Monday, May 4, 2015

Upcycled T-shirt Part 2: Thomas Cushion and a Bonus Jar!

My youngster's obsession with Thomas train has been well documented before. He's been resolutely wearing a size 18-24 months Thomas t-shirt for far longer than recommended (he will be 3 this month!). The fact that it grew clingier and more mid-riff baring by the day did nothing to faze him.

That is - until the night he wore it to bed and kept wriggling and tossing and turning at which point even he had to sadly admit that the t-shirt did not fit him anymore. (Please note that he has 3 other Thomas t-shirts. This however, made it no less heartbreaking for him). So imagine his delight when I suggested we could turn the tee into a cushion for him! He wasted no time changing into a different tee and tossing the t-shirt next to my sewing machine. 

This was a very quick and very easy project to do and made someone very happy!

Step 1: Cutting the t-shirt: The rectangular print made it easy to decide the shape. So after the knocking off the top bit, I was left with a piece that had raw top and bottom edges, but was already joined at the sides. I also thought of using the red portions of the sleeves to make the fringe - just a way to amp up the cute factor. So after cutting the largest sized rectangles possible from the red, I further snipped into each to make the fringes.

Step 2: After turning the main section inside out, I rolled up the fringes to form tassels and pinned them to all 4 corners.

Step 3:  Next I pinned around the raw edges and marked a 3 inch section on the bottom edge to leave open for stuffing.

Step 4: I sewed around leaving that gap open, cut some bulk from the corners and turned it inside out. 

Then I just stuffed the cushion until it was plump enough and whip-stitched the opening closed by hand. And that's Thomas in his new avatar :)


But I still had these little pieces left from the t-shirt - including the neckline and grey portions of the sleeves. I got out an empty jar and pulled a sleeve over it for an instant cover. (I'd done this sort of instant cover with legging cut-offs too here). It fits really snugly since knits are so nice and stretchy. I rolled up the black neckline into a rose and did the same with another white bit left from the back. 
Added on a couple of red felt leaves and my scissors stand was ready! What a fabulous coincidence that my scissors match so perfectly :D




1 comment:

  1. What a wonderful idea to transform a much loved shirt into a pillow! Kudos to you for coming up with this idea in the middle of the night. The fringes make it look even more adorable. I had a beloved old bed sheet that I refused to let go as a kid, wish I had known I could enjoy it a little longer by re-using it this way. The scissor's stand was a smart way to use up the scraps. I think this T-shirt got a really cool makeover! Well done!!

    - Priti

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