Tank Top Beach Bag

Sometimes you just have to take what you've got and make it into something better or more useful.  Like this tank top I turned into a beach bag.  I never wore the tank top, not even once, but this beach bag is about to take a trip to Hawaii with me!

I bought this tank top on clearance at a little boutique a few years ago.   It was adorable!  I loved how it looked...

...ON THE HANGER!  

It was adorable with the sweet fringed neckline and the sheer pleated body.  So romantic.  A bit sexy.

But it didn't look cute on me!  

The color is too close to my skin tone so it washed me out bad.  Not good!

That will teach me to try things on before I buy them.

Even if they are only $5.00 on clearance.

So I put it in the donate bag and there it sat.  Until the other day when I saw some tank top totes on Pinterest.  I didn't pin them because I had no intention of making one so I can't share who made those particular totes I saw that day.  There are numerous versions you can find online though.  Just type tank top tote/bag into the Google or Pinterest search bar and see what comes up.  :)

Then the other day I was thinking about what I would carry my towel, sunglasses, book and sunblock in while in Hawaii and those tank top totes popped into my head.  And I pulled out my tank that had never been given it's day to shine and here's what I did:

I grabbed a piece of scrap fabric I had that was a nice tropical print on a cream background.  This would become the lining for my beach bag.

I measured how deep I wanted my bag and cut the lining that long.  I traced the arm holes and straps because these would become the handles of my new tote.

Once the measuring was done I folded and cut out my lining fabric to size.

I also cut a couple of strips of lining fabric for reinforcing the tote handles.

I sewed up the sides of the lining fabric.  The bottom was the fold so it didn't need to be sewn.

Here's how it looked once the sides were sewn up.  (above:  I turned it right side out for this photo) 

This piece gets turned inside out again and put inside the tank as a lining.  My tank was so sheer and "stretchy" from those pleats that I wanted to give it some form with this lining fabric.

I folded the handle pieces over and sewed down the edges then turned them right side out using a safety pin to push through.

The bottom of the tank was sewn with a zig zag stitch, the excess cut off and turned right side out again.

The lining was put inside and stitched all around the edges with a zig zag stitch to attach...sewing the little handle reinforcements under the straps.

This isn't much of a step-by-step tutorial but honestly, it wasn't too difficult.  

If you use a tank with a more substantial fabric you could create a bag without adding a lining at all...just hem up the bottom and voila!

It's the perfect size to carry my beach stuff around.  

It's cute enough to carry into a restaurant or shop as well.

And that's just what me and my new bag will be doing when we arrive in Hawaii next weekend...bumming it on the beach or shopping the open air market and sipping Mai Tai's at local restaurants.

Wish I could hide you all in my bag and take you with me :)

I hope you come and visit next week when I've got a couple of wonderful guests coming to share their fabulous~ness with you while I'm gone!  You won't want to miss them.

Aloha!

Sherry

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