Lacey Top

Do you ever look through your closet and wonder what the heck you were thinking when you bought something?

I found a t-knit turtleneck top in a drawer that I purchased as a layering piece for under a tunic I made.  But when I put it on the whole thing reminded me too much of Robin Hood, so I've never worn it.

So, as usual, I got out my scissors and made it into something new, and much nicer!

Here's what you need to make your own lacey top:

Materials:
T-knit top
wide elasticized lace (mine is 6 3/4" wide)
standard sewing kit
sewing marker (not shown)

Steps:
1) The first thing I should've done was iron my top, but what I actually did was turn it inside out and cut off the sleeves.

2) Next, decide what you want your neckline to look like and lightly mark it out with an erasable pen or pins.

3) Cut along the lines.  Mine is a boat neck so it looks like this now:

4) You can skip this step if you want but if you're anything like me and raw edges drive you a little batty, just go ahead and serge or zigzag your edges, turn them, press them, and sew down.

5) Tack the edges at the top of the shoulder together. Don't worry if it doesn't line up perfectly.  It's going to be covered up in lace right away.

6) Now the fun part!  Get our your lace and pin it to the sides of your top, wrapping it all the way around the top of the shoulder, creating a sleeve opening.  I didn't have enough lace to just go straight up and down so I angled the back piece into the side.  Make sure to start your lace about a half inch lower than your hem so that you can turn it under (later).

Play with the placement of your lace and come up with the most flattering lines.

Sleeve

Under sleeve

You can never have too many pins!

7) Stitch down your lace, sewing close to the edges.

8) Don't forget to go back and turn your hem and sew it down.

And that's it!  So easy!

Oh! and here's one more tip!  If you want to take it one more step and make it a little more sassy (aka: sexy) cut out the fabric underneath the lace along the sides.  That way you'll have peek-a-boo sides without showing off too much.  I'm hoping to wear mine to work so I'll just leave it as is but for you more adventurous girls... go for it~

*This lace is very similar to the lace I used for my boot socks so I'm going to answer the question that kept coming up with that project....I was very, very lucky and got my lace in the bargain bin at my local fabric store.  Look in the elastic section, lace section, embellishments section, or the bargain bin at your store.  I can't tell you exactly where to find it because it's often a speciality item that isn't carried regularly.  I have also seen it at Wholeport Crafts (link on the sidebar, and no I do not get a commission for any sales there, it's just the only place I've seen it online.)

I think it looks prettiest with contasting lace.  What do you think?  What colours would you put together?  Leave a comment below~

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