T-Shirt to Cropped Pant (or shorts or long pants) Tutorial

So I have a VERY easy little project to share with you!!  I am all about re-purposing and this project is perfect for using up those old t-shirts that have been retired from your collection.  Of course you could always use cheap new t-shirts found on clearance or found at a yard sale or thrift store.

I found a 3 pack of boys shirts marked down to $5 so I snagged them up and brainstormed what to do with them.  A friend of mine's little girl had a birthday approaching so I decided to make some cropped yoga pants.

This method could easily be used to make shorts or long pants as well!  Just make sure your shirt is long enough if your making pants.  The shirts I used were a boys large which was perfect to make them hit below the knee in a size 3/4T.

I am not real familiar with making tutorials but it's pretty easy to follow.

Materials:

newpaper
favorite pants
pen/pencil
scissors
t-shirt
elastic
thread

First you will take some newspaper and lay your favorite pair of pants on top to make a pattern.  A few things to keep in mind while making your pattern.  Fold your pants in half and line up the straight side with the edge of the newspaper.

• Make sure you remember to add seam allowances so the pants will fit once sewn.  No need to measure here, just trace roughly 1/4 inch from the outline of your pants.
• Add about 1.75 to 2 inches to the top of your pants to make room for the elastic casing.
• At the very top (at the waistband) don't trace exactly at the edge, make a bit wider than the waist on the pants so there is extra fabric when the elastic stretches while putting on.
• Slide the pants down the newspaper until they are the length you want.  For shorts above the knee, cropped yoga below the knee and pants all the way.
• Measure your child's waist and add 1/2 inch.  This will be how long to cut your elastic.  For example if your child's waist is 20 inches then you would cut your elastic 20.5 inches long.

Sorry I didn't take a picture of this step, I can and post it if anyone is confused.

Next you are going to line up your pattern on the edge of your t-shirt as shown.  Line up the straight edge with the edge of the shirt and the bottom with the bottom of the shirt.  This will give you an already hemmed and finished bottom edge...with NO WORK!  You want to make sure the top of your pattern comes no higher than the bottom of the armpit.  If it comes higher you need a longer shirt or could always make shorter bottoms.

Here is a close up...

Once you cut out one side repeat on the other side so you have 2 identical pieces, they will look like this...

And here is a picture showing you where the pattern was on the shirt and the resulting pieces.  Sorry if this is redundant I just wanted to make sure people understand what I mean.

Next you will open up your two pieces and put them right sides together, lining them up as best as possible.  Due to the nature of this projects and of t-shirts they may not line up exactly but that is fine.  Try to line up the bottoms as close as possible and any subtle differences can be fixed in the waistband.

Now as you know the finished edge will be the bottom of you pants.  You are going to sew the crotch first.  This is the top half of the pants, sew on either side.

Next you will twist them around so they look like inside out pants.  The crotch seams will now be down the middle just like on real pants.

Now you will sew the inseam of the pants.  You can do this one of two ways: sew up one side then sew up the other or start on one side, sew up one leg then down the other.  I do the latter but it doesn't really matter.  I also sew a zig-zag stitch on the edge when I'm finished although you don't have too.  T-shirt material is great because it doesn't fray!  The first pair of pants I made for my son I didn't finish any edges nor did I make a formal casing for the elastic.  Many wearings and washings later and they are still going strong!  If you don't want to go through the hassle of ironing and sewing a real casing for the elastic, don't!  Just fold over wide enough for your elastic to fit and sew.

Your final step is to make the casing for your elastic (or not).  Making a casing is easy, start by folding over 1/2 inch and ironing.  Next turn down 5/8 to 3/4 inches and iron again.  Pin in place if necessary.

Finally sew around the bottom edge, as close as possible.  Leave about an inch space so you can thread your elastic through.  Sew the ends of your elastic together then sew your opening shut.

Flip them right side out and ENJOY!!

