How To Turn Your T-Shirts Into Nautical Necklaces
So we might be stretching the definition of nautical, but we couldn’t help but dream of summers spent on the water while making our sweet braided t-shirt necklaces. And you know, they’d be pretty perfect for sporting if you happen to be hangin’ with T-Pain and the boys of Lonely Island.
If you’re thinking to yourself, “all my t-shirts are way too awesome to get rid of or re-purpose” (that Bush t-shirt from the mid 90sis still awesome), stock up on a few of our favorite new t-shirts out there and get creative with some of your old ones.
Materials:
– t-shirts (we used men’s M-XL)
– electrical tape (green, yellow, blue)
– 2 pairs of scissors (1 for the tape, 1 for the fabric)
Lesson one: If you’re an aspiring crafter, the first thing to know is that you always need a pair of scissors dedicated to fabric. First thing to do is to cut out all the seams of the t-shirt. Now lay flat on a counter or table, and cut long strips, about 1” wide. If your t-shirt has any large graphics, you’ll probably need to cut those out. Once you have your strips, take each one and pull from end to end. This causes the fabric to roll, creating a nice texture for braiding.
Next is braiding! We ended up with 28 t-shirt strands so we separated them into groups of 9. You can use some of the discarded t-shirt to tie together at the top, and then tape to your counter or desk for braiding. Once you have all three, time to bust out the electrical tape. Tape around each end of the braid, then cut off the excess t-shirt fabric. Bring tape ends together, and tape away. Do this for all six ends, and you’re done!
Stay tuned for more creative ways to re-purpose old t-shirts and other odds and ends. And send a note to hello@brit.co if you have any awesome t-shirt ideas of your own!
