Hi Friends!
A couple weeks ago, I did a fun DIY project to turn a seldom worn t-shirt into a workout tank-top. I was pretty proud of myself for figuring it out! After putting pictures on FB and Instagram, lots of you asked how I did it, so I recruited hubby’s extra set of hands to make a little tutorial for you.
Here’s the first one I made:
For this one, I grabbed a Jayhawk shirt that hubby rarely wears (Ohio State fan), and we took pictures along the way so I could show you the process. We even managed to make some enhancements this time around to help the back from unraveling in the washer/dryer 🙂 So, here’s what you do:
DIY Workout Tank Top
1. Procure your t-shirt and lay it flat on the floor
2. Cut out the collar, using the front outline as your guide, but cutting through both sides of the shirt (you may have to cut out more later to get your desired depth)
3. Cut off one sleeve. Start by cutting straight down for several inches and then curve out. Don’t start curving right away.
4. Flip the cut off sleeve over and place it on top of the remaining sleeve. Cut along that line when you cut off the second sleeve so they are symmetrical.
5. Cut off the bottom of the shirt just above the hem.
6. Cut off the stitching and discard so you have just a loop of t shirt material, no extra threads.
7. Take the loop and snip it so it’s no longer a loop and then STRETCH it out.
8. Flip the shirt over, cut a deep “v” and discard that fabric.
9. Snip two tiny holes, one on each side of the point of the “v” (this was hubby’s idea to keep the string secure in the laundry)
10. Take the string that you stretched out and thread it through the holes. Pull almost all the way through and leave just a couple inches on one side.
11 & 12. Tie a double knot.
13. Cut two tiny holes about 4-5 inches from the top of the shirt (just like the holes you snipped at the bottom of the “v”) but make them towards the outer edge of the shirt.
14. Start at the bottom where you knotted the string, gather the back together, wrap once, and then loop the string through itself and pull tight. Continue looping and pulling tight until work your way up to the holes at the top.
15. When you get to the top, even with the two holes you cut, thread through both the holes again and tie a secure knot.
16. Leave about 2 inches and after you tie the knot (in case the knot ever comes undone and you need to re-tie) and cut off the extra. Thread the rest of the string down through the loops to secure it.
*Note: The first time I did this, I didn’t cut little holes and thread through. I just tied the string at the bottom, wrapped around and around and around and then knotted it again at the top. That worked fine, but it started to come unraveled when I washed it…this method should hold up alot better.
Now it’s time to fine tune. Try it on and make note of the width of the straps and the neckline. Then take it off and cut some more if you want the neckline to be lower or you want the straps to be thinner! You can also cut more off the bottom if you want it to be shorter!
I left the neckline a little higher on this one than I did on the peanut envy one! It’s totally up to you.
Also, beware of the dogs. They will be very interested in helping with this project. 
In retaliation, you can use the sleeves to make them look like little Russian Babushkas! Clearly they loved it.
So there you have it! Give it a try and send me a pic if you make one!
Enjoy!
–Lindsay–
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I really wish I was crafty. If I bring a shirt to Blend, will you do the cutting? I’m scared. LOL!
I am doing this asap its so cute!!
yes! take a pic for me 🙂
Super cute! I’ve got a ton of shirts that I need to do this to.
get on it, lady!
Super cute! And I have so many shirts that I could totally practice on…I actually love cutting up shirts for DIY 🙂
me too 🙂 so fun!
too cute! i love the tank top! may have to recruit a friend to help me try it!
awesome! hope it turns out well!
Totally going to try this! Here’s to hoping #2 comes out better than the first! 🙂
yesssss…take a pic for me!
OMGOSH
I love!!!
i think the tornado needs one!
YAY!!! I ammm so happy you got a chance to post this!!!!! What a simple tutorial. I always cut t-shirts but stop at step 4.. so this is GREAT that I can actually do a bit more than tuck under the sides of my sports bra! 😉 yeah yeah yeahhhh
woohoo for cute workout tanks 🙂
What a great tutorial! I have a bunch of shirts that I don’t wear anymore that I could use for this! Pinning to make later!!
yay!!! let me know how they turn out!
