Thrift-Store Makeover

I found this book on one of my afternoons at Barnes and Noble.  I've been known to buy clothes at thrift- stores just for the button, and have made some Martha-inspired pillows from shirts , but that's been the extent of it for me.   This fun book shows how to make all kinds of "new" clothes and accessories out of thrift- store finds.

I must admit, some of these projects seemed like too much work for me, but I liked the idea of turning a T-shirt into a scarf.  Off to the thrift store to find on that would work. (Do you have any idea of how many really ugly T-shirts there are out there?  LOTS)!!    Anyway,I finally found this blue striped Lands' End one that I thought would work well with jeans:



To make the scarf, you cut the T-shirt apart under the sleeves/armholes so you end up with just the bottom "tube" of the shirt (sorry, I deleted that photo!) .  Then, start cutting narrow strips about 1/4 inch from the side seams  on the unfinished edge.  Don't cut the hemmed edge!

And, voila, a fun scarf for pennies. 

A couple of hints in case you want to give this a go:

• The bigger the shirt,  the wider the scarf!  My shirt was a 2X and as I was cutting the fringe, I realized the whole thing too wide, so  I had to take off a few inches from the width - not a big deal if you like the print, but something to keep in mind.
• It's a bit tricky to cut the fringe evenly.  I pinned the shirt together so it wouldn't shift all over.  Use really sharp scissors and take your time.  Keep in mind that the cut edges will curl, making your fringe narrower.
• Depending on the size of your shirt and how long you want your scarf, you can cut the shirt off closer to the armholes or further down.  I 'd cut the next one  so I only ended up with a "tube" around 10-12 inches .

Not Hermes, but fun!