newbie - how do i cap sleeve tshirts??

[pretty]

i'm new here .. been a fan of getcrafty for a couple of years, but just registered now.
my question is .. how do i customise my t-shirts by changing the sleeves about and making them capped and a little bit puffy? do I have to take the whole sleeve off, or can I just alter it by gathering it a bit? oh, and i'm not terribly good at sewing. is it easy? help please!

[Craft Forums]

[pretty]

i got some tips on the other website - craftster.org, but i thought someone might have another suggestion. please :-)

[lizzymahoney]

Craftster and glitter have large numbers of readers all the time, and this is a topic both of those boards have touched on... I'd do a search on them or on the old glitter for reconstructing and deconstructing tees.

Unless these are really tight old t-shirts, you may not have to remove and reset the sleeve. If they have a bit of fullness, you can cut the sleeves at an angle to make a shorter cap sleeve, and leave enough to turn under a hem.

If you really want them short and flirty full, you'll have to remove and reset the sleeve, and refinish the underarm. The sleeve part would be pinched at the shoulder at least in three different places to give it some fullness at the top. That will probably mean you won't have enough to completely cover under the arm. But since you are going to shorten and cap it anyway, that's not such a big deal. Save your scraps since you may want to make some bias trim for the armhole.

[pretty]

ok, thanks for replying. they're tight-ish. so, i may have to remove the sleeves and re-do them. i did a search, but i didn't find exactly what i was looking for., so thats why i started a new thread. cheers.