reconstruction

DIY Cut-Off Tank

muscleteeintro2

Hello World,

I recently went to Kohl’s and saw some cut-off tanks with weaved armholes for $20+. Instead of buying one, I decided to reconstruct a tee I never wear anymore. This project is a quick way to give an old shirt new life, and it doesn’t require any sewing! Check out the simple tutorial:

DIY Cut-Off Tank

1. Gather your supplies: a t-shirt, scissors, and t-shirt yarn or scrap jersey cut into two long, stretched strips.

2. Cut the sleeves off of your shirt. For an exaggerated armhole, cut more of the shirt away.

3. Cut small, equally-spaced slices along the raw edge of each armhole, at least 0.25″ away from the edge.

4. Starting at the bottom of your arm hole, feed your t-shirt yarn each slice until you reach your starting point. Tie a knot with the other tail end, tails aiming towards the inside of your shirt.

5. Repeat with the other armhole and tada!

Pair it with your favorite bandeau, wear it as a work-out tank, or whatever floats your boat! Want to spruce it up even more? Customize it with a freezer-paper stencil or paint it with water-downed bleach.

Happy crafting!

DIY Bow Tank

bowbackintro

Hello World,

I used to have quite a collection of t-shirts. Last summer, I used 42 of them to make a college t-shirt quilt, but I still have a stack of them left in my “make something with this pile.” Since summer is my hands-down favorite season, and the weather has finally started getting nice where I live, I reconstructed a tee into a bow-back tank.

If you have an old t-shirt to spare, check out today’s tutorial:

tbackshirt

1. Gather your supplies: a t-shirt, scissors, a sewing machine, needle and thread, and fabric dye if your tee was a little too plain to begin with. I bought a few bottles of dye from Darby Smart. You will only need one bottle for this project.

2. Remove the sleeves from your t-shirt. I trimmed a little more than just the sleeves, to create a tank-top shape.

3. Flip over your shirt and cut out the back sections (similar to the photo). Leave the center strip attached unless you want to make a halter top.

4. With one of your back section cut-out pieces, cut out a rectangle.

5. Fold this rectangle in half, and sew along 3.5 sides, leaving a gap so you can turn it right side out. Flip it right side out, and sew the gap closed.

6. Cut a skinny strip of fabric from your scraps. Tie this around the center of the rectangle piece you just sewed. Knot it again, and trim the ends of the ties.

7. Hem the edges of your tank, or leave them raw. My t-shirt was too baggy on the under-arm area, so I took the sides in. I sewed my new side seams with my sewing machine. Hand sew the bow in place on the back of your tank.

8. I found the dye was more vibrant when the shirt was damp vs dry. I got my shirt wet, rung out the excess water, and laid it down on cardboard. I sprayed the front of my shirt with the dye, flipped it over, and then sprayed the back.

9. Hang your shirt outside over something you don’t mind getting dye dripped on (like grass), and allow it to dry. Once it is dry, throw it in the dryer for a few minutes to set the dye and fluff your bow back up.

Happy Crafting!

DIY Slipper Socks

Hello World,

Need a last minute gift idea? Or just want to make a little something for yourself? I made my own slipper socks with scrap fabric and a thrifted sweatshirt, making this a very inexpensive DIY project.

Check out the tutorial below:

slipper-socks2

1. Gather your materials: decorative fabric for the top of the slipper, a thicker fabric (to make these extra cozy! I used a thrifted sweatshirt), pins, scissors, a sewing machine (or needle and thread).

2. Make your own pattern by tracing your foot, or use the pattern pieces I used. Download them here.

3. Fold your decorative fabric in half, wrong sides together. I used a stretch knit, so I didn’t worry about the grain. Place the first pattern piece (the one that looks like a 90’s telephone- see the slight resemblance?) down along the fold. Pin and cut.

4. If you add a half inch of seam allowance around all the pattern pieces, you will roughly end up with a size XL Women’s slipper sock. If you don’t include seam allowance, roughly a size L. For those with smaller feet, just trim the pattern pieces accordingly to fit your foot size.

5. Place the first pattern piece on your thicker fabric along the fold. (I used the sleeve of my sweatshirt.) Pin and cut.

6. Place your second pattern piece (the one that slightly resembles a foot) down on your thicker fabric. Pin and cut through two layers of fabric at the same time. The reason for this is because you will notice the second pattern piece is asymmetrical. This is to accommodate the big toe. Cutting through both layers at the same time helped it so I didn’t end up with two left feet.

7. Repeat steps 3-6 for the cutting out the other slipper sock. When cutting out your second pattern piece this time around though, place the pattern piece right side down on your fabric (so you end up with both feet). You will end up with four pieces per slipper sock, these will make the liner and the shell.

8. Fold your top pieces in half, right sides together. Pin the heel areas closed and sew.

9. This will leave you with asymmetrical loops of fabric.

10. Place your liner fabrics right side together on top of each other.

11. Pin around the entire edge of your pattern pieces.

12. When you get to the heel area, you will have excess fabric. Pinch and pin the heel area down to the second pattern piece.

13. At this point your work will start to resemble a slipper sock!

14. Sew around the entire circumference of your slipper sock.

15. Repeat pinning process with the shell fabric pieces.

16. Place your liner piece inside your shell piece, right sides together.

17. Sew them together, along the ankle area. Leave a small gap near the back seam.

18. Turn your slipper sock right side out via the hole you left.

19. Push your liner into your shell, and sew the hole closed.

20. Repeat with the other slipper sock.

Tada! You have some custom-made slipper socks! If you are worried about slipping while wearing them, just take puffy paint and add some dots to the sole of your slipper socks. (My mom used to do this on my socks when I was little.)

Happy Crafting!