With Halloween right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to make this fun Frankenstein t-shirt! Amanda at Crafts by Amanda created the face by tracing circular objects and using a ruler to draw straight lines. No fancy-schmancy artistic skills needed! And once Halloween is over, it’s adorable for year-round wear too. [how to make a Frankenstein t-shirt]

Project estimate:

• Green t-shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Fabric paint, on hand or about $3 and up
• Objects to trace, on hand

Total: Free and up!

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If you only have a few minutes and a few dollars with which to put together your Halloween costume this year, this cactus costume is a win in both departments! Over at Brit + Co, Kirsten shares this super simple idea that is over-the-top adorable. If you don’t have a green dress or shirt on hand that you can use for this project, keep an eye out a thrift stores to pick one up for cheap. For a less-flowery version you could use a green stocking cap with pipe cleaners attached to top the outfit off instead. [how to make a cactus costume]

Project estimate:

• Green dress or shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• White pipe cleaners, on hand or $1
• Headband, on hand or $1
• Faux flower, $1 and up
• Hot glue, on hand

Total: $1 and up!

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Pineapples have been an extremely popular motif lately.  We aren’t really into jumping on bandwagons, but this is one trend we whole-heartedly love!  This fun pineapple tee, which looks like it came off the rack at a fashionable boutique, was actually made by Sam at The Pretty Life Girls using a stamping technique and materials that would have otherwise been garbage.  So not only is it adorable, it’s also insanely cheap to make!  [how to make a stamped pineapple shirt]

Project estimate:

• Shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Foam takeout container, on hand
• Pencil, on hand
• Fabric paint, on hand or $1 and up

Total:  Free and up!

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There are a zillion ways you can dress up the humble t-shirt.  One of our favorites is this super easy method of making dandelions – no special artistic skills required!  Check out Heather’s video to see how it’s done, or keep scrolling to read more.

Project estimate:

• T-shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Shower pouf, $1
• Fabric paint, on hand or $1 and up

Total: $1 and up

Pour some white paint onto a paper plate or other surface.

Dip the shower pouf into the paint and dab off the excess on the edge of the plate or on a piece of paper.

Press the pouf onto the shirt to create a dandelion shape.  Repeat as desired.

Use green paint to make a stem on each dandelion.

Let the paint dry and your shirt is ready to wear!

The post Tutorial: Painted Dandelion T-shirt appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

I’m sure we all have stacks of t-shirts that are out of date or don’t fit.  Instead of leaving them in a pile in the closet, why not craft with them?  I’m going to show you a very simple technique for t-shirt cutting and looping that can be applied in different ways.  It looks complicated, but it’s not!

Project Estimate:

• T-shirt – on hand
• Scissors – on hand

Total:  Free

First, choose what part of the t-shirt you want to work on, and fold it in half.  For this example, I am cutting the back of the shirt.  You can see how I painted the front of this retro orange t-shirt in this tutorial.

Cut slits in the t-shirt on the fold.  For this design, I cut long slits of varying lengths.  Keep all the pieces intact EXCEPT for the very last one.  Cut that one in half.

Start at the top of the line of cuts.  Lift up the top piece, and pull the one below it through the loop.  Release the top piece and hold on to the second piece.  Now pull the third piece through the second one.  Continue in this manner, always pulling the bottom piece through the top one and releasing the top one.

Once you reach the end of the loop sequence, use the bottom row, which has been cut in half, to tie the last loop in place.

This technique is so versatile and looks different depending on how wide and long the cut rows are.  For the white t-shirt, I cut very short (one inch) slits on the sleeves and at the bottom of the shirt to create a pretty braided look.  You could also do this on the sides of the shirts to make them a little tighter.  Have fun cutting t-shirts and creating!

The post Learn a Basic T-Shirt Cutting Technique appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

It’s getting to e spring cleaning time – are you clearing out your closets this year?  Heather has a great idea for you to recycle an old vest into a fashionable new shirt, no sewing required.  This is a great idea for those dress clothes that your kids have worn once and then promptly outgrown!  Get the details how to make this fun shirt over a iLoveToCreate.  [how to make a no-sew vest t-shirt]

Project estimate:

• T-shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Vest, on hand or $1 and up
• Fabric glue, about $6 and up

Total:  about $6 and up

The post Make a No-Sew Vest T-shirt appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Looking for a quick and easy way to dress up a plain shirt?  Check out how Heather used some cute fabric to make these no-sew appliques!  This is a great way to use up scraps of cute fabrics – or a good excuse to buy the next adorable remnant you see.  Check out the how to on the iLoveToCreate blog!  [how to make a no-sew owl applique t-shirt]

Project estimate: 

• T-shirt or onesie, on hand or $1 and up
• Owl print fabric (or other cute motif), on hand $1 and up
• Aleene’s Fabric Fusion, about $4 and up

Total:  about $4 and up

The post Make a No-Sew Owl Applique T-shirt appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

Do you have any kitties?  I have three of them, and I bet they would all absolutely love one of these!  Jessi from Practically Functional used an empty box, a wire coat hanger, and a t-shirt to create this adorable recycled cat bed.  You could even add a pillow on the inside for extra comfort – though one of my cats loves sleeping on cardboard so much that he would probably prefer it without a pillow, so I guess that depends on what your own cat prefers!  [how to make a recycled t-shirt cat tent]

Project estimate:

• Box, on hand
• Wire coat hanger, on hand
• T-shirt, on hand
• Pillow, on hand or $1 and up

Total:  Free and up!

The post Make a Recycled T-shirt Cat Tent appeared first on Dollar Store Crafts.

If you’re looking to revamp your wardrobe this season but don’t have the budget to buy a bunch of new stuff, try reworking your existing garments instead!  Hanna from Pearls & Scissors took a plain shirt and, using a wine cork as a stamp, proceeded to give it a polka dotted makeover.  You could use this same technique on anything made out of fabric, including other garments or decor items like pillows and curtains.  Or try using other items as stamps to create a variety of different shapes!  [how to paint a polka dot shirt] Project estimate:

• T-shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Paint, on hand
• Wine cork, on hand

Total:  Free or $1 and up

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With the 4th of July right around the corner, there is no better time to start DIYing for the holiday than now.  This adorable shirt from Jessica at Cutesy Crafts was made with a genius technique – stamping around a masked area with a pencil eraser!  The effect is sort of fireworks-y, making it perfect for the occasion; you could also change the shape and the paint colors to use this ideas for other holidays as well!  Use red and pink around a heart for Valentine’s Day, greens around a shamrock for St. Patrick’s Day, and so on.  You could even adapt this idea to make greeting cards or other items!  [how to make an eraser-stamped shirt]

Project estimate:

• Shirt, on hand or $1 and up
• Pencil, on hand
• Fabric paint, on hand or $1 and up
• Shape template, free
• Freezer paper, on hand or $1 and up

Total:  Free and up

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