Adventures

Generation T: Beyond Fashion, eBook Edition!

I’m so happy to announce, 3 years after its initial print publication, that Generation T: Beyond Fashion is now an eBook! As such, it is now conveniently available for perusal via your tablet e-reader — Nook, Kindle, iPad or iPhone, Sony e-Reader, Kobo, and so on — the works!

Naturally, I think this would be the perfect advance-download for that lucky someone on your list who’s receiving a Kindle or iPad for the holidays…hint, hint!

And, since many of you have asked, yes, the first book, Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-shirt, will be available soon.

[ 1 Comment | Posted on December 6th, 2012 ]

T-shirt Jam Session with BoingBoing!

On a warmer day a few weeks ago, Jamie Frevele of BoingBoing and I sat down with my sewing machine, a couple pairs of sharp scissors, and Jamie’s stash of T-shirts (she has some amazingly iconic ones in there — Rosie the Riveter, Captain America, the New York City tee that John Lennon was famously photographed wearing — sleeves cut off — in New York in 1974 by Bob Gruen) to have a little Tee Party. And a party it was…

Without further ado, here’s how to cut the perfect neckline, and how to transform that old boxy tee into a fresh ‘n’ foxy tank top in T-minus 60 seconds (yes, we’re rife with T-shirt puns up in here). Here’s how it all went down, no-sew style:

For an additional tutorial (bonus!) on how to easily re-size a T-shirt with two easy seams — click through to see Jamie’s (@jamielikesthis) step-by-step photos of how we transformed her iconic New York City tee from this:

Into this:

The T-shirt (à la John Lennon) is boxy no longer!

Happy new T-shirt to Jamie, happy birthday to John Lennon (today would have been number 72), and happy T-shirt refashioning to you all!

[ 2 Comments | Posted on October 9th, 2012 ]

A Spot of Tee: Maker Faire Edition

This past weekend we were at Maker Faire, a 2-day celebration of technology, engineering, sustainability, and DIY — and amidst the visual and aural feast of mechanics, explosions, and high-pitched frequencies, there were many a slashed T-shirt for me to spot! Starting with this one (to be fair, this young lady spotted me first — turns out, she’s a fan of Generation T, and recently hosted her own Tee Party at home!).

SPOTTED:

Where: New York Hall of Science, main entrance
When: September 2012
What: Skully Tee
Key accessories: Black T-shirt and denim — and a Maker Faire day pass!
How do I get the look?: Melody used this entry on the Generation T blog to make her Skully Tee the very morning she was headed off to Maker Faire — it’s that quick and easy!

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SPOTTED:

Where: New York Hall of Science, lower level, at the Tracimoc (that’s comic art, backwards) table
When: September 2012
What: T-shirt totebags
Key accessories: Your arm, with this bag hanging off your elbow. (And some Maker Faire loot, perhaps?)
How do I get the look?: Try the grocery tote from Generation T: Beyond Fashion — perfect for toting books, groceries, or that Halloween haul.

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SPOTTED:

Where: New York Hall of Science, near the Maker Faire food trucks (see, there are an actual feast to be devoured, too!)
When: September 2012
What: Slashed long-sleeved T-shirt
Key accessories: Puffy vest (you know, to make up for the body heat lost through those “shoulder vents”)
How do I get the look?: Follow the instructions below, from project #10, Shoulder Slash, in Generation T.

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SPOTTED:

Where: New York Hall of Science, making the rounds
When: September 2012
What: Fringed T-shirts, knotted T-shirts, laced T-shirts, slashed T-shirts on the members of Batala NYC, the all-female reggae percussion band!
Key accessories: Drum sticks.
How do I get the look?: For the fringe look, follow the instructions below for project #4, Fringe Benefits, from Generation T; for the slashed look, follow the instructions above. Add knots, beading, and lacing as desired.

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SPOTTED:
Okay, it’s not technically a T-shirt, but these leggings just seemed so T-shirt-inspired…

Where: New York Hall of Science, outside the Maker Square tent
When: September 2012
What: Slashed and woven leggings
Key accessories: Pink ankle socks
How do I get the look?: Snip parallel horizontal slits about 1″ apart along the outside fold of the leggings on each leg. Cut slits as high as you need to for your skirt or shorts to cover. Use a T-shirt cord (cut the stitching off a T-shirt hem, and strettccchhh it out) to weave through the slits, tying a knot at each link of fabric.

