DIY Pentagram Top | Make Thrift Buy #49

(music plays)

Hello and welcome to a brand new episode of
Make Thrift Buy!

This is the show where you send in suggestions
of clothes and accessories, from the impossibly

expensive highstreet, to the probably-made-in-a-sweatshop cheap fast fashion world -

and then I do my

best to recreate them.

Today's suggestion comes from Natalie Ward
who wants me to make this witchy pentagram

top - oh wait, sorry, did I say pentagram
top?

I meant, of course: Punk Rock Gothic Goth
Star Straps Bust Design Sexy Top Long Sleeves

Crop Top Black White Gray, instead.

Yeah.

(Laughs)

Anyway I thought this would be a really good
DIY for somebody who is new to the sewing

and the DIY world, because making this is
pretty simple, it's also fast and it's VERY

effective.

So, let's begin!

First off I thrifted myself a plain black
t-shirt.

This one was $3 from Vinnies.

I didn’t get a top with long sleeves because
it’s currently summer where I live.

The other things I’ll need are: some chalk
to make temporary, washable marks on my shirt,

some black elastic, scissors, a lighter, and
a needle and thread.

The thread should match the colour of the
shirt and elastic – here, they’re all

black.

And an important note about the elastic – this
top will look the best if the width of the

elastic matches the width of the ribbing on
the neckline on the t-shirt.

So first, I measured out some elastic, from
the shoulder-seam of the t-shirt down to the

middle of the neckline, like this.

I added about half an inch to this length
of elastic, and then, using some scissors,

I cut the first piece of elastic to this length.

Then I used this first piece of elastic to
measure it up against the rest of the elastic,

in order to cut out TWO pieces that are the
exact same length!

Next, I measured some more elastic, again
from the shoulder seam of the t-shirt, but

this time across to this point HERE – on
the opposite side of the neckline, about half-way

up.

I cut the elastic to this length, adding half
an inch before cutting, and then I used this

piece to cut out another bit of elastic that’s
the exact same length as this one.

So I ended up with two short pieces and two
slightly longer pieces of elastic, which I’m

going to from now on refer to as elastic A
and elastic B.

Then I got a LIGHTER and I quickly ran it
over the ends of the elastic to stop the ends

from fraying.

Annnnnd be careful not to set your elastic
alight, like I did here.

If you do accidentally do that, blow it out
quickly, because that’s far more melted

than it needs to be!

When I say run it over really quickly, I mean
– don’t hold it there long enough for

it to catch alight!!!

Anyway, I repeated that to all of the elastic
ends.

And now the elastic is almost ready to be
attached, but first, we should make some measurements

on our t-shirt, so that we know where to attach
it.

So I grabbed one of the elastic A pieces and
I measured it out again from the shoulder

seam, down to the middle of the neckline at
the front of the t-shirt, and then I made

a mark on the inside of the neckline, using
some chalk, where the end of the elastic rests.

And I repeated this for both the elastic A
pieces – they meet at the middle of the

neckline here.

Then I did the same for one of the elastic
B pieces, measuring it out from the shoulder

seam, across my chest, down to the opposite
side, and then I made a mark with some chalk,

on the inside of the neckline here.

And I repeated this for the other side.

Then I turned my shirt inside out and I laid
it flat on my table, so that I can see all

the chalk marks on the inside of the neckline
there.

So what I’m going to do next is to use a
needle and a thread to attach the two elastic

A pieces from here to here, and the two elastic
B pieces from here to here.

To do this, I placed one elastic piece A down
onto my t-shirt making sure the ends of the

elastic are on the inside of the neckline.

Then I threaded a needle, doubled over the
thread and I tied a knot in the end, and then

I started sewing the elastic pieces on!

And just a side note here, if you’re new
to sewing and having trouble with things like

threading a needle, there’s lots of good
tips on my beginners sewing resource page

on my website!

So, making sure that I started on the inside
of the neckline, I brought my needle up and

down through both the piece of the elastic
and the shirt’s neckline about 4 to 5 times.

And then I brought it through to the inside
again, tied a couple of knots in the thread -

And cut the excess thread off.

And now the elastic is to the neckline, and
I repeated this for all the 4 elastic pieces!

And it doesn’t really matter what order
you sew them on in – I sewed on elastic

A first then B, but just make a note that
because both elastic piece A and B are sewn

on at the shoulder seams, you’ll be sewing
through 2 pieces of elastic at one point,

which can be a little bit tricky and if you're
finding it a bit too difficult to push your

needle through you'll need to use a slightly
thicker or sharper needle.

Anyway, with all 4 elastic pieces sewn on
to the inside of the neckline – I was done!

So, how does it look – and how does it compare
to the original?

(Music plays)

Here's a fun fact: there's no lenses in these
glasses, they're completely fake.

(Laughs)

(MUSIC)

(Scissor snipping and zipper sound effect)

So: That's it!

Just make sure, if you're pale like me, to
wear sunscreen if you do wear it out in the

daylight, or you'll end up with a demonic
tan.

I mean unless you want that.

Then that's cool.

Anyway, I'll see you all next time.

Bye!!

Thank you to all of my supporters on Patreon
for making these videos possible.

To become my Patreon supporter, go to patreon.com/annikavictoria
!

I meant, of course, punk rock....

I meant of course...

BLAH!
...long sleeves crop top black grey white...

black white grey!!

ARGH!