I sold the original upcycled market bag and had a request for another one. This one was knit in bright blue {which turned out really pretty} and I learned a few t-shirt yarn lessons that I thought I’d share.
{A note: I use this great tutorial to make t-shirt yarn.}
* Choose t-shirts without side seams. You can make t-shirt yarn from shirts that have side seams but it’s more difficult, more time-consuming, and the yarn just doesn’t turn out as stable. It’s a real pain in the neck.
* Cheap is better. I get my t-shirts at the thrift store and cheaper really is better. Men’s extra large shirts with printing on them are best because they’re made out of 100% cotton that stretches and rolls perfectly into yarn {and an extra large size gives you a larger ball of yarn}. Just be sure the picture on the shirt doesn’t take up the entire back of the shirt.
* Don’t cut your strips too thin when cutting your yarn. Half an inch is the thinnest I’ll cut it and an inch is about the thickest. Any thinner and the yarn becomes unstable and could tear apart. Any thicker and it becomes awkward to work with.
* Your cutting lines don’t have to be at all straight and perfect. In fact, they can be miserably crooked and uneven and your yarn will still turn out great. That’s just a free little tip.
I think I’m finished with market bags {they’re fairly time consuming} but I’ve been pondering some other fun one-t-shirt projects. I’ll let you know what I come up with.
I’ve started truncating my posts … please pop over to my blog to read the rest!
The bag is really pretty. The color is beautiful.
I love knitting these! They are such a quick knit (aside from the preparing the t-shirt, of course) and they hold up so nicely. I also sometimes “cheat” and buy pre cut/wound t-shirt yarn from Etsy. 😉
I love that color–very nice 😀