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[ Comments Off on A Spot of Tee: Maker Faire Edition | Posted on October 2nd, 2012 ]

A Spot of Tee: Skully T-shirt!

It’s Monday, and we’re back with our A Spot of Tee feature! Despite it having been June when I spotted this this skully tee (Halloween = 4 months away!), I actually spotted  it twice over a period of three days. Once in Prospect Park, Brooklyn at a BBQ (paired with some amazing platform sneakers — oh, how I wish I had the camera for those), and once here:

Where: F train Platform, West 4th Street Station, NYC
When: June 2012
What: Skully Tee
Key accessories: Denim shorts, fringed leather, (optional: platform sneaks!)
How do I get the look?: See the image below from page 35 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion (with a bonus spiderweb tee!), or click here for a tutorial via Hurley.

What, oh, what will we spot next…?

[ Comments Off on A Spot of Tee: Skully T-shirt! | Posted on August 13th, 2012 ]

A Spot of Tee: Born in the USA

Welcome to the newest feature here on the Generation T blog, known hereafter as A Spot of Tee, where we hit the sidewalk (the layperson’s catwalk!) and engage in the spotting of T-shirt refashions (or DIY-inspired looks). I thought it apropos to start the A Spot of Tee series today for two reasons: 1. Much of the world is focused on London, England (2014 Summer Olympic Games) where a spot of tea tee is quite common. Second, our first tee was spotted on Independence Day weekend, which is enough to start us chanting, “U-S-A, U-S-A!” from the virtual stands of the Olympic pool, roadways, gymnasium, track, and field. Today’s tee is a fairly simple one, spotted on our way to a 4th of July barbecue!

Where: Underhill Avenue, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn
When: July 2012
What: A slashed, casual V-neck tee
Key accessories: denim shorts, hamburger (not pictured)
How do I get the look?: To keep the sleeves only temporarily cropped, this All-American gal simply rolled and tucked them. Without cutting the neckband completely off, she turned her crew neck into a V-neck, like this variation from Generation T: Beyond Fashion (step 3 from project 92, the “Fender Bender racerback tank top), cutting an additional 3″ to 4″ deeper than the neckband in the front and adding a slit down the center, to enhance the plunge another 3” or so (below left). Or, you could make a version of this with lacing — see variations for project #16 in Generation T (below, right):

The denim plus American flag is so very Bruce Springsteen, don’t you think?

Though we often consume our “tee” over the weekend (Sunday afternoon would be rather proper, now wouldn’t it?), we’ll post on Mondays to give the week a nice jump start.  Here’s to celebrating our casual weekend wear!

[ 3 Comments | Posted on August 6th, 2012 ]

Tee Party at the American Folk Art Museum

A very belated report on the Tee Party at the American Folk Museum in New York City a few weeks ago. Refashionistas of all ages came out for the festivities and FUN. But, really, any combination of T-shirts + scissors + good company + a bottle of wine is a golden equation for a cozy and creative evening! We made scarves, halter tops, tees, and hats. Just check out the scene below.
One lovely fashionista marked and cut fringe for a fabulous scarf. Cheryl, one of my models for the evening (note the fetching no-sew Pinup Girl halter top she’s wearing! — project #1 from Generation T: Beyond Fashion) started snipping up another colorful tee.

Here, another fab fashionista aligns her T-shirt before making the cuts… and ta-da! She opted to stop there on the Back In Action tee (#101 Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Cheryl** (sitting next to Cheryl) cut, cut, cut her scarf (#88 “Mane-iac Scarf in Generation T: Beyond Fashion), and then stretchhhhed to complete the look.

Crafty hands tied little knots… or made looped chains up the back of their tees.

And thanks to our lovely host, Courtney, from the Folk Art Museum, for organizing the event. She’s such a multi-tasker that she actually braided her hat while she wore it! (Sometimes you just can’t wait until you’re finished before testing out a new DIY creation…)

**And, how cool is this: Cheryl (above, making the scarf) illustrated the instructions for my Generation T McCall’s pattern! Thank you, Cheryl, for your amazing work. I just love small town New York City! Stay tuned for the next Generation T Tee Party — you never know who will be there, but one thing is for sure: Summer is coming, which means warm weather and…T-SHIRTS!!!

