DIY No Sew Shrug

Good morning, or is it afternoon, to you all.  Here is the no sew shrug I promised.  I have three examples and a couple of ways to construct it-one will make more sense to you.  Feel free to experiment with different fabrics and cuts and post what you came up with-I would love to see them.

You will need scissors and start with your least favorite shirt for your first one in case you do not quite like it.  I have cut many of these for myself and friends and it is a creative process with new ideas and modifications but I will just show you the basic cuts.

You can wear this over spaghetti straps, tanks, even long and three-quarter sleeves as an accessory.  I like them here in Minnesota in any season but the summer to wear as a layer of warmth.  But this shrug expands my wardrobe allowing me to wear cooler styles in the off seasons and it is a layer over, not under, so if I get warm, I can peel it off.

Tutorial:

Here is one way to cut the shrug using the cuts as patterns to cut around.  This was a turtleneck that I could die but simply turned it inside out (I like to break the rules) prior to tying.  It is also an example of a looser shrug-I like them tight too, but that is just me.

 Lay shirt out with the back side up and cut up the center from the bottom.  I cut just to the collar because I may use the collar for something else later (I keep bags of scraps and create applique collages-later on that).

 Do the same for the front and then cut your neckline to the shoulder seam.  I cut lower in the front.

 I eye the other side and cut wabi-sabi (perfection in the imperfection). After the front and back are cut, meet up with your other cut even if you have to cut off a bit of material so it matches. The cut matched up in the middle between the sleeve and collar seam but you experiment what you want-closer to the collar seam if you don't want to have option of wearing off shoulders or if you want more coverage than the photo.

 Should look like this.  Now do back first so you should have it with the back side on top facing you.

 I like the ends I tie to be a bit wider so when you make first cut curve in as you cut and decide how far in you want the openings.  They can be wider or narrower than I have them.  Once you have made one cut, flip the scrap and match it about where you cut on the other side (it will be the wrong side of material up because it is a mirror of the other side).

 Do this (using the same piece as pattern) all the way down on each side of front until you have 3 cut on each side (total of 6).  Then but the bottom off to the side seam.

 Now start on front using the same pattern as back or creating a new pattern on the front and working your way down eyeing placement so its sort of symmetrical.  I opened up the shirt and you can not see the back here so I do not cut through what I have already done.  Only the front is showing.

 Again, the pattern will be the wrong side when you place it across from cut to complete cut on other side.

Complete cuts on both sides.  Over half way done with my shrug and it is taking minutes!

 On the front I cut 3 on each side on the back (total of 6) but decided to cut one off so it would be shorter-your call.  Now we are ready to cut the bottom portion off.  You can decide how you want it to fit.  I like it just under bust and longer in the back.  Another example later shows it to the waist.

 Cut downward to the back cut and match up.

 Here is the other side cutting off the lower portion from the front to the back.  This pic shows how I decided to cut off the bottom two of my 6 cuts leaving me with only 2 on each side (I don't like the front higher than the back).

 Now tie the front and back together loosely from top to bottom, you can adjust the ties later to fit you when you try it on-I can do it myself in a mirror for the back.

Here is the finished product!  I turned this inside out before I tied it because I wanted the seams to show and the inside was a dull color.  I might show it dyed later, you never know.  You can always dye anything that is dull-100% cotton works best and I will share dying later-I was lazy today so I could show you a few examples.

Way 2 to make No Sew Shrug:

Here is the finished product of the shrug.  I cut through seam at shoulder because I wanted to show off my butterfly tatoo.  I have it over another upcycle project of marrying a skirt and tank top that I appliqued over the skirt in the front.

 Lay out shirt and smooth out cut the front up the middle through the collar both front and back.

 Should look like this.  Now pin the front two sides together at the edge of your cut.

 Cut off the front around collar and begin your cuts.  I made three-cutting through both sides, make sure you pin well so they match.

 Should look like this!  Save your scraps for another day-it is fun to have lots of scraps in same color pallets for later.  I use bags I can see through.

 Now cut bottom to the side seam.

 Now pin the back and do the same-make sure you pull sleeves out of the way so you don't accidentally cut them.

 Now cut to meet the other side.

 Time to tie.  If you have pattern side I pinch wrong sides together so pattern is up for tying.

 Tie all the way down the front and back-again-you can adjust when trying on.

 Should look like this!

 Your done in minutes-easy right.  I show it here with a 20 minute skinny I made over a spaghetti strap cami.  Now I can wear that cami in the winter.

Here is another one I made in a much too small t-shirt I got for 25 cents at a garage sale in the summer.  Cute right!

Enjoy experimenting and taking a break from your sewing machine.  You could make cuts around shoulder to expose the shoulder or cut away material all the way down the sleeve to expose your arm, tying at the sleeve.  I have also cut out patterns on the sleeve like circles and squares.  You can use short sleeve t-shirts if you live somewhere warmer or when the snow melts.  Have fun and talk to you later.