Winter is Coming.

Like many people, my husband and I love to watch Game of Thrones. It’s the reason we subscribed to HBO in the first place. And we may or may not, but definitely do, have a giant Facebook message going with our friends where we all watch the east coast feed at the same time and discuss the episode (shout out to my friend William who called the show’s giant plot twist ages in advance). So, naturally, we’re super psyched that the show is coming back in April. After all, you can only take so many “What Game of Thrones House Are You?” quizzes before you go mental.

I always saw myself as House Targaryen. Oh, well. At least I get a Direwolf this way.

He is both dragon and direwolf.

In addition to fantasy shows about dragons and bloodlust I also enjoy cruising thrift stores for a bargain. So, imagine my joy when I found a Game of Thrones shirt just waiting for me in Goodwill. It was begging me to take it home! It was also begging me to spruce it up. Don’t get me wrong, I love t-shirts. I just think that sometimes they can use a little something extra. So I grabbed another shirt while I was at Goodwill and decided to see if I could Frankenstein’s Monster this thing.

There are lots of tutorials about upcycling t-shirts available. I read several and mashed them all together into one that worked for me.

SUPPLIES:

T-shirt you want to alter

T-shirt to use as an accent piece

Sewing machine

Coordinating thread

Step One

Cut the side seams of your main shirt. I cut until just before the arm because my goal was to keep the sleeves and just alter the sides of the shirt.

Step Two

Cut two pieces of fabric off of your accent shirt. Make sure that your fabric is big enough to go down the entire length of your main shirt and, also, wide enough to create two seams and, also, show off your creation. My strips were about four inches wide.

A little help from the Virgencita never hurt anyone

WARNING!

Rotary cutters are sharp. I mean, you probably know this. But, seriously, they’re sharp. And if you’re clumsy, like me, this could lead to an injury or two. Hey, my father’s nickname is “Slash” because he’s always accidentally cutting himself. At least I come by it honestly.

Don’t worry, I didn’t get any blood on the shirt

Step Three

Pin your fabric strips to your shirt. Be sure to allow enough room for your seam allowance. Also, be aware that t-shirt fabric doesn’t behave the same way as cotton or felt. It has a tendency to roll up after it’s been cut. This isn’t a problem, just something to be aware of.

Step Four

Sew the accent fabric onto your shirt. Now, here’s where I made my mistake: I put the insides together and sewed my seams there. That left some excess fabric on the outside of the shirt, because I had given myself some extra seam allowance. Now, you may be a seam master and will have no extra fabric. I think that I’ll just sew the shirt right side out next time.

Step Five

Repeat steps three and four on the other side of the shirt.

Step Six

Proudly rock your creation! I’m pretty pleased with the way this turned out, even with the excess fabric. It gives in a punk feel that adds an extra layer of coolness. I will definitely try this craft again with some other shirts. I can see it coming in handy for things that are a bit too tight and need some extra flow.

Can you see this working on any of your old shirts? Let me know in the comments!