Crafters of the world unite! There is a way to recycle those old t-shirts without donating them to charity. Why not take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the idea of t-shirt yarn? Not only is it creative and easy-to-use, it gives your old duds a new lease on life. Here’s how it works:
- Find a few t-shirts without a side-seam that need reviving. These can be the ones in your dresser drawer that are too small, too large or just plain unattractive. Whatever the case may be, gather them up and get ready to start cutting away at them.
- Grab a pair of sharp scissors. They must be able to cut through layers of fabric so in this case a pair of safety scissors will not do. You also want your yarn to look good so the sharper your tool, the better.
- Lay your shirt down on a flat surface. A table is ideal because you won’t have to break your back bending down to cut apart your t-shirt.
- Follow the steps outlined on the Craft Passion website. Their t-shirt yarn tutorial is one of the best ones I could find. It’s simple and straightforward.
- Decide what you want to do with your t-shirt yarn. Knitters and crocheters can find an abundance of tutorials on the web. Maybe you’ll want to turn your yarn into a scarf or maybe you will find it can be better used to make a bag or purse. Let your imagination go wild! YouTube is a great resource for inspiration. So are websites like Craftster and CraftBits.
The next time that you need yarn for a project, forget about taking a trip to the arts and crafts store. Try visiting your closet or dresser instead! Chances are you’ll find a few old t-shirts lying around. With a few snips of your scissors, you can have an abundance of different coloured yarn to work with. Just remember to stay away from t-shirts with prints and embroidery because they do not work well for this type of project. The plainer the shirt, the more yarn it will yield.
