I have an old cotton skirt I used to wear to the beach or around the house, but just decided it wasn’t really my style anymore. I decided it would look better as a big, slouchy, cozy bag. Here is what I did to turn an old skirt (along with a bit of an old shirt) into a cute and upcycled purse.

How to REuse a Skirt to make a Purse:

1. Turn the skirt inside out.
2. Sew the bottom of the skirt together.

3. Flip the skirt right side out.

4. Cut three strips of fabric from the bottom of a shirt (about 1 inch wide for each).

5. Cut the fabric pieces so they are strips instead of loops.

6. Tie the three strips into a knot.

7. Shut the knot into a drawer or a door, ask a friend or significant other to hold it…something that will keep it in place.

8. Braid the 3 strips of fabric together. If you do not know how to braid, check out this link.

*The width of the shirt you use will determine the length of your handle. I used an XL tshirt for my handle*

9. Tie the end of the braid in a knot.

10. Pin the braided handle to your new purse and sew. I just did 3 lines of thread as the normal X inside a square wouldn’t work with the knot in the handle.

11. What’s awesome about your new braided handle is that you can shorten it and turn your new upcycled purse from a messenger type bag into a shoulder tote in minutes. Just tie a knot at the top to make your handle a desired length.

Related posts:

1. How to Reuse a Sweatshirt to make a Steering Wheel Cover.
2. How to Reuse a blouse to make a wedding hairpin.
3. How to REuse playing cards to make a wedding boutonniere.

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Here’s my first attempt.

An old long sleeved shirt into a new slouch short sleeved shirt.

What do you think?

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So, here is my version of How to Reuse a Tshirt to Make a Toddler’s Summer Dress.

1.  Turn your tshirt inside out.  Remove the sleeves and neckline (cut about 2 inches extra from the neck line).

2.  Find the center point of the bottom of the shirt.  Measure 6.5 inches on either side of the center point and put a dot.  Then measure 2 inches down from the neckline and mark the side of the shirt.  Cut the excess fabric from the sides.

3.  Make your tank sleeves 2 inches thick.  Cut from the outside edge with a slight curve.

4.  Sew the sides of your tshirt/dress together (correct side to correct side).  Keep your dress inside out and sew the edges of your sides down to the dress.

5.  Cut the tops from your tank top sleeves.  Tie a cut knot.

6.  Turn your new dress inside out and find a cute little girl to give it to.

Think warm thoughts!

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Here’s How to Reuse an Old Tshirt to Make a Baby Bib:

1.  Pick out a fun tshirt.

2.  Iron it.

3.  Cut out (starting at the collar) a bib shape.  Make sure you cut both the front and the back of your tshirt.

4.  Turn your shirt wrong side out.

5.  Sew the sides and bottom of the bib.  Leave a bit of fabric unsewn at the top of both sides (by the collar).

6.  Grab the bottom of the bib through the collar (that you have not sewn yet) and turn your bib right side out.

7.  Cut the back side of the tshirt away from the collar.

8.  Fold the extra fabric in towards the wrong side of your fabric.  Iron it to keep it folded down.  Sew the top of your bib.

9.  Cut your collar at the half way point.  Either just tie this around your baby’s neck or attach some velcro with a hot glue gun.

There you have it.  A bib that is easy to make, fun, and unique!

The next time you clean out your tshirt drawer make some upcycled baby bibs!

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My mom is awesome and is always buying super cute and funny t-shirts.  I love the imagery on them and figured I might as well keep them even when they don’t fit or are falling apart.  One option for an old t-shirt is to make a purse out of it.

Here’s how I took one t-shirt and made a small handbag.

Note:  Everything on the purse comes from one t-shirt (except the thread)

Instructions on How to Make a Purse from an Old T-shirt:

1.  Cut the t-shirt into a rectangle.  (Remove collar and sleeves).

2.  Iron fabric.

3.  Turn the front side of the t-shirt over and line it up with the fabric on the bottom.  Sew the long sides of the rectangle together as well as the top (where the collar used to be).

4.  Turn your fabric correct side out.

5.  Fold the two bottoms in on themselves and sew bottom together.

6.  Fold your rectangle in half.  The fold will be the bottom of your purse.

7.  Remove the collar from the t-shirt.  That will be your handle.

Note:  ***My t-shirt has cuffs around the arm sleeves.  For those of you who have t-shirts that do not have these, no worries.  Use the fabric left over from the sleeves to create a handle or any decoration you would like.***

8.  Sew sleeve caps to sides of purse.  If you don’t have sleeve caps, just sew the sides together.

9.  Add your “collar handle” to the inside of the purse on opposite ends.

Enjoy your new purse!

Find purses like this and other bags made from reused materials at The Print Studio on Etsy.  CLICK HERE.

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