I need a new bag.
One that can fit under my stroller, while holding a lot of items.
That costs $0.
I would use one of my purses or the diaper bag, but they’re all too big or too small for what I need.
So I decided to make a bag! Out of an old T-shirt nonetheless.
I have a bunch of huge T-shirts that my sister gave us. They are supposedly mediums, but they are a lot bigger than any mediums I’ve seen. Anyway…they are not my definition of wearable. But they worked perfectly for his project. And the great part is that if the bag gets dirty, you can throw it in the washer like a regular T-shirt!
This bag was easy to make too. I made it in an hour, and that was with figuring out how to put things together. Keep in mind that I didn’t care if it looked perfect, so it’s more of a shabby chic style. You could even make this bag into a no-sew version. Just tie the shirt in the places I say to sew it.
First, start by sewing the hem closed on the bottom of the shirt. (I didn’t want the logo to show, so I kept the logo facing out while sewing.)
Measure 14 inches up from the hem and make a small mark. (14 inches is pretty big, but I wanted to be able to fit a LOT of stuff in this bag if I wanted to.)
Cut a U shape from just outside the neckline, to the 14 inch mark you made, to the other edge of the neckline. Then cut along the inside of each sleeve, on the inside of the seam. (See below)
Cut two 5 inch by 8 inch rectangles from the scrap piece of material left from the neck, as well as from one sleeve. You will get two pieces from each- one from the back of the shirt, and one from the front. Sew the short ends of these pieces together into two longer rectangles, as shown in the diagram. (I forgot to take pictures.)
Fold the long rectangles in half (wrong side out) and sew down the long side.
Turn the pieces right side out and iron them if you want. Attach the pieces to the bag. It’s kind of hard to tell in the pictures below, but hopefully you can figure it out. Pin the pieces first, then try the bag on to make sure the straps are in the spot you want them to be (with the front of the shirt facing out, not the sides).
Sew the top edge of the bag down all the way around, lining up the edges of the bag with the edges of the straps.
You can use the leftover sleeve to sew a pocket on the bag as well. The flower I used was a hair clip. This is great because I can switch out the flower I want to match my outfit. Or mood.
Here are some cute ones I found on Amazon. Aren't they cute?
(This is an Amazon Affiliate link. If you click on it, I may receive compensation.)
Hopefully this tutorial made sense! If you have any tips or ideas, please leave them in the comments below! I would love to see if you try out this bag too!