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Greetings! So before, I briefly hinted at doing a DIY project involving t-shirts. I had to borrow my best friend's mom's sewing machine and only had a few problems, but I did it! Oh, and all these photos are selfies, weeee!

Okay, excuse me for being an AWFUL MODEL. I literally do not know what to do in front of the camera. Hence why I am generally behind it. 

This shirt didn't turn out how it was supposed to at all, and I'm still trying to convince myself that it doesn't look awful. Part of this is just the translation from one person's project to another. I definitely used different trim, a different shirt that fit me differently to begin with, and the trim widths were not the same. The goal of this project was to make tight, fitted shirts into loose tops, but this shirt went from an extremely tight shirt that actually didn't fit me to a kind of tight shirt that sort of fits me. Let me know what you think in the comments - I'm really curious. 

And here is a view of the side detail. Out of focus. Ugh, photog problems. This photo shoot was kind of rushed. 

I like this one MUCH better. I cut up a more sturdy tshirt that wasn't fitted, but was still kind of small on me. I used a different trim, a more flexible lace material, and I think that worked much better for the sleeves. This is my friend Paris's shirt that she made to promote her photography. I want to wear it to Warped Tour, well, because I really like the back of it. 

View of the side detail.

View of the sleeve detail.

And a portrait to show off the makeup I did to go with this style.

Again, I'd love to hear (read?) what you guys think, or which shirt you like better. Overall, the project was super easy. And I mean, I give it a difficulty rating of Seriously, Even Claire Can Do It (and I got a B- in my middle school sewing class, the last time I used a sewing machine before this project!)

If you want to do this yourself... 

• Make sure you have about 3 yards of trim (per shirt, that left me with a some left overs but that will also leave you room just in case).
• Cut the sleeves off of your shirt and then cut it open directly on the side seams. If you want, you can cut the collar area and the bottom too - I did that.
• Take one end of your entire piece of trim and fold about half an inch over and stitch it together to make a sturdy end.
• Next, line (the entire 3 yard piece of) trim along the outside cut edge of one side of the shirt and make a straight stitch all the way to the end, then cut (but leave a little extra room to stitch the end of the trim!).
• Stitch your trim to the FRONT of the shirt with the width of it pointing in, so when you finish, it folds over with a neat seam.
• When you finish doing this, your trim should look like an extention of the cut edges of your shirt.
• Repeat everything you just did to the other side of the shirt. When you're done with this, measure and pin where you want the arm holes to go. I recommend having a friend help you measure if you are unsure. It helps to wear the unfinished shirt for the best estimate. 
• Take each side of the trim (per side of the shirt), overlap them, and stitch up to where you marked for the arm holes, then repeat on the other side. 

THAT'S IT! If any of you try this, post photos of your results in the comments!