Cut it out: How to transform your tees to summertime tanks

Summer is officially here. The time of the year when dorms and Greek houses empty out, students head to quarries to take the jump and everyone pushes the boundaries of what’s the least amount of clothing one can acceptably wear in public.

Bloomington is no Florida or Texas, but let’s be real — it gets hot.

There are few things worse in this world than the feeling of being too hot. And now, with these three simple projects, you’re one step closer to keeping cool while looking cool.

So take your boring t-shirt and turn it into the perfect summertime tank! To those who aren’t so crafty with a needle and thread, don’t stop reading just yet — all you need is a little common sense and a good pair of scissors to pull off these simple t-shirt revamps. Now pull out your plain old band shirts and IU gear, and get going!

The simple crop top:

This is by far the easiest t-shirt project. All you need to do is cut off the bottom third or half of your t-shirt (depending on how high your want your crop top), cut a wide neck at the top of the shirt, and either cut the sleeves half-off, or completely for a tank top. In less than five minutes, you’ve got yourself a new shirt!

The racerback tank:

For this tank, start by cutting off the thick collar of the shirt. If you want a lower neckline, cut a few inches below the collar. Next, cut off the sleeves and down the sides of the shirts, so the armholes would extend down to the middle of your ribs.

Flip the shirt over and cut the armholes deeper into the middle of the shirt, so the back of your shirt begins to look like a racerback tank.

Now, for extra style, tie a piece of lace or fabric in a bow in the middle piece of t-shirt that runs between your shoulders to cinch the back into a complete racerback style.

Cut off the bottom seam of the shirt to complete the cut-up look, and you’re finished!

The ‘70s tied tank top:

First, cut off the sleeves right along the seam. Then, you’ll want to cut off the neck of the shirt a little past the seam.

Here comes the hardest part: flip the shirt over and cut off the bottom third of the shirt, like you’re making a crop top. However, only do this to the back of the shirt. (If you look at the shirt, the front will look like the original shirt and the back will have the bottom third of it cut out).

Then, cut the front of the bottom of the shirt into a triangle. The point should reach down to the bottom of the shirt in the middle of your body.

Then, cut a slit up the middle of the triangle and tie the two strips into a knot.