T-shirt Projects

How to: T-shirt Hooded Scarf

Hat plus scarf? Yes, please! Pack just one item and save space for other necessary springtime accessories. In honor of the first full day of spring (the official start to the new season) and our bidding goodnight to winter, I present “Hoodnight Moon,” project #27 from Generation T: Beyond Fashion. This hooded scarf will bring out the kid in you. Pretend that you’re a mysterious spy in a foreign land… Wrap yourself up and hide from that not-yet-summery-breeze… Wear it to walk your dog, keep a low-profile at school, or take a late-night trip to the deli to buy a pint of ice cream and the next morning’s paper.

Make it:

Excerpted from Generation T: Beyond Fashion (Workman, 2009).

[ 4 Comments | Posted on March 21st, 2011 ]

How To: Amazing Technicolor Sleeve Scarf!

It’s hard to “think spring” when the maple syrup buckets are out, the frost heaves are quaking, and oh, it’s snowing. Not exactly T-shirt weather. And yet, T-shirts have their place.

This scarf design grew out of a challenge for my first week students at Artward Bound: We were running low on T-shirts (having already refashioned 206!) and so we hit the scrap bin to make accessories.

I like the rough edges and charmingly awkward shapes and how they patchwork together (and yes, those white blurs are real, legitimate snow flakes swirling about).

Materials:

-16-20 T-shirt sleeves

-scissors

-straight pins

-needle and thread (or access to a sewing machine)

Make It:

1. Gather T-shirt sleeves in various colors and trim off extra fabric or stitching on the inside edge of the sleeve.

2. Line up the sleeves, overlapping the ends about 1″, and pin them in place.

3. Sew a straight stitch along each pinned overlap. Remove pins and trim the threads.

5. Wear your new scarf to add a splash of color (or eight) to a winter wonderland!

On a related note: Stay tuned! One of my students this week has fashioned a pair of pants almost entirely made from sleeves. Appropriately, I have nicknamed them “The Amazing Technicolor Dream Pants”–he’s pondering a blog to track their travel…i.e. The Brotherhood of the Traveling Amazing Technicolor Dream Pants).

[ 3 Comments | Posted on March 15th, 2011 ]

I Love to Create: A Shoe Travel Bag!

Living in New York, my shoes get especially dirty (it’s a special kind of filth). On the occasion that I’m traveling away from New York (which I am very soon!) and packing for that trip, I like to protect the clothes in my suitcase from all of the grime that collects on my shoes. (The streets may be paved in gold, but that’s definitely not what’s sticking to the soles of my shoes.) Here’s a simple project that makes use of an old T-shirt, requires very little sewing (you use the T-shirt hem as the drawstring casing!), and keeps the rest of your wardrobe fresh and clean. And, because the bag is made from an old T-shirt, it’s easy enough to toss in the laundry when you get home and unpack.

Materials:

-T-shirt (M or larger)

-Ruler

-Scissors

-Sewing machine (with a ballpoint needle and thread), or Needle and thread

-Alphabet stickers (or make your own; I used letter-shaped sticky notes)

-Fabric paint and paint cannon (black)

-Safety pin

Make it:

1. Turn the T-shirt inside out and lay it flat. Measure and cut a 12″ x 16″ rectangle extending in from one side and up from the bottom hem. Cut a 1″ strip from the top of the rectangle, through both layers. Set aside the strip.

2. Sew a straight stitch along the two cut edges of the rectangle, leaving a 1/2″ seam allowance, and stopping at the hem (this becomes the drawstring casing. (I used contrasting thread for visibility, but matching your thread to the fabric color is recommended.)

3. Turn the bag right side out and lay it flat, oriented with the hem (the opening of the bag) at the top. Stretch out the fabric strip to make a drawstring cord and set it aside again. Arrange the letters across the side of the bag. (Note: Use stickers to achieve a “clean” edge along the letters…I like the rough edges that a little paint seepage creates, so I let the edges of my letters curl up a bit.)

