Trapezoid-shaped Tote from Casino T-shirt

A year or two ago, I bought this T-shirt from the Goodwill advertising Terrible's Casino in Primm, Nevada. I was attracted to the T-shirt, because the classic "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign is used in it's image, only it says "Welcome to Primm." Originally white, I dyed it Avocado Green and de-constructed it. It sat in my stash for a long time because I couldn't think of something to do with it.

On my most recent trip to the Goodwill, I was pleased to find another Terrible's T-shirt because I knew this would expand the possiblities for a project! This one I dyed Robin's Egg Blue.

I decided to make a functional, patchwork tote from the two T-shirts. My first step was to make the patchwork panels and then cut out the other layers. As in my other functional, sturdy projects, there are four layers - outside patchwork, muslin for interfacing, batting for body and the inside lining.

I like the design of this tote because it's simple, yet has an interesting trapezoid shape. The inside is lined in black and has two pockets and velcro closure. The dimensions of the bag are: bottom - 19", top - 15" and height - 12."

Hip tank from international souvenir shirt

My adventurous father-in-law, Bruce, went to Tibet after attending the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He brought us home several souvenir T-shirts. After two years, this T-shirt had not been worn by any of us. I think it was too small for a man and too big for a woman, so I thought it was a perfect candidate for a re-style.

   

I de-constructed and re-constructed it into a women's tank top. 

My intention was to give the "new" tank top to my daughter, Hanna. So, my hope was that the re-styled garment would be hip enough for her to say "I like it. Thanks, mom." And, yes, that's just what happened. She even wore it to school the next day.

Walmart Knock-off Hobo Bag

I was interested in making a hobo style bag and rather than looking for a pattern in a fabric store or developing my own, I decided to look in Walmart for a cheap bag that I could deconstruct and copy. I was pretty jazzed when I found this bag on clearance for $5.00!

Isn't it lovely?!

I had Goodwill T-shirt from the 2006 Port of Los Angeles Lobster Festival. (I never knew there was such an event, but I thought the image was pretty cool.) The original color was tan, and I dyed it "Brazilian Nut."

For the lining, I decided to use a shirt my husband, Mike, donated to my collection which he received from his cousin, Tom, who is a seafood broker.

So I deconstructed the Walmart bag, ironed the pieces, and traced around them onto pattern paper. I developed a long shoulder strap as well. I'll spare you any of the construction details. Not complicated - but took longer to make than I thought it would.

Here is the finished bag.

There is a cell phone pocket and a larger square pocket inside.

Lastly, I had my reluctant model wear it so you can get an idea of it's actual size.

Textured mini tote from random Goodwill T-shirt

I found a T-shirt in my stash that I had purchased some time ago at the Goodwill. It was from an event in 1998 in San Clemente. I bought it because I thought it had possibilities with it's fireworks design. 

I recently purchased a new color of dye, Cayman Isle Green, I was excited to try.

I cut out all the pieces for the mini tote. There are 4 layers - a red T-shirt fabric for the top texture, the firework image layer, a muslin fabric for stability, and an orchid T-shirt fabric for the lining.

  

To create the texture, I ran a straight stitch every 1/2 inch, sewing the red fabric and the firework fabric together.

Next I cut the fabric in the middle of every section. For a more interesting texture I wet the project and put it in the dryer to make the raw ends curl.

Here's the finished mini tote. Just big enough for an evening out (9" x 9") - it can hold your wallet, keys, cell phone, lipstick, and a little bit more.

This side is the top half of the image.

This side is the bottom half of the image.

Cosmetic bag from Mission Inn Run shirt

This week I didn't dye anything new, so I pulled from my stash an already dyed and de-constructed T-shirt from the 2010 annual Mission Inn Run. I used the back to make a cosmetic bag.

I wanted to pair the T-shirt with some tie-dyed fabric. I chose a piece left over from my 

re-satchel project.

Next I cut out all the pieces for my bag. There are actually four layers - the outside, some batting, inside lining (dark blue T-shirt), and clear plastic (top layer inside).

To construct the bag, I first sewed together the outside pieces. Next I basted together all four layers. I then sewed in a zipper. The last step was to sew up the side seams.

This little bags are great for holding things other than cosmetics. I have used one for a couple of years now to hold my knitting accessories. The bags are also machine washable. They just need to be kept out of the dryer because of the plastic lining.

Fitted tank from souvenir T-shirt

I found this wonderful XL, souvenir T-shirt from Washington D.C. at my local Goodwill. I thought it would be perfect to make a hand-stitched tank top found in Natalie Chanin's second book, Alabama Studio Style. 


(If you're interested, http://www.amazon.com/Alabama-Studio-Style-Celebrating-Sustainable/dp/1584798238)

I decided to dye the shirt Orchid because I thought it would contrast nicely with the gold colors in the image.

Next, I cut the pieces out for the fitted tank. I had just enough fabric from the XL T-shirt to squeeze out all the pattern pieces. XXL T-shirts are actually more suitable for this project.

The entire garment is hand-stitched. I settle in on the couch and get myself in a mediative state of mind when I'm ready to begin stitching. I decided to use red thread for the seams and gold thread for the neckline and armholes. I always use contrasting thread on these projects as the hand-stitching is part of the design, and should be featured rather than blended in.

Here's the finished tank. My favorite model wasn't around for me to photograph wearing the top for this post.

Reverse applique headband from Hang Loose T-shirt

I have found a lot of inspiration from Alabama Stitch Book by Nancy Chanin.

http://alabamachanin.com/books/alabama-stitch-book

My headband project in this post uses my spin on a reverse applique technique from the book. I started with a T-shirt I purchased at the Goodwill.

The headband is two layers. The Hang Loose image will be the bottom layer. For the top layer, I chose an orchid-colored, T-shirt scrap from my stash.

Then I cut out the pieces for the headband.

Next I used a stencil and fabric paint to make a design for my applique work.

       

To make the headband, I put the two layers together and hand-stitched around all the stencils shapes with gold thread. Then I cut out the inside so the Hang Loose image would show through. I always enjoy cutting the fabric out of each shape to see what's underneath. I think is interesting how a novelty image can take on an artistic and even abstract quality when a portion of it is isolated.

The back has an elastic insert.

I hand-stitched around each shape with gold thread, then cut out the inside.