So cute girl! I love this idea!
Thank you!! I have so many old race t-shirts that I can do this to. Pinned it, too!
http://pinterest.com/pin/104779128802829371/
🙂
thanks so much for pinning!
I have so many tshirts! What a great way to use them for something useful.
BTW, your dogs are adorable!
thank you!!!! i think so too 🙂
This is really cute! I was following for the first few steps, but once it got past 10 steps I knew I wasn’t crafty enough to handle it. Love it on you though 🙂
oh girl, you could totally handle this!
Super cute idea! I have a ton of old race shirts. Love the babushkas! Are you Ukrainian or Russian?
haha no…but i did have a russian violin teacher for a lot of years 🙂
That’s an awesome top and tutorial. Thanks for sharing. Now to search for tshirts!
thanks!!! let me know if you try it out!
So excited to try this, Ive neevr had the balls to do it without a step to stepo tutorial hahah
woot woot! good luck!
SO CUTE. Now to pillage one of Chris’ old shirts …
get on it, girl!
Love this tutorial, thanks for sharing! Also love the bonus dog babushka pattern 🙂 Multi-purpose, huh?
for sure 🙂 always looking for uses for the leftovers and scraps 🙂
Can’t WAIT to try this!!! I have a TON of shirts that could be converted to CrossFit gear 🙂
yesssss!!!! get those scissors out!
i pretty much only workout in dry fit stuff, but i could totally see myself doing this for a tank top to lounge around in at home! love it!! so cute… 🙂
Those shirts look really cute! And your dogs look very happy to be getting in on the action. 😉 Do you think that the same idea would work with race (technical) shirts? I feel like more an more I’m getting more of those that I don’t wear instead of cotton shirts.
i’ve only tried it with cotton, but if you have a technical one you don’t care about, i’d give it a try!
Definitely going to try this! So cute! Thanks Lindsay!!!
you’re welcome! let me know how it goes!
That is SUPER cute!!
Another super cute thing? Those pups!! Ahh, lil bubbies! So adorable!
haha….thanks 🙂 i think they’re pretty cute too!
Stylish and a tasty cook. #Winner
I’ve been cutting up my shirts since I was a kid. Now, I’ve learned an awesome technique in doing so!!! Thanks 🙂
SUCH A GREAT IDEA!!!!! LOVE! I am totally going to go through my over stuffed workout draw and make one of these! Probably tomorrow 🙂
awesome! hope it turned out well! send me a pic!
I just set aside a few old tees to turn into workout tanks, but didn’t really know where to start. Thanks for posting this how-to!
you’re quite welcome!
I honestly can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am about these DIY workout tanks! I have SO many extra shirts laying around that I feel compelled to toss, because I don’t really wear them, yet I hate throwing things out. PERFECT SOLUTION! 🙂
yessssss…send me a pic!
The crafter in me is loving this! Think i’ll try it. Lord knows i have PLENTY of tshirts!
yay! let me know how it goes!
Ok I’m ready to try it again! I tried this once a couple years ago and your fine-tuning will totally help with all of the stumbles I came across! Can’t wait to cut up one of my fiance’s tee’s 😉
woot woot! take a pic for me!
This is such a cool idea! I have a ton of t-shirts i never wear from freshman year of college when they gave them out all the time. I LOVE the pictures with the dogs ‘helping’ you!
haha…yes, they’re always so helpful 🙂
Hey there,
What a fantastic, creative idea!
Such an awesome way to re-camp an old t-shirt that needs a bit of lovin 🙂
Definitely rounding up some old t shirts to get a new wardrobe happening!
also, I’m a massive fan of your blog; I love reading it, the recipes are so incredibly yummy.
one of my fave blogs,
keep up the amazing work!
Kloe 🙂
awesome! snap a pic for me if you make one!
Love this!! I definitely need to try it!
woohoo! send me a picture if you do!
