How to Sew a Simple T-Shirt: First Knit Project Tutorial

A T-shirt is the foundational knit garment. Once you can sew one cleanly, you can sew almost any knit project — the techniques are the same. This tutorial walks through a basic loose-fitting T-shirt from cutting to finished hems. It assumes you’ve sewn a few woven projects but is your first knit garment.

If you’re brand new to knit fabric, our knit fabric guide covers the foundational techniques (ballpoint needles, stretch stitches, walking foot) that this tutorial relies on. Read it first if you haven’t.

What you’ll make

A simple loose-fitting unisex T-shirt with a self-fabric neckband and short sleeves. Around 25–30 minutes of active sewing once cut, plus pre-treatment and cutting time.

Choosing a pattern

Several beginner-friendly options:

Tilly and the Buttons — Coco: a relaxed-fit T-shirt or dress, beginner-friendly with detailed instructions.
Friday Pattern Company — Saguaro Top: simple boxy T-shirt.
Closet Core Patterns — Nikko Top: relaxed-fit knit top.
Free patterns: many free knit T-shirt patterns are available; the quality varies.

The pattern includes specific information (neckband length calculation, ease, hem allowances) that’s hard to get exactly right pattern-free. For a first knit project, a commercial pattern is recommended.

Materials

Fabric

Quantity: 1.5–1.8 metres of 150 cm (60-inch) wide knit fabric for adult T-shirt. Check your pattern’s specific yardage.
Type: cotton jersey (interlock or single-knit), cotton/spandex blend, or rayon jersey. Avoid stiff knits like ponte for first attempts — softer knits drape better and hide minor mistakes.
Weight: medium weight is forgiving. Very lightweight (modal jersey) and very heavy (sweatshirt fleece) both add complications.

For more on knit fabric choice, see our complete fabric types guide.

Notions

Thread: all-purpose polyester. Use the same thread in needle and bobbin.
Optional: knit interfacing tape for stabilizing shoulder seams (a strip of fusible knit tape applied along the shoulder seam before sewing prevents stretching).

Tools

Sewing machine with zigzag or stretch-stitch capability.
Ballpoint or stretch needles (size 80/12 ballpoint for most cotton jerseys, 75/11 stretch for stretchier fabrics).
Twin needle (4 mm or 6 mm) for hemming — optional but recommended.
Walking foot if available (covered in our walking foot guide).
Pins or sewing clips.
Iron and ironing board.
Sharp shears or rotary cutter.

Pre-treating fabric

Knit fabric shrinks. Wash and dry your fabric the way you’ll launder the finished T-shirt. Two washes is safer than one for cotton jerseys. Press flat after drying.

For more on pre-treatment, see our pre-treating fabric guide.

Cutting

Knit fabric requires careful cutting. The fabric stretches and curls under shears.

Tips:

Cut single layer for accuracy on larger pattern pieces.
Use a rotary cutter if available — much cleaner cuts on slippery jersey.
Don’t pull the fabric while cutting — let it lie naturally.
Pin in seam allowances only to avoid distorting the fabric body.
Cut in the direction of the grain carefully; jersey has a clear “right way up” — the loops face one direction.

The pattern includes:

Front piece (cut 1 on fold).
Back piece (cut 1 on fold).
Sleeves (cut 2).
Neckband (cut 1 — a long thin strip).

For broader cutting techniques, see our accurate cutting guide.

Construction order

The standard knit T-shirt construction:

Sew the shoulder seams.
Apply the neckband.
Set in the sleeves (flat method).
Sew the side and underarm seams in one pass.
Hem the sleeves and the body.

This “flat method” is much easier for beginners than constructing the bodice and sleeves separately and then setting in the sleeves at the end.

Step 1: Sew the shoulder seams

Place the front and back pieces right sides together, with the shoulder seams aligned.
Pin the shoulder seams.
Sew with a narrow zigzag stitch (1.5 mm × 2.5 mm) or a stretch straight stitch.
Optional but recommended: before sewing, fuse a strip of knit interfacing tape along the shoulder seam line. This stabilizes the shoulder so it doesn’t stretch out under the weight of the sleeves over time.
Press the shoulder seams to one side (toward the back).

You now have the bodice opened out flat with the shoulder seams joined.

Step 2: Apply the neckband

The neckband is the most distinctive technique in knit garment construction. The band is shorter than the neckline opening, and you stretch it to fit during sewing — the band’s elasticity pulls the neckline flat against the body.

Calculate the neckband length

The pattern specifies the band length. Typical proportions:

Band length is about 80–90% of the neckline opening’s circumference.
For a 50 cm neckline opening, the band is 40–45 cm long.

If you’re following a pattern, use the specified band length. If you’re going pattern-free, measure the neckline opening of the assembled bodice and cut the band 80% of that length.

Prepare the band

Sew the short ends of the neckband together (right sides facing) to form a circle.
Press the seam open.
Fold the band in half lengthwise (wrong sides together), so it’s now a doubled circle of fabric with the raw edges on one side and the fold on the other.

Pin the band to the neckline

Divide the neckline opening into quarters: front centre, back centre, and the two shoulder seam points. Mark these points with pins or chalk.
Divide the folded neckband into quarters: the band seam (place at the back centre), and three other points evenly spaced.
Pin the band to the neckline at these four points, with raw edges aligned.
The band is shorter than the neckline — between the four pins, you need to stretch the band evenly to match.
Pin between the four points, distributing the stretch evenly.

