My Very First Garment Design

Hi Everyone!
Today I wanted to share the first garment I designed :) We all start somewhere!

In the year of 2005, my mom introduced me to a sewing contest called Innovation Generation. Having never participated in a formal competition before, I was psyched and immediately began sketching ideas. At the time, I misunderstood that it was a sewing contest (which tests your sewing skills) not a designing one. Even if I'd known, I doubt it would have stopped me from creating my shirt!
Up until this point, I hadn't made many garments. My sewing accomplishments mostly consisted of sock creations and quilts. (Sock animals were gradually taking over my bed, Lol!) Fun and simple rag quilts are how my grandma taught me to use a sewing machine. Now when friends or family are due to have a baby, I make them a personalized quilt, it's become a tradition.

Since rag quilts were essentially the only thing I knew how to sew, they inspired my design for a shirt. My mom helped me find a pattern with a silhouette close to what I drew. The trumpet sleeves were an absolute MUST!

I question my 8 year old self style choices..... mainly the color palette above everything else. I've never been a cool tones, purple and blue kind of girl (I love warm, bright, vivid colors!), especially not at that age. Also, I'm not entirely sure why I thought combining sparkly, sheer fabric with cotton squares was a good idea..... I certainly had (still have) a crazy imagination!

When I was younger, how material textures felt was a big deal. (I like to think I'm less picky now, Lol!) Seams on the inside of clothing would drive me crazy. So itchiness was another huge design factor, although little me didn't realize it.
Almost all the seams' raw edges appear on the right side of the shirt and are fringed to be a decorative element. I sewed french seams for the few that had to go inside, which helped keep the ends smooth against my sensitive skin.

I won 4th place in my age group for this design. Never was there a prouder 8 year old sewer! I loved my creation so much, I wore it every chance I possibly could. I'm sure people at church thought it was the only shirt in my closet!

While I'm glad to say my designing has..... matured since then, the "quilt shirt" will always have a special place as one of my favorite designs.
~Jasmine <3