Easy T-shirt Bag Tutorial

Hey Y'all! 

The other day I was at our local natural parenting store, just browsing, scoping out the toddler carriers, when I saw these interesting bags made out of t-shirts. The concept is to basically cut off the sleeves and neck of the shirt, and to sew up the bottom.  The idea was so simple and easy, I decided to make one myself!

Last night I had an hour to spare, so I dug a t-shirt out of my upcycle bin, grabbed some scissors, and got to work! 

Got your t-shirt? Let's begin! I got this one from my mom, and while I love the color, it ended up in the upcycle bin.

I started by cutting off the sleeves individually. I then folded the shirt in half so I could make sure the sleeves were cut evenly.

I then lined up the arm holes, folded the shirt in half and then cut the sides down so they sloped.  I was aiming for an Envirosax shape, which is this awesome brand of reusable bags that roll up that I've admired for years. 

I sewed the bottom together.  I saw a cool version on my Pinterest that uses fringe from the t-shirt as  the means to the shirt together.  You can check that version out here.

I decided to add some bias tape to the edges of the arm holes and around the other edges, just to give the bag a little more structure and contrast. I didn't even pin it on first, just opened the bias tape and sewed it on.

I think it turned out super cute!  I also decided to match up the arm holes and sew the t-shirt from front to back, instead of from side to side, like is usually shown.  I just like how this looks better!  I'm excited to try it again with a shirt that doesn't have anything written on it, I think it'll be awesome!

And there you go--ta-da!!

Super easy and fast! I think this took under an hour to make, and that includes stopping to adjust my Stitcher radio podcast and trying to find the box where I store all the bias tape. :)

Don't forget to follow along and thanks for reading!!

~Patricia