Hi Everyone! I am thrilled to introduce Veronica of sewVery. She will be guest posting as part of the shorts on the line sewalong. She sews the most adorable outfits for her daughter. Just check out this outfit and don't miss her beautiful flower top tutorial. Today she is going to show us how to make scalloped hemmed shorts!
Thanks so much Veronica!
I can't believe it's already the second week of the Shorts on the Line sew along, can you? The first week was full of great ideas and projects, a few of which I will definitely be trying out soon!
I'm Veronica, and I began my blog, sewVery, a few months ago in order to share my sewing projects and craft ideas with anyone willing to look! To my surprise, I've had a lot more people than I would have ever expected interested in the outfits I make for my 3-year-old daughter and all the purses I've sewn. And the best part is that I've made some good friends, too!
A few weeks ago, one of those good friends, Rachael from Imagine Gnats, asked if I would be interested in guest posting for the Shorts on the Line event. I've never done anything like this before, but I was excited to have the opportunity. In fact, the day before Rachael emailed me, I was talking to my hair stylist about all the clothes I make for my daughter, and I even told him that one thing I hadn't made too many of for her is shorts. So, Rachael and the Shorts on the Line sew along were definitely the motivation and inspiration I needed to make more shorts for my daughter's wardrobe!
The moment Rachael asked me to participate, I immediately had an idea pop into my head for a pair of cute shorts. Based on an Oliver + S skirt I saw, the idea I had for a cute pair of shorts was to add a scalloped edge detail to the leg openings. Now, I have never made anything with a scalloped edge, but I think it is my new obsession! I figured out how large I wanted the scallops to be, drew up a pattern, and started cutting out fabric! This is what I came up with. Pretty cute, don't you think?
Would you like to make your own pair? Then you're in luck because I've written a tutorial on how to make them. Here we go...
For the shorts, I used Butterick B4503 Item E to make a basic flat-front short. But instead of just hemming them, I attached the scallop edging to spruce them up a bit.
As in my example, I cut the shorts out exactly according to the pattern; however, if you want the finished shorts to be the original length specified in the pattern, you'll need to make adjustments to the leg length by removing approximately 1.5" - 1.75" at the leg opening. This length will then be added back on when you attach the scallop edge.
Now I just followed the instructions that came with the shorts for sewing them together. To follow along with my tutorial, you'll need to make sure that the side seams are left open on your shorts at this point. The waistband will be the last thing to be sewn on later.
Cut four strips of fabric 2 1/2" wide x (the leg opening length + seam allowance). For the size 5 shorts I made Ella, I used 26" as this length. Print and cut out as many of the scallop templates you'll need and tape them together as instructed.
*** Carla here with a quick note: click on any of the pictures to make them larger!
Ok, I know I said these shorts were "flat-front" earlier, but when I went to attach the waistband, the front waistband was a little short in length, so I just made one tiny pleat on each side to fix the problem! Voila!
I said I was a little obsessed with scallops! See the scallops on the top's eyelet trim?! Too sweet!
These shorts are really very easy to make and add some variety to your little one's wardrobe, so I hope you decide to make a pair or two of these cute shorts, too. I've already made a pink pair that you can see later this week over on my blog, sewVery!
I've made at least 4 pair of shorts so far (along with several new tops to match), and I'm having a blast making them all! Next time I get my hair cut, I can tell my hair stylist that Ella's sewVery wardrobe is now complete!
Thanks, Rachael, Vanessa, and Carla for hosting such a wonderful and inspiring event and inviting me to participate!
Thanks again for the awesome tutorial, Veronica!