5. With the fabric paint, spray lightly over the letters and let dry completely. (Paint will seep around the sides of the letters that are not sealed flat, creating a rough-edged look to the lettering.)

6. Carefully peel off the letters to reveal the reverse silhouettes. Attach a safety pin to one end of the cord and draw it through the entire drawstring casing. Remove the safety pin and tie the ends together in a knot.

7. Now spin the globe, land your finger, and buy a ticket! If your shoes are made for walking, this T-shirt shoe bag is made for packing. Bon voyage!

Variations:

-Differentiate your various shoe stashes by making multiple bags–do away with the generic “shoes” label and instead indicate heels, flats, sneakers, and so on.

-Scrap the shoes altogether and use the bag to pack pajamas for a slumber party!

P.S. Happy National Craft Month! How will you celebrate?

[ 3 Comments | Posted on March 1st, 2011 ]

I Love to Create: T-shirt Baby Book!

I like projects that help me use up the scraps that threaten to overwhelm my craft space. I also like projects that can be gifted. So this one’s a win-win: The T-shirt Baby Book is perfect for using the T-shirt sleeves that have been cut from another project (like a tank top) and it makes a great personalized baby gift. Once I picked the recipient (my friend’s new baby, Elliot), I had a lot of fun figuring out what words each letter of his name would represent (in other words, what could I illustrate easily?). I settled on: E = earth, L = light, L = love, I = ice cream, O = orange, and T = tree. Sorry, no pictures of baby Elliot and his new book just yet, so the book is presented by these two cute corduroy pals.

Materials:

-T-shirts or T-shirt scraps (in multiple colors)

-Scissors

-Ruler

-Craft knife

-Cutting mat

-Lightweight cardboard (cereal, snack, or tissue boxes work great!)

-Aleene’s Fabric Fusion Permanent Dry Cleanable Fabric Adhesive

-Tulip Disappearing Ink Pen

-Fabric paintbrushes

-Tulip 3D Fashion Paint Blazin’ Brights (variety of colors)

-Clothespins (optional, for clipping in place while gluing/drying)

Make it:

1. Measure and cut one more 4″ x 4″ square of cardboard than there are letters in the baby’s name. (Example: Elliot has 6 letters, so I cut 7 squares.) Then cut as many 5″ x 10″ rectangles from the T-shirts as there are cardboard squares.

2. Squeeze a small ribbon of glue along one long side of one of the fabric rectangles. Then fold over the edge about 3/8″ and press. Repeat on the other long side.

3. Find the center of the rectangle and line up one edge of one of the cardboard squares. Squeeze a small ribbon of glue along the fabric at the top and bottom edge of the cardboard.

4. Fold the fabric in half, sandwiching the cardboard in between the layers. Press the glue into the edges to seal it. Squeeze another ribbon of glue against the cardboard and between the fabric layers on the open side. Press it closed.

5. Repeat steps 2 through 4 until all of the cardboard squares are covered. These are the pages of the book.

6. Use the air-soluble ink pen to begin outlining the letters and images on the book pages.

7. Color in the lines with fabric paint!

8. Paint all the right-folio pages first (including the front cover), let them dry, then paint all the left-folio pages, making sure you match up all the letters and images.

9. Trim the raw edges (the side of the pages that will go into the binding) down to 1/2″. Then squeeze a line of glue along one of the edges you just trimmed and press it against the adjacent page. Keep gluing and adding pages (in the correct order!) until the book is complete.

10. Let dry completely. Optional: Clip the binding closed with clothespins while it dries.

11. Then it’s story time! E is for earth. L is for light. L is also for love. I is for yummy ice cream. O is also for a delicious orange. T is for Tree (and Totally Terrific and….T-shirt book!).

[ 6 Comments | Posted on January 25th, 2011 ]

8 Ways to Transform a T-shirt (via HuffPo)

Add another 8 T-shirt projects to the hundreds of Generation T projects you’ve already got in your arsenal! This slide show collection includes projects from DollarStoreCrafts, Makezine, SuperNaturale, and more–courtesy of Care2′s Becky Striepe. Make’s T-shirt laptop cozy is shown here–plus a pillow, a quilt, a skirt, a necklace, a grocery tote, an appliqué, and…a pair of T-shirt undies!

