Quick and Easy T-Shirt Makeovers #1

I didn’t think that each of these quick and easy casual t-shirt refashions warranted it’s own post but I did want to share with you all how quick and easy it can be to makeover a t-shirt from ordinary or unwearable into something that you love.

Too Short T-Shirt Grows Up

I love this t-shirt that I picked up from Crossroads (a local consignment shop).

Isn't all this detail amazing!?

 

I later learned that it originally cost $$ at Bloomingdales! It fit nicely, the only problem was that it was too short. At first I tried wearing it with a tank underneath but I didn’t like the bulk. I tried it for awhile with a cami but on warm days I didn’t like the extra layer. I even used a “topless tank” but it would get twisted around and again on warm days it felt like an extra layer. Finally it dawned on me that I could just add a “mock layer” myself and have a t-shirt that I both loved AND was comfortable in.

Because I don’t like to do hems, especially on stretchy fabrics and why should I have to when there are so many plain t-shirts and tank tops out there that I can sacrifice to the cause. In this case I cut the bottom 4 inches from a stained white wife-beater tank top that I had been planning to dye, but considered this to be a better use of this particular tank top. There are plenty of stained white tank tops out there to be dyed. This one was going to become part of an amazing t-shirt. Then it was a matter of simply stitching the tank top tube to the inside of my t-shirt and …

Ta-da!

Boring Black Ribbed T-Shirt

I had this black ribbed t-shirt that had a nice detail on the neck, but that wasn’t enough to rescue it from plain-Janedome.

boring but comfortable

interesting neck detail

 

 

I thought that adding a graphic to the front of this t-shirt would be an easy rescue. I had a patch that I liked but it didn’t stand out enough on my shirt.

originally rescued from old BF's shirt

 

So I backed the graphic patch with an iron-on patch from my sewing kit.

sometimes 2+2=more than 4

 

Then sewed my new patch to my t-shirt and I’m enjoying the resulting new t-shirt.

up close

the whole T

Off Shoulder Long-Sleeved T-shirt

I had an old Old Navy t-shirt that I liked a lot but I’m just so over the basic crew-neck T so I decided to bump this one up a notch. I don’t have any before pics but you’ve all seen a basic brew-neck t-shirt.

I carefully cut away the ribbing at the neck so that I could use it either in this or a future refashion. Then I drew my new neckline on the t-shirt with chalk and cut it out, unpicked the sleeve hem and bottom hem and lettuce-edged the neckline, sleeve edge and bottom of the t-shirt using a light blue thread that matched the graphic on the front of the shirt.

neckline edging

sleeve edging

 

 

Tried it on and wasn’t completely happy with how the neck-line fell so far down my arm. I wanted it slightly off the shoulder, not falling off! I always miscalculate how much to cut from a neckline, but because this is a common mistake of mine I’ve cooked up a few solutions. For this rescue of a refashion gone wrong I cut away the serged edge of the ribbed collar so that I had a strip that would be long enough, when cut in half to serve as mock-cami straps.

close up of mock cami strap

both straps attached to t-shirt

finished t-shirt

 

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About Kat

I started this blog to share with you all the results of years of turning trash into treasures. Hopefully I'll spark some new creative thoughts and if that happens I hope that you'll share your discoveries and together we’ll build a blog that will singlehandedly reduce global warming and save the world! Okay, maybe that’s a grand goal but we should be able to at least downsize our own trash output.

3 thoughts on “Quick and Easy T-Shirt Makeovers #1

  1. Hello!
    I have to agree that the first tee is quite amazing on its own. I would like to see the after picture, but it seems that you posted the same picture for the before and after.

  2. LOL – you caught me. I have a bad habit of getting excited about a project and jumping in before taking a “before” pic. I cheated on this one by cropping the “before” pic to not show the waistband I had already added.

  3. That is very attention-grabbing, You’re an overly skilled blogger. I’ve joined your rss feed and stay up for seeking extra of your magnificent post. Also, I’ve shared your web site in my social networks

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