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It’s an idea perhaps as old as the cotton gin, but doctoring a plain T-shirt or a top that’s been gathering dust in your closet not only saves you cash but is good for the earth. And you don’t have to be Martha Stewart to make these customized creations. “T-shirt material is the perfect starting place because jersey knit is so forgiving,” says Megan Nicolay, author of Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-shirt. “Accessories are like the icing on the cake—that extra little something to give an outfit some more oomph,”she adds. Nicolay likes using leftover T-shirt scraps to craft these arm warmers and bracelets. And if you make a mistake, you can easily start over.
Arm warmers: go-go gauntlets
What you need: 1 T-shirt, ruler, tailor’s chalk, scissors, straight pins, needle, thread
1 Mark and cut two rectangles at least 8" to 10" wide and 12" to 16" long from a T-shirt.
2 Fold each piece in half lengthwise, right sides in, and pin along the edges. Mark with chalk at 2” (A) and 4” (B) along the open edges.
3 Using a whipstitch, a diagonal stitch that passes over the fabric edge, sew together the two pinned edges of that rectangle. When you get to the first mark (A), sew along the edge of just one layer of fabric. At the second mark (B), resume sewing both layers together.
4 When you reach the end, reverse direction and restitch the seam. Again, at the second mark (B), sew only the single (unsewn) layer of fabric to finish off the thumbhole at A. Continue stitching through both pieces of fabric to the end. Repeat with other gauntlet and turn the pair right side out.
5 Knot the threads, snip off the ends, turn your gauntlets right side out, and slip on your spanking-new arm warmers.
Bracelets: brace yourself
What you need: 1 T-shirt, ruler, tailor’s chalk, scissorsCut a 1"-wide strip from just above the bottom hem (or the end of one of the shirt sleeves) about 1" longer than the circumference of your wrist. You can just tie it on, but the original was clasped with a single gold safety pin at the 1" overlap. Nicolay decorated the bracelet with a peace sign (using a permanent silver marker), but you can leave it plain and let the colors do the talking. Another alternative: Replace the safety pin with a punk pin, or add many punk pins like trinkets on a charm bracelet.
From Generation T by Megan Nicolay, $10, at amazon.com and most book stores