And, 8 must be the hot little number because here are another “8 Ways to Recycle that Old T-shirt” posted by Valley News Live (list by Raquel Fagan; provided by Earth911).

[ 5 Comments | Posted on December 29th, 2010 ]

12 Holiday T-shirt Projects!

To celebrate and count down the 12 days until Christmas (yikes), here’s a roundup of 12 T-shirt crafts we love over here at Generation T (and yes, we might be biased on a few of them, but we can’t help it). So if your halls aren’t completely decked, here are some last-minute fixes that will make you sing fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la. Or at least do re mi fa so la teeeee…. Wow, this holiday punch is tasty!

1. T-shirt wreath by Tara Gentile at ScoutieGirl. A colorful (no-sew!) decoration that won’t smell as sweet, but you also won’t have to sweep up dried pine needles in two weeks!

2. T-shirt stockings by Megan Nicolay at Generation T (or by Kathy Cano-Murillo at CraftyChica). Two takes on that old classic–the holiday stocking–made from a classic old T-shirt.

3. T-shirt garland by Ash and Kimmy at GreenEyedMonster. A festive pom-pom decoration that can be brought out year after year–for the tree, for the mantle, for a little window dressing!

4. T-shirt advent calendar by Megan Nicolay at Generation T. You might remember seeing this one during last year’s solstice giveaway–and you better get cracking in order to make and fill this one up in time for a countdown!

5. T-shirt hat by Kalleen from AtSecondStreet. A cute brimmed hat for the milder winter weather–bonus points if you add ear flaps! Or this one by Whitney Moss and Heather Flett at RookieMoms–forget ear flaps, this one’s got ears (and yes, we give you permission to make it in an adult size).

6. T-shirt snowflake by Megan Nicolay at Generation T (project #4 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion). Forget the overplayed sparkly Santa sweater, make a T-shirt snowflake as unique as you are! ::sigh::

7. T-shirt knotted scarf by Gwenstella at BecauseSheStartedKnitting for her. And for him: a Fringy T-shirt scarf by Paul Overton at DudeCraft. Or any of these three scarves, by Megan Nicolay at Generation T (on Threadbanger)!

8. T-shirt mittens by Ashley at LilBlueBoo. Okay, okay, so she makes them from sweatpants (which might be warmer than T-shirt), but the tutorial and techniques still apply since they’re both knit fabrics!

9. T-shirt Christmas tree skirt by Megan Nicolay at Generation T (project #43 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion). And, we’ll have a no-sew variation to post very soon–stay tuned!

10. T-shirt necklace by Melissa Esplin at ISLY. Sometimes it’s not enough to deck the halls or trim the tree–you need to deck yourself for all those holiday parties!

11. T-shirt headband by Megan Nicolay at Generation T for iLovetoCreate. See number 10. Now it’s time to add the tree topper! (Tee topper?)

12. T-shirt apron by Disney at RufflesAndStuff. Or this one by Kayla at KaylaKsThriftyWays if you’re short on time. This was tough: it was between the apron and the T-shirt oven mitt–for all the holiday cookie baking, of course!

Happy last-minute crafting to you! What are your favorite holiday T-shirt tutorials? What have we missed that you would like to see on this list?

[ 3 Comments | Posted on December 14th, 2010 ]

I Love to Create: Softie Spiral Headband

Yes, Thanksgiving is nearly upon us, but I’m already looking beyond the food coma to the holiday party scene! A little bit of proper party headgear puts me in the mood. You can make this headband in an afternoon and be party-ready by evening. Make one in bright tones, and you’ll be able to transcend the cold weather and be positively springlike!

