Make this classic women’s t-shirt with a video tutorial

Hey y’all – since this month on the blog is all about wardrobe basics, today I’m sharing the foundation of the modern wardrobe – the t-shirt. And the V-neck version of a women’s t-shirt is my staple item; I feel like this neckline is flattering on basically everybody.

But as easy as they are to wear, t-shirt fit can be tricky. Partly because everyone has a different preference for how they should fit – some people prefer oversize and slouchy, some like tight to show off every curve, and there’s every preference in between. And achieving that fit on diverse bodies is another tricky issue.

But when you figure it out, it is totally worth it. I have been tweaking and tweaking this pattern for myself and I think I’ve finally got MY perfect fit – fitted in the shoulders/sleeves/bust with more ease below the bust.

And now that I’ve got the fit that I want down, I need one in every color.

Want to make your own? You’ll need
- 1 yard of 58/60″ wide knit fabric. For the gray one I used some interlock knit that I bought in a fabric warehouse. For the white one I used my favorite Riley Blake knit/spandex jersey (affiliate link).
- The pattern
The pattern is in a women’s size small, for bust up to 35″ and waist 28″. If you need to make the pattern bigger or smaller, check out this post.
To get this pattern, you must either be a free newsletter subscriber or have purchased a gallery access pass. Then click your preferred option from the buttons below. Existing newsletter subscribers should look at the bottom of the most recent Friday newsletter for the current free pattern gallery password. If you purchased the all access pass you’ll log in to your shop account to download the pattern. Note that the free version of the pattern does not have printable instructions so you’ll need to refer to this post for instructions.
Please note that all my free patterns are licensed for personal use only (no selling items made from this unless you purchase it) and by downloading you are agreeing to this license.
For more sizes, buy the Abrazo T-shirt for $11.95 complete with printed instructions in my shop. Abrazo is slightly more fitted than the t-shirt shown in this post, but it also comes in bust sizes 31-53 inches with variations for long sleeves and a scoop neck.
Here’s how to assemble a basic tshirt. Make sure you use a stretch stitch to sew. (Need help with sewing knits? See this post).

If you’d like to see how I use 3 different machines to sew mine (which is NOT at all necessary), I’ve made a video of myself sewing the gray shirt. Check it out below, or you can watch it on YouTube here.
To finish the V neckline, see this post for the method I used for the ones in this post, or this post for another method that overlaps the neckband at the V.


Anne
I love a simple V-neck! I could wear one every day. I’ve got a Craft Gossip post scheduled for this evening that features your free pattern: http://sewing.craftgossip.com/?p=89614 –Anne
Cheryl
Maybe now I will be able to sew a decent -looking v-neck. Thank you so much.
Maureen
Perfect fit.