DIY Sharpie "Tie Dye" Racer Back Tank

My fiance's mom gave my fiance him a plain white tee that was too small for him, but too big for me.  So, of course, I upcycled it into something I could wear.

First thing I did was draw a shape front and center on the tee with a permanent marker like a Sharpie or a Bic Mark It.  In this case, I drew a nautical star -- don't do that -- draw something abstract to start from because the sharp lines don't work well when the colors start to bleed.  Also -- I discovered later that the black permanent markers don't really bleed which is the goal so I wouldn't use black.  Once you color the entire tee, you're going to use rubbing alcohol to bleed the colors and make it look like it was tie dyed.

Then I started drawing straight lines out from the star in different colors to make a cool-looking effect.

Then I kept alternating colors...

And alternating more colors...

And continuing on...

And then I thought "Hey! If I cut the sleeves off now, I won't have to color them."  So I cut off the sleeves as well as the crew neck to make a scoop neck.

Then more coloring to wrap around to the back.

The next step is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT -- wherever you plan on spraying the shirt down with rubbing alcohol, make sure to lay down a tarp or a garbage bag or something to protect your floor, your table or your washer.  Also, put plastic bags or wax paper inside of the shirt so the colors from the front don't bleed to the back and vice versa.

Then pour rubbing alcohol -- I used 70% -- into a spray bottle.

Spray the rubbing alcohol all over the shirt -- front and back.

The colors will bleed together will create a tie-dye effect.

Let the shirt sit out overnight to dry.

If you don't cover your spraying/drying surface with plastic, this is what it will look like.  Personally, I think my washer looks better this way -- I just wish the whole thing were covered with color.

After it's dry, cut half moon shapes in the back to create a racer-back look and thinner, more tank top-like sleeves.

My shirt was still pretty loose and the front was a little too low cut for my tastes so I tied the straps together in the back to make them shorter.

On the back of your shirt, just fold the bottom of the straps at each side to make loops like bunny ears when you're learning to tie your shoes.  

Then tie the loops together and double-tie them to make sure it's secure.

Here's the front -- note that the star shape is still there and the black didn't bleed the way I wanted it to.

And here's the back which is my favorite part

My fiance said "you literally can't wear that anywhere" but I can wear it to work out and I can wear it to bed so :-P

It's super comfy and personally, I think it's super cute.

DIY Children's Craft Smock

So my hours were cut at work and I've found myself with a little extra time on my hands.  With this time I've done things like go to the dentist and work on my wedding.  My parents live about 20 miles away and consequently my dentist is still by their house because I never changed dentists after I moved out.  Also, my maid of honor is my sister who lives with my parents so needless to say, I've been spending a lot of time at my parents' house lately.  My parents also watch my nephews once a week.  One is three and the other is six months old.  Since I've been spending more time with them, I've decided to do a few crafts with the three year old.

One craft I decided to do is to dye white school glue with food coloring and use it to color on dollar store picture frames creating a stained glass effect.  I did realize that this could possibly become a mess when in the hands of a three year old and he could potentially get dyed glue all over his clothes.  I then took it upon myself to make him a smock to protect his clothes.

I started with an old t-shirt my mom had given me.  She had won it in a casino on a cruise.  Then I cut off the side seem and sleeves on each side.

Save this because you'll need part of it later

This is actually the back side of the shirt

Once you cut the sleeves out, you can put a design on the front of your smock if you'd like.  I chose "Chicks Dig Me cuz I'm Crafty" with a chick on it because I can draw a decent chick and it was for my nephew.

Next, cut two 1/2 inch sized slits about a quarter from the top and half way from the top on each side of the shirt on the front and back of the shirt.  The slits should be about 1/2 inch from the edge of the smock.  These will be the holes that you tie the straps to.

I actually held the front and back together and cut them at the same time.

Take the sleeve pieces and side seems that you cut off of the original t shirt and cut the sleeve section off.  Fold the remaining section in half vertically and cut it into 4 strips long-wise.  Do this for both side seem/ sleeve sections so that you have 8 strips of fabric.

Once you have your 8 strips, pull on them so that they curl up and make a thinner strings like so

Feed the string through one of the holes you cut on the side of your smock and knot it.  Do this for each one of the holes on the side of your smock. Be sure to at least double knot it so it stays.

Now all you have to do is slip the neck opening over the child's head and tie the strings on either side in bows so that it stays on.

This was a size medium and it went down to my three year old nephew's ankles.  This didn't cover his sleeves and even though he was wearing a short sleeved t-shirt, he managed to get glue on them and we had to wipe them down right away to avoid staining.  Nevertheless, it did keep his front  clear of glue so I'd say it was a success.