Project Reimagined No. 1

One of my favorite aspects of blogging is the friendships that are made virtually. I’ve made close friends and I don’t even know what their voice sounds like. Creepy? Nahhhh. A few months ago, I met Lindsay of Shrimp Salad Circus. She had featured a project of mine on her blog, and I just decided to stalk her. Today, she has whipped out a new series called Project Reimagined and I’m thrilled to be among the first to contribute a DIY project!

A little about Project Reimagined:

“Project Reimagined is a diy challenge created  to inspire you to think outside the box and see things for more than what they are. For Project Reimagined, a handful of different bloggers are all given the exact same item and asked to turn it into something new. This week’s project starts with a plain white tee shirt, and it has been reimagined by Lindsay of Shrimp Salad Circus, Katie of Lemon Jitters, Stacie of Stars for Streetlights, and Lexy of The Proper Pinwheel. ”

Want to be in on this Project Reimagined goodness? Just create a blog or Facebook post with a picture of something you’ve created from a plain white tee shirt, and link it up in the comments on this post. Stoked out of my mind to see what you guys do and to see this series grow. Virtual friendships forever!

Click for my how-to after the jump. :)

I’m all for easy projects. The fewer and more simple the steps, the better. I’m a huge fan of the white tee, but it can sometimes be a little boring. I wanted to add a hint of color to it and spice things up just a bit. That’s when I pulled the old sewing machine out. To make your own, you just need to know how to sew a straight line on a sewing machine. That’s it. Let’s get started!

To make your own graphic zig-zag shirt you’ll need:

• plain white tee
• thread in three different colors
• sewing machine

Decide where you want to start the first stitch. I started at the top left just above the underarm. Roll up the shirt to the underarms starting at the bottom and slide the shirt under the foot of the sewing machine. Start sewing a straight line, but tilt the shirt a little so that it is heading diagonally across the shirt to the other side. When you’ve reached the other side, make sure the needle is down in the shirt and lift up the foot. Turn the shirt so that you can sew in the opposite direction taking it back to the side you started with. Repeat these steps until you reach the bottom of the shirt. Remember to backstitch!

Change the thread color and start at the top of the shirt again and follow the same pattern (or lack of pattern! ha!).

When I wore this shirt to work, I got SO many compliments on it! I love adding new and comfortable clothing to my wardrobe. So get out there, grab a white tee, and start sewing! Trust me – if you can sew a straight line, YOU CAN DO THIS BETTER THAN ME.

Huge thank you to the Lindsay for clueing me in on a fun collaboration! I invite each of you to start making something. It feels good. It really feels good.