Birthday Present

BEFORE:

AFTER:

So the pictures are pretty explanatory.  I made a skirt from a womans medium t-shirt.  Super easy, basically all you do is cut it as long as you want the skirt plus about 1.5 inches to make a casing for the elastic.   No need to hem the bottom since thats the bottom of the t-shirt ans is already done.  No need to sew the sides because your using the tube the t-shirt creates.  All you need to do is sew the casing, insert elastic, sew elastic ends and opening for elastic, flip and your done.   This was made for about a 1 year old child but to make it larger/smaller just buy a larger/smaller size t-shirt!

As you can see the top was a long sleeve but since the recipient lives in SC they don't have many days where they need a long sleeve so I turned it into a short sleeve and made a ruffle from the leftover orange t-shirt just to give the shirt more interest.

I am very pleased with how the outfit came out and by the fact that it cost $1.75, literally!  The orange shirt was clearenced for $1 and the striped was $.75.  I am also going to whip up 2 pairs of legwarmers using Alexis' Little Legwarmers in 6 Easy Steps over at Full of Knit.  I figured they would be good in the spring for cooler nights and the unexpected cool day.  Also in the package will be a few of my barrettes.

A birthday box full of easy handmade goodies all for about $8!

Upcycling Home Decor!

BEFORE

AFTER

I wanted some artwork to hang on my daughters wall and became inspired while in the craft store the other day. Scrapbook paper was on sale so I perused the aisle and had a thought about how to make inexpensive pictures to hang on her wall. I found a scrapbook paper I liked that matched her room and then checked out the local goodwill to find some frames. A few coats of spray paint and VOILA! This project was completed for less than $15 and you could easily do it cheaper if you check a few thrift stores, I only went to one. It's also super quick taking about 20 mins. start to finish (not including drying time). I plan on hanging them tomorrow and I think they will look very nice on her walls.

What To Do With A T-Shirt?

So.... What do you do with an old t-shirt?

Well yesterday I tried out a few answers to that question. I actually purchased a few shirts at Goodwill since we don't have any ready to retire quite yet. First up... a newborn gown.

I found the tutorial and patterns over at This Mama Makes Stuff, click here to go right to the pattern. I came across this in my web browsing the other day and thought they were too cute to pass up. Now having never sewn a piece of clothing I was a bit intimidated. I have had new found confidence with sewing lately after my appliques and the baby doll diapers I made. Since the shirt cost me $1.50 I figured I really have nothing to lose, it seemed pretty uncomplicated.

Turns out it wasn't very difficult at all. It was time consuming for me probably because I haven't sewn much other than straight lines and this had hems and zig-zag stitch and elastic. I did make a few modifications to the sleeves, I made it about 3/4 length sleeves and made them smaller. They were quite wide the first time I sewed them. It is far from perfect, I need a little more practice with the zig-zag and also the underarms gathered a bit and I can't figure out why. Inside out they are flat but when I flip it the kinda bunch, more practice and I will probably figure that out too.

All in all I am shocked and quite proud of myself that I MADE THIS!! My little girl will definitely be getting lots of use out of it and it was easy enough I may make more. And I must say it came out quite well!! Check it out below.


After having much success with this I went on to my next task, making pants for my son with an adult t-shirt. Basically I did this by taking a pair of his pants that fit well and folding them in half. Then I traced around the pants lining the outside of the leg on the edge of the paper. This is where your fold would be. I drew another line allowing for a 1/4" seam allowance and then cut out. Anyway I don't feel like going into every detail here, nor did I take any pictures of the process but if you would like a great tutorial on this click HERE.

I can't believe how easy these were to make. I am certainly going to make many more pairs of these for both my son and daughter and perhaps some for gifts as well. I will also keep my eye open at the fabric store because you could make these using any fabric. Not to mention the fact you can make shorts just as easily by just making them shorter!


Last I just wanted to post a picture of the baby doll diapers I made. These were super simple and I ended up making 4 of them so we should be set for a while!