Thrift Flip – Shirts
Being stuck at home, I've found myself wearing the same few things every day. It was nice at first to not have to try to look put together for anyone, but now that we are well past the 100-day mark, I'm starting to try to get creative with clothing again. I've decided to use this time to go through my closet and repurpose all the items that I never really wear, either because it doesn't fit right or the style didn't work for me. I'm slowly working through the little pile I've created, starting with these four shirts.
I have an excessive amount of graphic tees, more specifically an excessive amount of Star Wars graphic tees. I've been a life long Star Wars fan, and then on top of that, I worked on a Star Wars production, which left me with a bunch of wrap shirts from other departments. I've seen this trend going around with these split band tees and thought it might be fun to try it out with some of the shirts I don't wear anymore.
It was a straightforward process to make.
Cut off the collar and cropped the bottom of each of the shirts (I decided to keep the lengths uneven because I liked the look)
Cut both shirts down the middle
Paired the left and right from each different shirt
Sewed them together with front facing sides together with 1/4 inch seam allowance
I opted to leave a little opening at the top of the neckline to give it a more open look
And that was it! This was a super simple and easy project even if you've never touched a sewing machine before.
I am so thrilled with how these turned out. I love how personal this one feels to me rather than going out and buying a split tee with two random bands I probably never listen to.
This was a shirt from Target that I got as a gift awhile back. I didn't hate it, but the color was a little too bright for me, so I didn't find myself wearing it too often. I've wanted to try a bleach tie-dye and thought this shirt might be a good fit for that.
I tied it up like you usually would with tie-dye
Poured a mix for 50/50 bleach and water over the shirt
Left it to sit for about 30 minutes
Rinsed, washed, and dried
When I came back the shirt, it looked almost entirely white, so I was a little afraid I overdid it, but once it was washed and dried, it looked great.
The bleach took a lot more of the color out than I was expecting, but it gave the shirt more of a neutral tone. In hindsight, I might have rinsed it a bit sooner to get a bit more of a pop of the yellow color. I don't think this photo gives it justice because its more of a very pale yellow rather than a pure white. I am happy with this one; it is bright and fun for summer.
I've had this black crop tank in my closet for the past three years, and I used to wear it a lot, but it got a little dull and hasn't been pulled off its hanger in the last year. During quarantine, I've gotten back into embroidery but mostly just on hoops as art. I wanted to give this shirt a second life with a little pop of color. I've seen similar tanks with a word like "baby" or "honey" embroidered across the top, so that is where I am getting my inspiration. I found this pattern on the DMC website, a great resource for anyone interested in this old school hobby. They have a ton of free templates right now in a range of skill levels, and most of them are actually really cute.
The shirt turned out great. I used a little rainbow of colors that I already had on hand, which gave it a summery, flirty vibe. Really excited to start adding this one into rotation again.
Each of these projects took less than a day to make from start to finish. Obviously, some are more hands-on, like the embroidery, or more hands-off, as the tie-dye. This project gave me an excuse to slow down and be a little creative, and I hope to add more of these thrift flips into my weekly routine. I still have a substantial pile of clothes to work with, so hopefully, I'll have more to share soon.
Love,
Julia Carrington
