3 Ways to Upcycle your Shirt in Under 10 Minutes
Anyone else spring cleaning and ready to purge? Unfortunately, most thrift shops aren’t accepting donations because of the current COVID crisis, which could be frustrating if you have a pile of clothes you’re ready to clear out. Instead of getting rid of them, try these three ideas to make them into something new!
Do you have a sentimental t-shirt you don’t wear, but can’t bring yourself to get rid of? Try turning it into a reusable bag in four short steps!
1. Turn the shirt inside out
2. Cut the sleeves off along the seam where they are attached to the body of the shirt.
3. Stitch along the bottom (you can do this step by hand, but it will obviously be much faster with a sewing machine)
4. Flip it right side out and you’re done!
If you’re not in the mood to make your own bag, check out some of our reusable, sustainable bags made from fabric and yarn remnants!
Turn your shirt into a scarf!
Lay your shirt flat on the table (it can remain right side out)
2. Cut along the line shown and that’s it!
I suggest choosing a shirt with a little bit of stretch to it [I picked this one because it had stains toward the bottom so I wouldn’t be able to do much with it]. Try to take your time with cutting so you get clean edges. If that doesn’t work and you want to clean up the edges a bit, fold the top and bottom inward and add a stitch (again, can be by hand, but much easier on the machine!)
Have little ones in your life? Grab a shirt with a cute pattern and make them a new summer dress!
Lay your shirt on a flat surface
2. If you have another dress or shirt close by that fits the little one you’re making the dress for, lay it on top of the shirt like this:
3. Cut around the edges of the top shirt, leaving half an inch for stitching. I made the straps wider than the dress on top just by leaving more room around the edges
4. Flip the shirt inside out and sew along these lines
5. Flip the shirt right side out and it’s ready to go! As with the scarf, if you want cleaner edges fold them in and stitch across.
And, voila! There you go—three t-shirt upcycle tips that take less than ten minutes! These are all great tips for diverting fabric from the waste stream—a key tenant of my company, Noble Living. If you want to learn more about clothing waste and our mission, click here & be sure to subscribe to our email list if you want more easy, practical tips for sustainable idea straight to your inbox.