I have done this before! So easy & comfy!
I’ve tried making a DIY workout tank top before and it didn’t turn out so well. Thanks for showing how to make one step by step. I’m going to attempt making it again. =)
awesome! hope it turns out!
Looks like a good idea to recycle those old ugly sleeved t-shirts! Definitely want to try. I think I’ll use the leftover sleeve for a neckband for my dogs!
great idea! we did that too!
I’ve had a similar tutorial pinned on pinterest for ages, need to do it!
SO cute! I can’t believe you took an plain old T-shirt and made something adorable out of it, so clever, and I knew your animals would love it, surprised that Marcus did not burrow into the shirt.
haha he chased the string I cut off the bottom!
Super cute and your dogs crack me up! 🙂
they’re quite the entertainers 🙂
This is awesome! I’ve seem it on Pinterest, but never really looked far into doing it – so I appreciate you sharing! This is going to be a weekend project for me for sure! 🙂
awesome! send me a picture!
This is great! I love DIY projects like this. definitely pinning! 🙂
thanks, lady! i appreciate it!
I am with Laura from Sprint 2 the Table. I can’t even draw a straight line with a ruler! 😉 I need somebody to do this for me! 🙂 Very cool though!
I don’t know if my cat or dog would allow me to do this with out interrupting on multiple occasions. I recently packed up an entire garbage bag of t-shirts to throw out so I am low on shirts to cut up! Perhaps over summer time I’ll revisit this post when I am cursing the sun!
haha the animals were definitely very busy during the making of that tank!
LOVE this. So doing it as soon as I go to my parents house and take my old swim shirts back. Love working out in tanks but hate fitted ones .. so this is perfect!
yay! send me a pic!
Love this! I need to try this out, now just have to find some old shirts to cut up 😉
This is FANTASTIC. I want to get to work right this second. I have a few t-shirts in mind already. Thank you!
awesome! take a pic so i can see!!
Very cool idea & love the doggy Babushkas! 😛
haha thanks 🙂 i entertain myself a lot at their expense!
Tried this today and it was pretty much an epic fail. I think I need more practice. Not only was I trying it on a kid’s t-shirt (too small to cinch the back), but I’m also a leftie so a lot of my scissor cuts were jagged 🙁
Will definitely attempt again with a different shirt. Thanks so much for the detailed instructions!
oh no!!! hope it works better with a bigger shirt!
I just did this and it worked out so well. Thank you so much!
awesome! i’m so glad!
This is such a cute idea, thanks for posting it! I have already made 2 and plan on making more for my friends and I for a color run we’re signed up for!
awesome! i’m so glad you like it!
Hi there! I must know where you got that Peanut Envy shirt! I love it! Thanks so much 🙂
i got it for free at a conference from the peanut board 🙂
I found this trying to figure out how to modify some of my now too large t-shirts into something more comfortable for running outdoors in this heat/humidity. Now my Histoire de L’art shirt is ready to go for summer and I can wear it again! I will definitely have to do this to a few more shirts. Thanks for the tutorial!
you’re welcome!!
I did this to an oversized tee. Looks great! I have a sewing machine, should I stitch the edges/hems so they don’t unravel?
awesome! glad it worked! you could definitely stitch them if you want to. mine just kinda rolls up a little on the bottom but hasn’t really unraveled yet…but i don’t think it could hurt!
Thanks!
Please make a YouTube video that we can follow along with!
I’ve been looking for a new way to make workout shirts cuter than just cutting of the sleeves. Definitely using this style for team shirts for upcoming mud/color runs! Thanks for sharing!!
This is totally awesome! Thanks.
Bonus: I was cracking up at the dog pictures and commentary! Made my day!
Just made a tank top & will use your techniques for the racer back. Great photos & tutorial. I used a long sleeve t. While picking up the scraps; tought my dog would look good in the Orange & red tie-dye…great minds think alike. They might actually end up on my swifter to pick up said dog . everything has the ability to be reused.