End-lace Possibilites - A new DIY project

After Christmas dinner several years ago my aunt lugged two giant Hefty bags into the living room and said take what you want.  Inside was a lacy wonderland; tablecloths, doilies and runners for the taking.  My sister-in-law and I tore through the bags, and I ended up with three matching table runners with scalloped lace edges.

Cardigan/Jeans - Ann Taylor Loft, Tee - DIY (excuse the soy sauce stain, I wore this for a takeout date with a friend)

Until recently I had no idea what to do with these, but with lace making a major resurgence on the runway for fall, I decided to chop one up and make myself a new striped t-shirt.  For this project you will need:

- A piece of lace, I used a 12"x20" runner
- A t-shirt (A.C. Moore has them in all colors for $1.99 right now)
- Fabric Glue
- A pair of sharp fabric scissors
- Ruler

1) Roughly cut the lace you want to use from the rest of the piece you don't want to use.

I used my knee because of my black legging, using a dark background helps identify loose/fraying pieces

2) Once separated, go back with small, sharp scissors and clean up your edges removing any fraying bits or loose strings.  If you can do this step on a dark surface, it helps.  Your legginged leg will suffice.

3) I only wanted lace stripes on the front of the shirt, so I cut 4 strips equal to the width of my t-shirt (18" for my shirt).  Also, I used a children's XL shirt to get a closer fitting tee than the adult sizes offer.

4) Position a ruler across the shirt, lay the lace above it and begin gluing.  I glued one circle at a time, and then pressed down on the lace with my ruler to ensure a firm adhesive between the shirt and lace.

Sorry for the wrinkles, I wore it to dinner before documenting the end product.

5) Move your ruler 2" up or down and repeat step 4 until you complete your look.

If stripes aren't your style, use a V-neck tee and embellish the neckline with circles, half moons, etc.  You can also cut stripes and loop a colorful ribbon through the ends for a lace headband or cut small circles and add earring hooks for delicate earrings.  Endlace possibilities here.

Happy Monday!