[ Comments Off on Tee Party at the American Folk Art Museum | Posted on May 3rd, 2012 ]

NH: Live Free and DIY!

Isn’t that how the motto goes? I’m back home in NYC, but my heart is still up in New Hampshire, and it feels like my scissor hand is still twitching in my sleep after all the T-shirt refashioning we did! Altogether, the students at the Kenneth A. Brett School upcycled (new vocabulary term for many of the kids in my group!) more than 150 T-shirts over the four days. Below are some of the highlights from the last two days of my artist-in-residency! (And if you want more proof of the fun we had, check out the photos posted over at the Tamworth Arts Council blog.) I miss these kids already…

A lace-up tank top with mismatched sides (#16 in Generation T); another lace-up top with braided multi-colored stitching.

Some in-process braiding and knotting — to complete the finishing touches on two “Mohawk Mo’ Rock” no-sew hats (project #72 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Two finished, fringed hats!

But what’s a finished hat without matching glovelets (#103 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion)? Or a pair of tie-dyed glovelets without multicolored fingernails?

Going with the tie-dye theme, here’s a tie-dye version of Back in Action (#101 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion); plus a sunshine-filled pillow (#30 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion)!

Another completed pillow; a matching totebag (for his mom to use while grocery shopping) and headband (for him).

Some in-progress laced-up glovelets; an innovative visor made from the neckband of a T-shirt (with sun-shielding neck protection, of course!).

A pillow for catnapping; a no-sew tote bag–already filled with books!

DIY hats, tank tops, headbands, and wristbands…

Pillows, pillows, and more pillows!

Hats, hats, and more hats!


[ 4 Comments | Posted on March 14th, 2012 ]

A Tee Party in Tamworth!

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Cook Memorial Library last night. (And thanks especially to the Arts Council of Tamworth for sponsoring the evening — as well as the artist residency at the Kenneth A. Brett School.) We had a great turnout, enthusiastic crowd, even some delicious gluten-free baked goods! All in all, an excellent recipe for a rolicking good time. Here are some pics!

Willa carefully sketched out a design with a chalk marker.

Suzanne worked on the “Outer Lace” tank top (project #16 in Generation T), while her daughter tackled the “Brokenhearted” tee (project #2 in Generation T).

Molly made lace-up gloves from Generation T: Beyond Fashion; some refashionistas managed to make both a T-shirt and accessories in the short time!

Juno wore her flapper dress (project #72 in Generation T) for the occasion, and Sandy made gloves (project #103 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Emma made a grocery tote; here’s Maya’s completed “Brokenhearted” tee (and some more gloves, too)!

A tote bag, some gloves, and a halter top oh my! (Courtesy of Willa, Molly, and Georgia.)

What a fun night — thanks again to all who attended. It really did feel like a party!

[ 5 Comments | Posted on March 9th, 2012 ]

Refashioning T-shirts with Students in NH

After my artist-in-residency at Holderness School last March, I was invited to take part in a program at the Kenneth A. Brett School this winter (thanks to the Art Council of Tamworth). Here are some highlights from our first two days with the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. On Day 1, students made either a no-sew pillow (project #30 from Generation T: Beyond Fashion: 120 New Ways to Transform a T-shirt) or the Outer Lace tank top (project #16 from Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-shirt). On Day 2, they chose between making a no-sew mohawk-style hat (project #72, GT:BF) or the Back in Action tee (project #101, GT:BF). And a few students were inspired to use their scraps to become ninjas! Here they are getting crafty:

Stay tuned for Days 3 and 4! More crafty times ahead…

[ 1 Comment | Posted on March 8th, 2012 ]

Hello to the Newest Member of Generation T!

With apologies for the sporadic posts over the holidays (and I still owe you all the winner of the BurdaStyle book giveaway), I’m happy to share my most rewarding DIY project to date! Our little “Baby T,” Nikolai Elliott Janka, arrived December 18, just in time for Christmas. Though he’s been thoroughly distracting (those fingers, those ears, that nose, those toes!), I have been doing a bit of crafting which I’ll share with you over the next few days.

In the meantime, bear with me while I navigate the timing of naps, food, diaper changes, and Generation T posts. Happy holidays and peace to you all in the New Year.

cheers,
Megan

[ 6 Comments | Posted on December 27th, 2011 ]

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