Photo: Kristin Moody

Back before going out for an evening required written instructions for a babysitter, I used to go out to see many live shows and sport lots of cool band T-shirts. Still have the T-shirts, but they don’t all fit like they used to. So I was excited to find some cool ideas about how to use them.

You can also use the images from shirts and onesies that you love, but alas, the bubba has outgrown.

Patch for a shirt/jacket

MATERIALS: iron, lightweight fusible bonding web (from any craft or sewing store), T-shirt, fabric paint

DIRECTIONS: Cut the image you want from T-shirt. If you are feeling especially crafty, you can stitch around the edges. If the whole T-shirt image won’t fit on the clothing you are affixing it to, you might want to cut it into pieces or shapes — like stars or hearts.

Use the image you cut out as a pattern and cut the exact same piece out of fusible webbing.

Iron the back of the image to the webbing. Once it has cooled, peel paper from the webbing and iron your “patch” onto the item of clothing you want.

Putting a thin line of fabric paint around the edge of each ironed-on image will help it last longer.

(For even more instruction, visit www.rookiemoms.com/give-longer-life-to-your-cutest-kids-shirts/)

Infant/toddler lounge pants

MATERIALS: sewing machine, wide elastic, thread, T-shirt or sweatshirt, pair of pants (not jeans) to use as a pattern

DIRECTIONS: Turn the pair of pants you are using as a pattern inside out. Fold them in half (crotch sticking out) and place on T-shirt or sweatshirt so the edge of the pattern is aligned with the edge of the shirt. Be sure the image you want on the pants is centered on the section you are tracing. Trace with a piece of chalk or pin your pattern pants and cut around them.

Do the same thing on the other side of the shirt. The hemmed bottom of the shirt will be the hemmed leg bottoms. After you cut both, you will have two equal-sized pant legs.

Pin the two legs together with the outside in. Sew along the curves to join the legs together.

Reorient the pants and stitch up the crotch. Fold the top over for the elastic. Be sure to leave a gap you can use to thread the elastic through.

Measure your child’s waist with the elastic so it will hold the pants up without being too tight. Thread the elastic through and then stitch the two ends together. Sew up the gap by hand.

(For even more instruction, visit www.rookiemoms.com/make-some-easy-kids-pants/)

Pillows

MATERIALS: batting/stuffing, old T-shirt, needle and thread for hand stitching or sewing machine

DIRECTIONS: Lay the shirt flat and draw a square around the image. Leave a few inches of blank fabric around the image to sew.

Cut the square (you should be cutting through front and bottom of the shirt to get two same-sized squares).

Turn the image over so it is inside-out. Stitch around edges with a small gap for stuffing on the last side.

Turn the stitched together pieces back right-side-out.

Use the opening to stuff in the remainder of the T-shirt along with stuffing.

Hand-stitch the opening closed.

(For even more instruction, visit www.thriftyfun.com/tf538049.tip.html)