So there are a lot of upcycled t-shirt tutorials out there. But I haven’t seen one like this. I took a 2XL Shade shirt (that I got for $2), and turned it into this ruched t-shirt refashion:
And it was really easy to do.
Just take your shirt and lay a tee that fits you on top of it so you get the right shape. Your ruched t-shirt refashion needs all the length, so only take the shape of the shirt and keep all the length.
Sew your new side seams, and cut out the excess. Next, I drew lines on the inside of the front and back with a fabric marker to the height I wanted the ruching to go. Then I measured the width of my shirt and marked equal sections (I marked seven lines on both the front and back, but only ended up using four on each.)
Then you just take elastic thread and lay it on your drawn lines and zigzag over it. Then, when they’re all in simply pull the elastic thread to create the ruching and tie the end of the zigzag thread to the elastic thread at the top and bottom of each. Keep in mind that the elastic thread shrinks when it’s washed and dried, so I sprayed my lines with water and ironed them before tying off.
And that’s it! This ruched t-shirt refashion is nice and stretchy, and looks nice alone or layered.