DIY T-Shirt Crafts: From Braided Bracelets to Floor Pillows, 50 Unexpected Ways to Recycle Your Old T-Shirts
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About this ebook
Creating something useful and stylish doesn't have to take ages or require expensive supplies. From an Easy Twisted Headband to Round Lounge Pillows, DIY T-Shirt Crafts teaches you how to repurpose old T-shirts into 50 beautiful projects worthy of showing off. Complete with step-by-step instructions and stunning photographs, each T-shirt craft is simple enough for beginners to recreate and can be finished in 60 minutes or fewer. Guided by Adrianne Surian, the crafter behind the popular blog Happyhourprojects.com, you'll turn this wardrobe staple into trendy, one-of-a-kind accessories, including:
- Ruffled Rosette Hair Barrette
- Braided Chain Statement Necklace
- Fringed Infinity Scarf
- Galaxy Bleached No-Sew Tote Bag
- Aromatherapy Neck Pillow
Adrianne Surian
An Adams Media author.
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Book preview
DIY T-Shirt Crafts - Adrianne Surian
PART 1
JEWELRY AND SCARVES
Confession: I’m an accessory addict. I love having that little extra something to add to an outfit each day. If this sounds like you, you’re in the right place. Here you’ll learn how to make everything from bracelets to infinity scarves to necklaces, and everything in between! Repurposing a T-shirt is especially great for the projects in this part because the stretchy jersey fabric makes these beautiful items so comfortable to wear. Best of all, you’ll be able to turn one shirt into several projects, so pick your favorite color and get those scissors ready!
Braided Boutique-Style Beaded Cuff
The jersey fabric in T-shirts makes for great jewelry cord, because it’s soft with a little bit of stretch—just like your favorite tee. This bracelet design may look intricate, but it doesn’t involve any special weaving techniques! It’s just a basic braid, with a few well-placed accent beads that give it the wow factor it needs to look like a boutique piece.
Materials
3 strips of 1-wide T-shirt fabric, 18
long each
Flat-nosed jewelry pliers
2 crimp-on ribbon ends
15–20 large-hole metal spacer beads (with an interior hole of at least 2 millimeters)
Scissors
2 (7-millimeter) jump rings
1 (18-millimeter) lobster clasp
Optional, but helpful: Bead reamer or toothpick
Take your fabric strips, and lay them down on top of one another. Find the center point of the strips, then fold them in half, to create 6 strands of 9" each. Then, use your pliers to crimp a ribbon end onto the fold, making sure that all 3 strips are securely within the teeth of the ribbon end.
Separate your strands into 3 sections of 2 strands each.
Begin braiding, adding a bead to one of your two strands each time you pull one of the three sections to the center—by adding it to the same strand each time, your piece will be more uniform from start to finish. If your beads have especially small holes, you may find that you need the aid of a bead reamer, toothpick, or other small tool to press the fabric through the hole to get it started. Then you can pull it from the other end to add the bead. It’s normal for it to be a tight fit! Once you get the first bead on, the rest will be easier as the cord stretches. The strand that gets stretched by adding beads will get thinner, but the other strand will stay fluffy, keeping the width the same from start to finish. The exact number of beads you need will depend on how tightly you form your braid; a looser braid will require fewer beads.
When you have braided for a length of 7", gather all the ends together tightly, and use your scissors to cut them so they’re even. Crimp the other ribbon end on with your pliers, making sure all edges are tucked into the crimp before closing it securely.
T-Shirt Tips!
When choosing your beads, try mixing different shapes and textures of beads in the same color family. Using beads that are approximately the same size, but different in other ways, adds interest without detracting from the overall style.
Finally, twist open your jump rings with your jewelry pliers, and attach them to both ends of the bracelet. On one of your rings, add the lobster clasp before twisting the ring closed again to finish your bracelet.
Tube Bead Bracelet
Bracelets with several layers give you the stacked look in just one piece, which makes them easy to wear and to store. This project contrasts metal tube beads with T-Shirt Yarn, creating an easy and stylish accessory. No one will ever know you made it out of your favorite old shirt!
Materials
Large-eye beading needle
10 strips of ¹⁄2-wide T-shirt fabric, 8
long each
10 (2") tube beads
1 strip of ¹⁄2-wide T-shirt fabric, 6
long
Scissors
Jewelry glue
2 (10-millimeter) glue-on end caps
Ruler
2 (7-millimeter) jump rings
Flat-nosed jewelry pliers
1 (8-millimeter) lobster clasp
Thread the large-eye beading needle with your fabric strip, and string the tube beads onto the fabric. The beading needle is flexible enough that it will bend going through the tube bead. The fabric is likely to stretch as you do this, which is normal.
T-Shirt Tips!
Don’t have a beading needle large enough for your fabric strips? A 4" piece of 26-gauge wire, twisted around the end of the fabric strip, can be used in a pinch.
Gather the ends of the fabric strips on the left side of the bracelet, and tie them tightly with the strip of 6" T-shirt fabric. Trim the ends of your fabric strips up evenly, close to where you tied off the bracelet end, and also cut any excess tails from the fabric strip itself. This knot only needs to last long enough to glue on the end cap, so you don’t need to worry about leaving long tails or about the knot coming undone with normal wear. Then add a few drops of jewelry glue to your end cap, and glue the ends and the knot into the end cap, all together.
Measure along your bracelet, and tie another scrap in a knot at a length of 7. Cut it off and glue the other cap, just as you did for the first one. Seven inches of fabric will make up a 7¹⁄2
bracelet, which is a typical size for a ladies’ bracelet. If your wrist is larger or smaller than average, feel free to make adjustments for a custom fit.
Arrange the tube beads as needed to position them at the center part of the bracelet, because it’s likely that they will have shifted as you created your piece. Finally, twist open your jump rings with your jewelry pliers, and attach them to both ends of the bracelet. On one of your rings, add the lobster clasp before twisting the ring closed again to finish your bracelet.
Rolled Rosette Bezel-Set Necklace
These easy rolled rosettes are framed by a metal bezel, which both supports and defines this simple pendant. Choose a monochromatic color scheme, go for an ombré effect, or even use your team’s colors for this pretty accessory. Personalizing this piece just makes it all the more unique!
Materials
3 strips of ¹⁄2-wide T-shirt fabric, 6
long each, in any color scheme you like
3 circles of T-shirt fabric, ¹⁄2" in diameter, one each in colors that match your fabric strips
Fabric glue
Jewelry glue
1 (¹⁄2 × ³⁄4
) rectangular jewelry bezel
1 (7-millimeter) jump ring
Flat-nosed jewelry pliers
18" chain with clasp
Tie a knot at the end of one of your strips of fabric to create the center of your rosette.