Daily Dish

How to Customize a T-Shirt - '90s Summer Camp Style, Part II

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The best and worst part about summer camp was having events with the upper teen boys.

The reason these events were the best was because they were the teen boys, and we were pre-teen girls (who, at the time, were crushing hard on the likes of then-teen-heartthrob Mark Wahlberg, duh). The worst part was that at every major camp function we also had to wear our awful regulation camp tees that were always oversized and always ugly. So, just like we took regular T-shirts back then and made them into beaded cropped tops, we also made ratty old camp T-shirts into cutout tops.

Here's how to recreate the look yourself:

What you'll need: An oversized T-shirt that's at least two sizes bigger than your regular size, scissors, and a flat surface.

Step 1: Cut the side seams.

Cut the bottom hem of the shirt off completely. It's too thick and annoying to deal with later on. Then, cut along the side seams on both sides—yes, all the way up to the armpits.

Step 2: Cut horizontal slits along each side.

Start with one side and cut half-inch deep (or smaller) horizontal slits up the side of the shirt. You want to make sure these cuts are relatively even, and thin enough to tie into knots later on. You also want to double-check the shirt is laid flat while you do this, otherwise the slits will come out uneven.

Beware: the deeper you cut into the shirt, the tighter it will become, so make sure you aren't cutting too far into it. When you're done with one side, move onto the other side.

Step 3: Tie the slits into knots.

Start knotting the front and the back together all the way down one side. Once you're done knotting one side, tie the fringes on the other side together.