A couple of weeks ago, a hooligan helpfully left a crayon in a pocket in the laundry…fortunately, the only thing it really ruined was a t-shirt belonging to Princess Thundercloud. I’ve successfully gotten crayon out of clothes before, using dish soap, hot water, and a whole process I found online that took about a day of my life. This t-shirt, adorable though it is, was on the verge of being outgrown anyway, so I planned to just throw it out. And, happily, I found the next size larger on clearance last weekend.
Anyway, this ruined one has been sitting on the dryer for two weeks and I just couldn’t bring myself to throw it in the trash…but I also couldn’t donate it to the thrift shop with those crayon marks on it. So I decided to make a tote bag out of it for Princess Thundercloud’s gymnastics gear…she has very little gear, and what there is, is not substantial! It’s basically flip flops, a dinner bag, and a water bottle. This t-shirt would be a perfect size bag. I saw this idea on Martha Stewart years ago, and it’s been stuck in a corner of my mind ever since.
Here’s what I used:
- a t-shirt
- stapler
- scissors for cutting material
- scissors for cutting duct tape
- duct tape
And there’s no sewing involved! This actually would have been a good project for Thundercloud to make herself, but I wanted to give it to her as a Christmas gift.
First, cut off the sleeves along the seam, then cut around the neck and as far down as you want or can without interfering with the design.
Next, turn it inside out and staple all across the bottom. Then turn it over and staple the same thing again, to reinforce it.
Now grab your duct tape and just start covering it. Make one strip across the bottom so that half of its width is on one side and half on the other. Keep covering until you get to where you cut the sleeves out. Yes, the armpit of the shirt.
Staple a triangle on each bottom corner to make a sort of gusset, fold it up along the staples and duct tape over to make it smooth. 
Now just turn the bag right-side-out. I added a strip of tape around the top of each handle, just to reinforce it a little. But I forgot to take a photo of that, so see…it’s up there at the top of this photo. I’ve already wrapped her bag, so can’t take another photo now!
I think she’ll love it!
