Recycling your old or unwanted tee shirts into a tote bag is easy. You will need a pair of sharp scissors, a sewing machine and a tee shirt. The tee shirts work best in a medium size, but any size makes a good bag. You can even recycle damaged shirts this way.
Arranging Your Supplies
Firstly, clean and iron your tee shirt. This will help with the actual sewing and keeping your seams straight. Thread your sewing machine in a matching thread.
Cutting Out the Bag
Using sharp sewing scissors, cut the sleeves off the tee shirt. Take care not to cut the seams that hold the sleeves on, but sever the sleeves close to this seam. By leaving the seam, your bag handles will be stronger and the bag will retain its shape better.
Lay the shirt out flat. Cut a round neck around the top of the shirt. You can use a large dinner plate and a tailor's pencil if you like. You can also eyeball the cut, using the actual neckline as a guide.
Turn the tee shirt inside out. Give it a quick iron flat.
Sewing the Bag
Along the bottom of the tee shirt, line up the hem. Sew a line approximately 1 cm from the hemline. If your shirt is damaged, trim the bottom of the shirt before sewing it.
You can choose to add 2 short sewing lines to create either a rounded or a flat-bottomed bag. To create a rounded bottom, leave the shirt lying flat, and sew across the corner as shown in the photograph of the white bag. To create a flat bottom, line up the side seam of the shirt and the seam at the bottom of the bag, and sew across, as shown in the red shirt example.
Advantages of the Bag
These tee shirt bags are strong and durable. They are easily washable, so can be used to carry groceries, sports gear or a picnic lunch. They are also a great way of using up either promotional shirts, commemorative shirts, or shirts you have grown out of. They are ideal for transporting fresh fruit or vegetables because the fabric allows the food to breathe, and being soft, does not bruise the fruit.
This sewing task is easy and can be done by children. Turning your child’s shirts into gifts could be a nice gift for a grandparent or other relative.
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