.iloveafrika.com:

Ila

Let's Dialogue More

Blessed Love,
Selamta my Royal Sistren and Brethren


I just want to say that I am truly grateful for every I that has been following the blog and has truly benefited from anything I have posted.

But I am now asking ones to please please leave comments and also make requests!
If you want a particular tutorial - IF I can do it - or find another who can,  I will work on it.
If there's a particular topic you want to read about I will try my best to either find something I have or write something new or even do a video.
I truly want this blog to be a community of sharing and vibez for RasTafari Dawtaz worldwide - send the address to your friends who will be interested www.rastawifeline.blogspot.com -

As I said please contact me with your feedback and requests, I need to have that feed back everyday the same way you may want to read something new everyday!
Yes I am asking for some love or some attention lol - but only in the context of progression not in the context of praise.
So please feel free and if you can't post write me an email at everything.ila@gmail.com.
log on to youtube and suscribe to the blog's channel ILA ADDIS - I couldn't use rastawifeline unless I get another email and I already have too many addresses.

So I hope to hear from the I and I soon
Much love and thanks!
Ila

How to Sew a Maxi Skirt with Pockets Tutorial

Blessed Love

 I wanted to make an all denim skirt for a while, but out of actual jeans. Then I bought some stretch denim for another project and decided last minute to do the maxi skirt tutorial using that. Then I found a great pocket tutorial here and yay I get to do a maxi in denim with pockets!

Use whatever fabric you want really - it can be afrikan print because this particular tutorial is not really for knit fabrics, it doesn't matter and the tutorial is just the standard for making a maxi - just sew straight down if you don't want pockets.

How to make a maxi skirt with pockets
or the Homemade denim skirt

Materials:

1 ½ inch elastic

Stretch Denim or other Fabric

Pocket fabric

Thread

Yard rule

Chalk

Scissors

Pins

Sewing machine

iron

1. Determine your skirt height with a measuring tape, then add 4 inches.

2. Cut off the excess height of material.

3. Take your hip or buttocks measurement, divide by 2 and add 2 inches. This is the width of the skirt. Mine is 19.

4. Fold fabric in half: Divide this figure by 2 again and mark it out from the fold, which was 9.5 inches.





5.  The fold is on the right. Use the rule and chalk to make a triangle coming down on both sides> be sure not to put too much of a slant because this will give problems in making a smooth elastic casing and hemline. Pin the fabric together and cutout the skirt panels.

 

 

 6. Cut out your pockets:

Fold pocket fabric twice so you will cut out 4 pieces at once. Put your hand down on the fabric and draw a half-heart shape around it. Pin and cut out the heart shape, make sure to cut a straight line along the fold to make the pieces 4 separate ones. The fold is the straight side where the pocket is joined to the skirt, so cut well.

7. Zigzag all the edges of skirt and pockets.


8. With right side of one skirt panel facing up, on both sides mark 6 inches down from the top of the skirt. Get one of the four pocket pieces and carefully line it up along the edge of the skirt panel, edge to edge. The pocket will be on the inside of the skirt. Do the other side and repeat for the next skirt panel also.

Tip: In order to make sure the pockets line up, use the first panel, pin it at the bottom of the second panel at the very top, lining up edges. Then pin the pockets for the secon panelfrom there.

9. Make what I’ve been told is called a “bead stitch” which is very close, but not too close, to the edge of the skirt, joining the pocket to skirt. Just set your stitch width to be close to the right side of the presser foot. Do this for all the pockets.

10. Press out those 4 seams, making the pockets now stick outside the skirt.

11. Place and pin the skirt panels together, right sides together. Pin the pockets also.

 

 

 12. Now mark in the ½ inch seam lines – if you need to, at the sides of the skirt – including the pockets.

 

13. Sew the seam lines. It will be one continuous seam with a bit of turning and lifting the presser foot to enter and leave the pocket area. It is not one line down but around the pocket.

In order to sew up the left side, I started at the bottom and came up with no problem.

 
14. Iron out the side seams.

15. Next make the elastic casing – turn the top over about 2 inches, and sew using a straight stitch. Leave a gap, and then insert the elastic with a safety pin into that gap.

 Zigzag the edges of the elastic, fix inside the casing and seal up that space in the waist band seam.

16. Make your hemline by pressing in two ½ or ¼ inch folds, pin and sew in place.
I left my hem raw because I only added 3 inches to my length and I wanted my skirt long. I want it to fray too.
(If you don’t have a wide belt you might need to make a tie)

Finished!
Now you have a DIY homemade denim skirt if you used denim like I did.

So I tried styling the skirt with all the different products I make through ila designs - the bracelets, necklace, earrings, belts, crochet bags, the Royal Tee shirt and of course the maxi (which I usually make in afro colours)

 pockets!

