Sorry Boys, this ones for the Ladies

Or the men who sew. I spent today in superhero pajamas watching a video game conference and at a baseball game indulging in dollar hot dogs. Who am I to preach about gender stereotypes? Point being, today was a very manly day for me, and my body more or less rebelled against such treatment by viciously attacking me with cramps - reminding me of my place in the world (for the time being of course...). So I needed to equalize a bit. I painted my toenails ("Thunderbird" by China Glaze -ooh! obsessed!) moisturized like there was no tomorrow (why has it taken me so long to discover coco butter? I SMELL LIKE THE HERSHEY FACTORY!) and now have decided to write a post on fashion. Well, my sense of fashion anyways. As I was stumbling around the Internet this evening and cleaning my closets of late, I've discovered a need for downsizing my tshirt collection. Now, as anyone can tell you (because everyone has drawers overflowing with the things) tshirts are so hard to get rid of. There are sentimental ones, handmade ones, ones you paid a lot for, ones from organizations, gifts, concert tees, team shirts....the list goes on and on. And really, how many tshirts can a gal (or guy) wear? My solution? Make them into something that's no longer your standard run of the mill tshirt. Oh yes, if you haven't already guessed, this is going to be a crafting post. Why I haven't already done one of these, seeing as I am me, is beyond my comprehension. Regardless, I've taken quite a few tshirts from ahh to AWESOME in my time (and trust me, I've taken a good many from bad to worse as well, but this is a post focused on successes, not failures) and I've hunted down a few ideas and tutorials (click on the pictures for the links) that are my personal favorites to help you do the same! Enjoy!!

We've Got A Jumper

So, I kind of find this jumper insanely adorable and love that it's made from a single tshirt. Plus it's a cute summer look. AAAND it'd also be great if you were trying to pull together an easy Lady Gaga "Just Dance" costume. Disco bra not included.

Ruffle My Feathers

This one comes straight off the site that inspired this post, basically because as soon as it's not 3am anymore I'm making it. The site is jam-packed with adorable DIY stuff that looks pretty high-fashion. Not to mention there's minimal sewing involved here. Seriously, as we speak H&M/Forever21/Charlotte Russe are selling this shirt for like $24.99.

Necking

Another design I'm in love with that's made all the easier by the fact that apparently the ruffles sewn around the neck of this shirt are available pre-made at fabric stores (she found them at Hobby Lobby, but I'm sure Joanne's has some, I'll ask Mama). She ranks it as a beginner level project, so great for starters!

Scarf It Down

These scarves were all the rage recently, and they're so incredibly easy to make, I don't see why anyone would buy them. Not to mention light, fun scarves like this one are great in the summer to give blah tank tops a bit of an edge. This is a great one to use with shirts of the wrong size, or with a weird stain cause chances are you can cut around it. While you're on craftster, check out the site, they have some incredible talent floating around.

Left Standing At the Halter

There are like three million ways to transform a tshirt into a halter top. I really like the professional looking outcome of this instructable though. It's a bit construction heavy, but just google "tshirt to halter top" to find a million simplified variations. There are plenty of no-sew variations that work well for beginners (just cut some more of the back of that first project of the second link for a no-sew halter) or those in a pinch, but trust me, put the effort in and you'll have a shirt you want to keep wearing. The more effort invested the more likely you are to actually wear the shirt (learned this the hard way...sooo many crappy recons...).

TeeBooks

I actually have yet to try this one, but I love it because you get to use the tshirts you love(d) that no longer fit, have weird stains, are too short/long/thin/thick/weird fabric-ed. I'll be trying these out next semester I'm sure!

Showing Some Skin (and Bones)
AKA: The Skeleton Shirt

Okay this is one of my all time favorite recons to date. I've made the variation on the left twice, once as a shirt I wear all the time and once specifically from a neon yellow tshirt for a rave party. I always get compliments and I love it to death, there may be another in my future. However, I got this idea from a book called "Generation T" and can't find the tutorial online (blah!) But, the Internet is a majestic place and as a replacement I've found this even cuter and less harsh version to the right. I will definitely be making it. It's a bit tricky to follow the directions, but once you get it, you get it. [NOTE: Only the pink variation is linked to a tutorial website]