Sweatshirt Redo!

Do you have any pieces of clothing of sentimental value that you just can't bear to part with? Perhaps this post will inspire you to recycle it into something useful so you can continue to enjoy it and get more use out of it too!

My sister does beautiful cross-stitch work--one of my favourite clothing items is a t-shirt she made for me several years ago (I just can't give it up yet). She made this sweatshirt for her daughter when she was young, and then it was passed on to my girls to wear too. Now it has been sitting in the closet for some time, and I wanted to return it to my sister for her birthday in a way that she could still use it. 

The fabric was still in really good condition, with the embroidery still intact, so I decided to recycle it into a tote bag. I was quite pleased with how it turned out.

I lined the bag with a new piece of poly-cotton sheeting that been purchased for part of a duvet cover years ago. Some leftover Mickey Mouse fabric was just enough for two large inside pockets. (And people in my house wonder why I save bits like this!) I'm getting pretty good at installing magnetic snaps too--the trick is to remember to do it before the item is fully assembled!

I also added a tiny bit of fabric from some pants my kids wore as toddlers to the handle.