Here's one of my latest bags which coordinates with many pieces in my 2012 Goddess Collection
~ The Dawta Bag ~

I hope the Sistren who sew and will attempt to make their pockets and/or maxi skirts ~ using Sweet Verbena's great method of course ~ will soon forward some pictures to either my facebook or my email so I can post it up.

 ~ Ila

How to Sew a Kaftan Dress or Gown

Greetings!

I have finally been able to complete a tutorial for the Sistren - something very simple yet elegant that suits all occassions.

 Materials

2 yards 58 inch Jersey/heavy knit fabric

Polyester thread in matching colour

90/14 or equivalent ball point machine needle

Sewing machine

Pins

Scissors

Chalk

Yard stick

If you have a overlocking machine or serger, even better, because I certainly find it a bit rough to sew with jersey! As you can see my lines arent so perfect but hey! Wear what you sew and be proud! :)


To make a kaftan is very simple – the easiest, most conservative yet most versatile style you can begin to sew with. It was the first dress I taught myself how to make, before I discovered the many tutorials and sewing blogs online(which inspired me to start this blog for RasTa Sistren). This kaftan can even shorten to make a shirt or a shorter dress. It can have a high split or two, it can have the side flaps or not. This tutorial is for one without the side flaps,which is more of a long tee shirt – I call it a gown.

This size I am making is a small- medium. It will fit a Sistren with hips up to 41 inches. This will give a loose fit, but the width can also be 2 inches smaller if a closer more body-hugging fit is desired. This method can be used on a dress of another material, but if it does not stretch like jersey sure to keep the 4 inches seam allowance for the hips and to also zigzag edges and make all the hems.


Measurements and formula:

***NEW Measurements for neckline!!***
Neckline = 6 inches wide by 6 inches deep (you can make it a higher or lower but this is just perfect)

Armhole length =8 inches

Length of Dress = desired length (from shoulder down)+ 1 inch

Or use the entire 58 inches if you are 5 ft 7 or taller or want to make a dress that buffs.

Width of Dress = Hip divided by 2 plus 4 (36/2 = 18 + 4 = 22)


Rectangle to cut is 58 inches long by 22 inches wide.


1. Fold the fabric right sides together, flat down and cut out at width and length. Pin in place.



2. From the top mark down ½ inch and draw a line straight across the top of the rectangle at ½ inch. This is the shoulder seam.

3. From the ½ inch line mark 8 inches down on either side, Then draw a line ½ inch in from the side edge of the rectangle to mark where the armhole and side seams of the dress will be. Draw these side lines down. Make a little curve under the up-sided down L shape at the armpit.

4. To mark the neckline, fold the dress in half side to side, chalk lines facing up. Measure 4 inches across the ½ inch shoulder seam line. Make a cut on the edge of the fabric where the 4 inches stops.

Unfold and make two dashes on the line under the cut.

From the shoulder seam line measure down the neckline depth and draw a short line across to mark the depth of the scoop.

5. Make sure your pins are where they need to be, and that the pattern is matched up if it has stripes or a border. Time to sew up the kaftan.
Using a wide straight stitch sew the ½ inch shoulder seam line first, making sure to reverse stitch over the two dashes where the neckline will be cut.

6. Sew up the sides seams next, making sure to reverse stitch at both ends. Don’t try to start at the very tip of the fabric, start a ¼ inch in, reverse stitch first, then go a little way until the curve starts. When the curve starts, leave the needle in the fabric, lift the presser foot and shift the fabric to the left so that the needle can continue following the curve on the line. I usually repeat this step when I am about to start sewing straight down the sides.

Note: Because you will be sewing on the curved line for the armpit, you have the choice to either start sewing from the hem and go up to the armpit, or start at the armpit which is what I did in the picture. It is just a matter of stopping and lifting the presser foot.

7. Next fold the dress in half again, with the chalk lines facing up and connect the neckline width to the depth line in the curve desired. Remember this method cuts both back and front the same, hence why it is important to decide how deep you want your neckline to be from the start.
(I made mine too deep in my dress.)

remember my neckline was too deep. the 6 inches will not look like this which more 8 inches

 

8. Fold and pin ½ inch hems on the neckline, armholes and hem.Using a wide straight stitch again, sew them in place. 

 

 

 

 You have the option to leave the heams undone, as it is knit. But if so, make sure to reinforce the neckline, and to also clip away the excess seam allowance from the edges of the neckline, sleeve and hemline.

 Finished!

 

A thin belt, a wide belt, no belt! A vest, a jacket, a beautiful bag! The possibilities are endless.

no belt as a gown (my personal preference since I cant find my wide belt)

 thin belt with high waist and slight buff:

with a bigger buff:

Blessed love!

Here it is in all black!

Be royal Sistren! Love thyself

Ila