Boro T-shirt (Wild Patchwork With Jeans Scraps)

For my first instructable, I am so glad to share my experience transforming a t-shirt in a boro-style recycled blouse.

For this project, you will need:

- a sewing machine;

- jeans and fabric scraps, lace scraps;

- thread ;

-pins and/or a school glue stick ;

-embroidery thread/ needle (optional);

-your wildness.

Pick a t-shirt you want to embellish. I chose this one because this horizontal lines used to spot my extra pounds that I would like to hide. :)

Gather a lot of scraps. Here I used jeans and cotton blue/white besides of laces. I used hand to rip in pieces to give a wilder look. I like to play with superposition and mended pieces.

I made a test with pins to fill the front (and later the back part). Eventually I left some spaces to show a little of the t-shirt . But you might skip the pins and go directly to the next step.

In order to be free to sew wild, you shall remove pins
and use thriftily a glue stick. I glue it slightly on the center because I want to create folds. It is affordable, universal and will not hurt your needle and machine.

As I did not deconstruct the t-shirt, I had to use my free arm and be VERY CAREFUL in order to avoid sewing the back together (yes, I did it some times and had to use the seam-ripper, but it added a wilder look to the piece).

If you are a more delicate soul, then open your t-shirt and work more confidently.

You could start as I did by using zigzag stitches around some scrap borders.

In order to create texture and wild folds, start making straight stitches and back stitches (perpendicular to the borders) in high speed, that is really very fun. We feel dancing with the sewing machine.

After dancing, you should consider flattening the scrap borders by joining them with zigzag stitches.

Add simple hand stitches. I used here and there running stitches, back stitches and french knots, but of course you can use whatever you feel more comfortable with...

For learning french knots go to this useful instructable: "EMBROIDERY HOW TO: FRENCH KNOT"

For Running Stitches, go there: SEWING HOW TO: RUNNING STITCH

And take a look at this one if you wanna help on back stitches: EMBROIDERY 101: BACK STITCH

And here the result of my wild boro-boho blouse, I am proud of it because it is my first experience in wearable. I use to sew wild bags but had never touched a wearable before.

This time you will have to use the seam ripper and open the legs

I was so amazed with the results that I created the complete outfit with bag and shoes. Other instructables might come soon.