Materials:

-1″-wide T-shirt strips of varying lengths (in complementary shades)

-Aleene’s Fabric Fusion Permanent Dry Cleanable Fabric Adhesive

-fabric scissors

-1 fabric-coated plain headband (preferably with a metal base)

-clothespins

-straight pins (optional)

1. Gather the T-shirt strips. (A T-shirt hem works well — just cut off the stitching and stretch it out!) Select one strip, squeeze a dab of Fabric Fusion on the inside end and fold it over on itself.

2. Gently squeeze more glue around the outside of the fold and coil more fabric into the glue.

3. Continue gluing and coiling until you have a 1″ to 1.5″ fabric disc. Then snip the end at an angle and apply a bit of extra Fabric Fusion to make sure it flattens against the edge of the disc.

4. Repeat steps 1 through 3 to make seven to nine more discs! Optional: Use straight pins to keep the ends of the coils in place while they dry.

5. Arrange the discs in a pattern you like and glue them together at the intersections. Let the panel dry.

6. Apply glue along the top edge of the headband and gently press the panel against the headband.

7. Clip it in place with clothespins (so you don’t have to hold it in place). Let it dry.

8. Wear it hair up or down!

*Stay tuned for some crafty coil variations in the coming weeks!

[ 7 Comments | Posted on November 23rd, 2010 ]

I Love To Create: A Glowing Ghoulish T-shirt!

Five days till Halloween, and still don’t have a costume? Not to worry. Grab a spare T-shirt (pre-washed is best, so scavenge away in the dresser drawers!) and some paint (of the glow-in-the-dark persuasion), and just be sure to schedule in a few hours for the paint to dry (you have to get some pumpkin carving in there anyway!). You’ll be ghoulishly good-looking in no time.

Materials:

-A plain T-shirt
-Scrap paper
-Sponge brush
-Tulip Neon Glow-in-the-Dark Paint in “Natural Glow”
-Black permanent marker (optional)
-Freezer or parchment paper (optional, for making a stencil)
-Scissors (optional)

Make It:

1. Sketch the outline of a skull (eye sockets, nasal cavity, teeth) on the piece of freezer or parchment paper. Then cut out the inner pieces to make a stencil. Lay the T-shirt flat and slide a sheet of scrap paper (a brown grocery bag will work) between the layers to keep the paint from going through to the back of the shirt. Lay the stencil over the front of the shirt. Note: If you’re feeling bold, skip the pattern-making and go straight to free-handing the design on your shirt.

2. Squeeze out a bit of glow-in-the-dark paint and generously dab it onto the shirt using the sponge brush.

3. Remove the paper from the T-shirt and hang the shirt to dry.

4. Charge it up in front of a light and wear it out on the town! (Just be sure to pack a flashlight in case you need to recharge yourself throughout the dark, dark night!) Note: I tried really, really hard to take a picture of the glowing shirt in a dark room, but without a tripod, my camera just couldn’t process it. But it does glow rather bewitchingly and it’s just plain delightful!

Lastly, don’t forget to get yourself a superhero sidekick and pack a tee-riffic trick-or-treat tote to collect all the loot.

[ No Comments | Posted on October 26th, 2010 ]

T-shirt Pillows with “Mommy on a Shoestring”

Beth Engelman from “Mommy on a Shoestring” strikes again! This time, she’s whipping up some irresistible no-sew pillows out of old tote bags (secret ingredient: Velcro) and my personal fave (surprise, surprise): old T-shirts. This time, she’s tackling project number 30, “Pillow Talk,” from Generation T: Beyond Fashion. Here are some stills below plus a link to the segment and tutorial!

[ No Comments | Posted on October 25th, 2010 ]

T-shirt into Romper on Threadbanger

Turn that old T-shirt into a cute new romper in this fun tutorial from Threadbanger’s Secret Life of a Bio Nerd. Head to a warm-weather destination to show off your new garment or transition the summer wear into fall by layering colorful tights underneath! Fair warning: Those of you with long torsos (like me!), may need to come up with a creative alteration for extending the midsection of the garment. Enjoy!

[ 2 Comments | Posted on October 15th, 2010 ]

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