Sew the band

Sew with a narrow zigzag stitch, with the band on top so you can see the stretch as you sew.
As you sew each section, stretch the band to match the neckline (don’t stretch the bodice fabric).
Sew slowly and carefully — this is the most visible part of a T-shirt.

Press

Press the band away from the bodice (so the seam allowance lies inside the bodice, not the band). Topstitch around the neckline (just below the band) for a more polished finish.

Step 3: Set in the sleeves (flat method)

With the bodice opened flat (shoulders sewn but sides not yet):

For each sleeve: mark the centre top of the sleeve cap. Match this point to the shoulder seam of the bodice.
Place the sleeve and bodice right sides together, with the centre point aligned. Pin from there outward.
The sleeve cap is a curved edge that fits into the bodice’s curved armhole. There’s slight ease — the sleeve cap is slightly larger than the armhole.
Pin generously, distributing the ease evenly.
Sew with a narrow zigzag, easing the fabric to match.
Repeat for the other sleeve.

The flat method is much easier than setting sleeves into a fully-assembled bodice with closed side seams.

Step 4: Sew the side and underarm seams

In one continuous seam:

Fold the T-shirt right sides together along the shoulder line.
Pin from the cuff edge of the sleeve, down the underarm seam, across the underarm point, and down the side seam to the hem.
Sew with a narrow zigzag from cuff to hem in one pass.
Backstitch at the underarm point (a stress point that benefits from extra reinforcement).
Repeat on the other side.

Step 5: Hem the sleeves and body

A twin needle hem is the standard for knit garments. If you don’t have a twin needle, a narrow zigzag works.

Twin needle hem (preferred)

Insert a twin needle into your machine (4 mm or 6 mm).
Thread one needle from each of two thread spools — most machines have a second spool pin or accommodate a stacked spool arrangement.
Fold the sleeve hem inward by 2 cm and press. (Knits don’t fray; a single fold is fine.)
Stitching from the right side, sew with the twin needle about 5 mm from the inside fold edge.
The result: two parallel rows of straight stitching on the right side, with the bobbin thread zigzagging between them on the wrong side. The bobbin’s zigzag gives the stitch enough stretch to flex with the fabric.
Repeat for the other sleeve and for the bottom hem.

Zigzag hem (alternative)

Without a twin needle:

Fold the hem inward by 2 cm and press.
Sew a narrow zigzag from the right side, about 5 mm from the inside fold edge.
Less polished than twin needle but functional.

For more on twin needle hemming and other knit hem techniques, see our knit fabric guide.

Step 6: Final pressing and details

Press the entire shirt — seams, neckband, hems. Try it on. Adjust as needed.

Optional: topstitch the neckband

A line of topstitching just below the neckband seam line (on the bodice side, not the band side) creates a more finished appearance. Use a regular straight stitch with a stretch needle.

Optional: bartack the underarm

The underarm point is a high-stress area. A short reinforcement stitch (a few zigzags back and forth) adds durability.

Common T-shirt sewing problems

The neckband ripples or doesn’t lie flat

The band is too long or wasn’t stretched evenly. The band length should be 80–90% of the neckline circumference. If your band is too long, take some out: open the band seam, shorten, re-sew.

Skipped stitches

Wrong needle. Universal needles split jersey loops. Switch to ballpoint or stretch.

Stitches break when stretched

You used a straight stitch. Switch to zigzag or stretch stitch.

Hem rolls or won’t lie flat

Twin needle wasn’t tensioned correctly, or single-fold hem on lightweight knit. Some knits need a wider hem (3 cm) for the fold to lay flat.

The shirt is too short

Knits stretch when worn. Check your pattern for any shrink/stretch allowance. Some patterns specifically include 2–3 cm extra length for jersey relaxation.

The shoulders sag

Shoulder seams stretched during construction. Use knit interfacing tape next time.

Variations

Once you’ve made a basic T-shirt:

Long sleeves: simply use longer sleeve pattern pieces.
V-neck or scoop neck: change the neckline shape on the pattern. Apply the neckband the same way, with adjusted length.
Curved hem: hem the back longer than the front for a curved shirt-tail look.
Pocket: add a chest pocket before assembly (cut one of the bodice pieces with the pocket location marked, then attach a small fabric square to that location).
Striped or printed jersey: see our pattern matching stripes guide for matching across seams.

What to make next

After your first T-shirt:

Make the same pattern again in different fabric. The second is much cleaner.
Long-sleeve version of the same pattern.
A knit dress using the same construction principles but a longer body.
Sweatshirt with ribbed cuffs and waistband.
Athletic wear like leggings (more challenging due to compression and fit requirements).

Closing thought

A T-shirt is the gateway to knit sewing. Most home sewers who finish their first knit garment go on to make many more — the time-to-result ratio is better than most woven garments, and the result is wardrobe-useful. The barriers to knit sewing (different needles, different stitches) feel large from the outside but are small once you’ve experienced them.

For the foundational knit techniques that this tutorial relies on, see our knit fabric guide. For where T-shirts fit in the broader beginner project path, see our 25 beginner sewing projects guide — the basic T-shirt is project 15.