Tutorial Tuesday: T-shirt Bag Edition!

Hi!  Welcome to Tutorial Tuesday!  It’s bonus tutorial week because I also did a tutorial yesterday for a Pikachu Halloween costume. Thank you for your wonderful comments and feedback on the costume, it has inspired me to try to squeeze in a few more costume tutorials before Halloween!

Today we are going to recycle an old t-shirt and turn it into a bag!  This is like a recycling project squared because the bag is the perfect size and shape to hold groceries and save plastic and paper bags when shopping. I chose an old concert t-shirt from a band I loved as a teenager 😀

What you will need for this project:

-t-shirt

-scissors

-sewing machine

-thread

-pins

-seam ripper

Step 1: Use your seam ripper to detach both sleeves from the t-shirt.  You can also just cut the sleeves off but seam ripping makes for neater edges and more fabric to work with.

You could always stop here and have a sweet sleeveless cut-off t-shirt circa 1992!

Step 2: Set those sleeves aside while we work on the main part of the shirt.  Take some scissors and cut open the seam at the shoulders.

Step 3:  Now, lets sew up the bottom hem of the shirt to get it really looking like a bag!  Just turn the shirt inside and sew along the bottom hem.  You can pin the hem together to make it easier to sew and you can also round the edges a bit as you sew so the corners aren’t so pointy 😀

all sewn up!

Step 4:  Start just at the outside of the collar and cut a bib shape around the neckline of the shirt.  The bottom of the bib shape should line up with the armpit where the sleeve used to be.

Step 5:  Using the bib shape in the front as a guide, cut the same shape out of the back of the shirt.

Step 6: Now that the main part of the bag is done, let’s revisit those sleeves!  Take your handy seam ripper and take out the seam that holds the sleeves together.

Step 7: Cut off the hem and the curve of the sleeve so you have one nice, straight line.  Do this for both sleeves!

Step 8: Pin the sleeves to the cut ends at the shoulders to make the strap. Pin the right (correct) sides of the fabric facing each other so the wrong sides of the fabric are facing out.  Then fold the strap over and pin it to the back shoulder also with right sides together and wrong sides facing out.  Do this for both sides.

Step 9:  Head on over to your sewing machine and stitch up those seams.  Don’t forget to remove your pins as you sew! And voila!  Now you have a handy dandy bag that will forever remind you of that beloved old t-shirt that you just don’t wear anymore. Happy shopping!