Big Shirt- Little Shirt

So.  I found this cute sweater at my local thrift store.  It was $2.  It was a 2x (I guess $1 per x).  I am a medium, but I loved the color.

And I loved the sleeves.  So I was sure I could work something out.  Right?  It ended up being easier than I thought.  Seriously.  Here is what I did.

First I cut off the bottom band.  Be sure you cut off any stitching so the fabric will have maximum stretch.

When I cut off the band it also removed the stitching that held the front overlap in place, so I stitched that back together.

Then I put both pieces on my dress form (you could also use yourself) and pinned up the extra fabric on the band (I used the top to see where my band should sit).

I pinned all the excess on one side so I only had to stitch one seam.

I stitched the seam,

and cut off the extra fabric.  Then I stitched the new band to the bottom of the sweater, stretching the band to fit the sweater.  I used a straight stitch on my regular machine.  My serger had black thread in it and I was too lazy to want to change it.  I planned on using a small zig zag stitch, but I couldn't get the settings right and did not immediately find my manual, so straight stitch it was.  It was fine.

Boom!  Done!  It looks much cuter on me than the dress form.  A tank top underneath and a great necklace... You will just have to trust me on this one.  Now I realize that the chances of you finding a sweater just like this one are slim to none.  My hope is that by posting how I do my modifications, you will learn techniques that help you on your own projects.  Happy sewing!