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Writer's picture@highlyangie

No Sew T-shirt Tote

Updated: Feb 9

It can be hard to let go of a beloved t-shirt, even if you never wear it, just having it close makes ya feel good! What better way to give new life to an old tee than by turning it into a no sew t-shirt tote! I'll walk you through the steps of this super easy DIY.

t-shirt picture with text overlay

Sometimes I have trouble letting go of things, but that usually leads me to discovering new craft ideas, so I guess my hoarding tendencies are a good thing ;) One of the crafting ideas I've discovered are t-shirt totes. I have two different types that I'll show you how to make, one with fringe and one without. So if you're anything like me and you've got shirts that you've been holding onto because you just know you "can use for something one day" then read on to find out how to tackle this DIY.


WHAT YOU'LL NEED

--t shirt

--scissors

scissors on top of t-shirts

INSTRUCTIONS


First you'll want to take the sleeves off of the shirt. The way that I like to do that is by cutting up the sleeve until I get to the seam, and then cutting along the seam line. This way makes it easier for me to keep my cut clean, but feel free to take off the sleeves any way you want

cut t-shirt sleeve

The next thing you'll do is open up the neckline. You can use chalk to draw how deep you want your opening to be, or you can just freehand it like I did.

cut off t-shirt neckline

Now that the sleeves and neckline have been removed, you're ready to start creating the bag. To do that, you're going to cut slits along the bottom hem of the shirt. Your slits can be as wide or as narrow as you want.

cut t-shirt hem

Once you've cut your slits you're going to tie them in knots. Make sure that your shirt is inside out when you do this step so that your knots won't be visible on the outside of the bag. Starting with the outer slits and working your way in by alternating sides, tie each front slit to the corresponding back slit.

knotted t-shirt

Once all your slits are tied, you can turn your shirt so that's its right side out, and you're done!

completed t-shirt tote

The next style of bag I'll show you has fringe on the bottom. It's starts the same way as the first one, by cutting off the sleeves and neckline.

t-shirt with sleeves and neckline cut off

The next step is to cut your slits. This time you'll want to make your cuts 1/2 inch to 1 inch wide. You'll also want to make these slits longer than the last ones. The exact length that you decide on is up to you and depends on how long you want your fringe to be.

cut t-shirt hem

Once your slits are cut then you can start to tie them in knots. Be sure to have your shirt with the right side out so that your fringe will be visible. And you can use the same alternating technique while working your way in. You can also cut your slits to be thinner if you've tied them and decide you want more fullness.

scissors cutting t shirt fringe

Once all fringe is tied and cut then you're done!

completed t-shirt tote

If you give this project a try, let me know how it works out for you!


Happy Crafting!

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