I have a pretty substantial collection of over-sized, baggy T shirts that are sitting in my closet, collecting dust.  The other day I went to lunch with a friend who had on the most amazing off the shoulder fringe top – that she had made herself, using nothing more that a pair of scissors. I was inspired, and that evening I went home and watched several Youtube instructional videos from T-shirt cutting gurus, and began to cut up my own Tees.

To my surprise, there really is a lot you can do to transform your baggy old T shirts, and make them more wearable. All you need is a good pair of scissors (which will make your cuts smoother, and make the process go by faster). The trick is to stretch out the fabric after you make a cut; so if you cut a sleeve, gently tug at both sides of the freshly cut edges, so that they slightly curl up. This masks the “freshly cut” look, and makes the shirts much more wearable.

Here are a two easy styles to try with your T shirts – you can always go on YouTube for more inspiration!

Off the Shoulder
– This one is simple to do.  First, cut a wider neckline on your T-shirt – I wouldn’t cut past mid-shoulder on both sides. Once you have cut your desired neckline, gently tug at the fabric so that the edges curl.

Tank top with low cut sides
– I love this look for the summer, and it looks great with a bikini or bandeau top. For this you will first cut  a slightly wider neckline, and then cut your sleeves off  (just snip them off at the seam). Then, you can cut a deeper opening for each arm, if you wish. Once again, after every cut make sure that you pull the fabric!

-Shalyn Tharayil