The Simplest Shirt to Dress DIY

Turn a plain blouse (or thrift store find) into a simple, zip front summer dress!

Shirt

1 1/2 yards of fabric

Sewing machine

Matching thread

30" long separating zipper

Scissors

Straight pins

Cut across the shirt 1" below the waist

If your shirt has pleats or details, run a stitch along the cut

Attach two pieces of 30" long fabric together side by side

*My fabric was 54" wide so we now have a piece that is 30" x 108"

Lengthen the stitch and loosen the tension on the machine

Run a stitch along the fabric about 1/2" from the edge

Pull the bobbin thread to gather the fabric

Measure the circumference of the shirt

Gather the fabric to this length and add 2"

Stitch the gathered fabric and the shirt together (right sides together)

Fold the extra one inch over the end of the shirt and stitch

*This will give you a finished edge

Press and then pin the zipper to the front of the dress face down starting at the collar

Stitch on the zipper

*I purposely did not use a zipper foot because I wanted some of the zipper to show

Hand tack the end of the zipper down at the neck

Turn the fabric 1/4" twice and hem