Mending an old shirt to make it even cuter

Seven years ago, I found this adorable Smartwool shirt on Sierra Trading Post. I immediately fell in love with it and wore it all the time.

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This shirt has held up to a lot of use  and even the occasional accidental wash in hot water. (Wool should always be washed in cold water to prevent shrinkage.) But even the most resilient fabrics eventually weaken, especially knits.  After several years I wore a hole near the wrist, and since I was too busy to darn it at the time, the hole eventually grew.

No choice but to chop the bottom half of each sleeve off and turn the shirt into a T-shirt!

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I also removed the tie on the keyhole neck and replaced it with a  hidden hook and eye closure.  The tie just seemed out of proportion after I had shortened the sleeves.

I recently got a new Pfaff sewing machine  to replace my old and abused bottom-of-the-line Singer. The Pfaff has lots of different stitch options, and it was fun to pick out something with more personality than the zigzag stitch I always used heretofore with knits. If you squint, you can see it in the sleeve detail below.

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(Aside: Sierra Trading Post is the only place I regularly buy new clothes, socks, and shoes. They only carry seconds and overstock items, so their regular prices are usually at least 30% off. Plus, being on their email list I get regular offers for 20%-30% off and free shipping.)

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