T-Shirt Up-Cycle

With school back in session and fall fast approaching, I am quickly going through my old tees and realizing I have a ton of old shirts that I hate to get rid of.
Luckily, I found this great Up-Cycle idea..the t-shirt necklace. Check out the tutorial here.



After making several variations of colors, I finally realized an easier way to make them without having to tie the knot in the back was to grab some of my fiances old tees {the fitted tees in the above shot just weren't big enough}. So this is the style I came up with {and you can wear and many or as few as you would like}.


I've also been noticing some people braid their tee's {which I must try}. Check out the braided tutorial from I Still Love You

I just love the chunky look these necklaces offer and the vintage style which I adore.

Won't you share your T-Shirt necklace with us..I'd love to see it on FLICKR or FB!
Happy Friday LTC!

Jessica

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Silhouette Heat Transfer - One Design, Two Shirts!

One of the reasons that I was so excited to get my hands on the Silhouette machine was the option to use the heat transfer material. I had used some store bought iron-on letters to make my son a "lil mascot" shirt before and had TERRIBLE results! Really, the letters immediately started peeling off when my son was wearing it, several came off in the wash, and even with a iron on "refresher" they still just wouldn't stay. So last week I finally just ripped them all off.

My son was delivering Valentine's Day cookies to his dad's class, so the night before I decided to use that red shirt and my white heat transfer material to make him a cute Valentine shirt. He's almost 3 now, so I didn't want his shirt to be too cutesy, but I still wanted it to be Valentine-ish. I found this fun "trucks" graphic that was just what I was looking for.

I bought it from Silhouette's online store, opened it in the software, played around with the sizing and layout a bit, and was finished.

But as I was looking at the design on my screen, I realized that I could make good use of both the trucks and the blank space around it that the trucks had been cut out from. That way I could have 2 truck shirts, a Valentine version, and a "rest of the year" version. I sent my design to the Silhouette and it cut out the truck design.

I got a blank piece of paper and cut out a heart that was big enough to encompass all three trucks. I trimmed it down until it was just the right size, and then used it as a template to cut the heat transfer paper into a heart shape. I then peeled the little trucks out, and set them aside.

Once all of the truck pieces were removed, I had this fun heart shape with truck shapes already cut out. I ironed it onto my little red shirt and it was ready to go!

It made for one cute and sassy little Valentine shirt! I told my husband that it was like the shirt was saying "I Love Trucks!" He didn't buy it, but I didn't care, and my son was a total ham when I got the camera out!!

I then took the truck cut outs that I had set aside, and laid those on another shirt. I used the plastic transfer paper backing to keep them in place while I ironed them down, and was done!!

Two shirts out from the effort of making one!? You really can't beat that!!

I'll be linking my shirts to these parties this week.

In other fun news, did you know that Lemon Tree Creations is about to turn 1?! Yep, it's our birthday next week, and we're so excited!!

We also have some fun giveaways lined up for next week: a stunning dress from Shabby Apple, a $50 Target gift card, and a Lemon Tree Bundle - a gift from each of us!! Sounds fun, right? Be sure to come back next week and enter to win these great prizes!

Have a great week!

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Reclaimed T-Shirts

As a home owner, I found out really quick that the project list has become more of an encyclopedia (as I'm sure most of you know). I'm in the process of finishing a bedroom, which is when I realized I was in need of some wall art. So, I started thumbing around and found myself in the closet going through old clothes. In return I came up with these textile pieces.


Materials: scissors, staple gun, old shirts and a canvas (which I bought at hobby lobby 50% off) or you could make your own which is normally the cheaper route.


The first thing you'll want to do is find a shirt to fit the canvas you want to use. My canvas is 12X12 so almost any size shirt will do and the graphics will fit nicely. I am using a medium on this particular project.

Begin by cutting your material at the seam and placing it on the canvas in preparation for permanent placement.



Next pull the fabric tight around all edges and use a staple gun to secure it. I like to start at the sides and finish with the bottom. Once the fabric is tight, tuck in any remaining fabric between the canvas and the wood.

For an added touch, I chose to use chip board numbers and an old beaded necklace. I printed some patterns on cardstock from a book I have: The Repro Depot Pattern Book



Trace the number backwards on the backside of the printed paper, cut it out and apply it to the chip board using mod podge.




I used a hot glue gun to apply the number and the beaded necklace.



Some other fun ideas could be old flags, table cloths, place mats, shower curtains and well you get the idea!

Stop by these party links to see what wonderful things are out there. Thanks for stopping by!

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