Make Your Own T-Shirt Yarn + Photo Tutorial

Variegated T-Shirt Yarn

One part of Spring cleaning that I actually enjoy is organizing my closets.  Getting rid of old clothes means that I can make room for some new ones.  I will take most of the clothes to the local clothing bank in our town, but this time I decided to keep some of the old T-shirts and give my own yarn a try.  I also raided my husband’s closet to get enough for a new project.

I’ve seen a few tutorials using one shirt for a solid color yarn, but I wanted mine to be random for a variegated look.

Supplies

• T-shirts
• Rotary Cutter
• Cutting Mat
• Ruler
• Scissors

Lay the shirt out flat on the cutting mat.  Cut off the thicker bottom edge and discard.  Working from the bottom to the armpit, use the ruler to cut 1 inch circles of fabric.

I had 11 shirts total in random colors.  Don’t worry about designs on the shirts as they will just add more color.

Now it’s time to wind them into a ball.  You’ll want to fasten them together as you go.

Step 1 – Snip the circle of fabric so that it becomes a strip.  Next fold up the end about 1″ and snip on the fold about a 1/4″ cut.  Repeat at the other end.

Step 2 – Take 2 pieces and set them together end to end.

Step 3 – Insert the end of the second one into the first one through to small slit.

Step 4 – Bring up the other end of the second strip and pull it through the slit of it’s other end.

Step 5 – Pull it all the way through the first strip to interlock the pieces.

Step 6 – Give it a tug to pull it tight.

That’s it!  Super simple.  When you are rolling it into a ball, pull it tight and it will naturally curl up.  Because of the properties of the material, there are no worries about unraveling.

I used 11 shirts and it produced a 7″ ball that weighs just under 2 pounds or 890 grams.

Go clean out those closets and be creative at the same time!

Be creative! 🙂 – Jeanne – The Crochet Crowd