Finally! A doggone great use for recycling scrap t-shirt hems! Check out our DIY recycled t-shirt hem woven dog toys using these tough off cuts from other upcycling projects. When I first started making dog toys, I tried a few toys with t-shirt fabric and was unimpressed at how rapidly my wild beasts darling dogs ripped them to shreds. The material might be fine for gentler play or smaller dogs, but t-shirt toys simply didn’t last long enough to be worth the effort. Until I discovered the hidden potential of the unwanted hems!
Creating Dog Toys (and More) from Recycled T-Shirt Materials
T-shirt yarn is great for other crafts, but it’s always been disappointing for me when tested with DIY dog tug toys. The thin fabric just isn’t strong enough for play with my big boys. Recycled sweatshirt materials have ben tried, tested, and work great though!
Recently, while cutting apart some old t-shirts to make quilts (DIY recycled t-shirt quilt instructions are on our partner blog), I had an idea. When I first started experimenting with making dog toys many years ago, I made Oli some denim knots from pairs of old jeans. I liked incorporating the side seams of the legs to make them more durable as well as reduce the risk of shedding threads. Perhaps the thicker off-cut bottom hems from the scrap t-shirts ould be put to use in slightly stronger t-shirt dog toys? Yes indeed. I salvaged the good bits for other recycled t-shirt fabric uses, and set the hems aside for making some recycled t-shirt dog toys.
Using Recycled T-Shirt Materials for Dog Toys
Unlike woven denim (and many fabrics), the tightly knit material of t-shirts and some sweatshirts isn’t prone to shedding threads. This is also one of the reasons why I like using fleece when making tugs. Using a non fraying material reduces the risk shedding threads, which can be dangerous if swallowed as well as creating a mess.
Unfortunately, as noted above, the main fabric in tshirts just isn’t strong enough not to get ripped by my dogs. So if (like me) making toys t-shirt materials isn’t your thing or you just have tons of t-shirts ready for recycling, clean cut t-shirt material can be used similar to purchased knits for crafting. Just like I did with the dog’s recycled t-shirt cuddle quilts.
The tougher t-shirt hems are an exception. They’re not much use for upcycling (other than recycling for rags or garden ties) but they’re also much stronger than the main body of the t-shirts themselves. Of course, the type and condition of the t-shirt can be a factor in that too. These hems were offcuts from Dogdad’s large and formerly good-quality men’s t-shirts, well worn but still sturdy.
DIY Recycled T-Shirt Hem Ball Dog Toy
Preparing Your Salvaged Materials
This recycled t-shirt hem ball is made by building up layers of knots to make a solid ball-like toy. The construction is similar to the original simple denim knots I mentioned above, but I think it’s even better. In addition to not having nasty threads, I was able to take advantage of the stretchy t-shirt materials to shape thing into a more rounded ball with all the ends tucked inside. Since I had extra large men’s t-shirts to work with, I used the hems as big uncut loops instead of strips. Smaller shirts may need to be cut or joined into longer strips for size.
If making a similar toy, make sure your finished ball is big enough for safe play and supervise carefully. All balls, bought or made, can be risky, especially if undersized. See the tug toy below for a different shaped recycled t-shirt hem dog toy option.
Making a Knotted Ball from T-Shirt Hems
- Gather your hem loops. Use one to tie the bundle together (I used green). This secures the starting point for knotting the toy.
- Spread your hem loops from the starting knot. Arrange them into four groups in a cross shape. I was using eight hems paired in sets of two, so there are two left, two top, two right, two bottom.
- Knot using a a square (box) knot weave as shown and detailed below. This is the same technique as we use when making a basic square knot tug toy; however, we flip it repeatedly here to build up a rounded ball instead of a long tug.
- Spread the strips in a cross (+) shape.
- Fold the top of the vertical strip towards the bottom.
- Fold the bottom of the vertical strip towards the top.
- Fold the right end of the horizontal strip towards the left, passing over then under.
- Fold the left end of the horizontal strip towards the right, passing over then under.
- Pull to secure. The stands should now look like a woven square.
- Flip the knot over and tidy your strands back into a neat cross (+) shape.
- Repeat the steps, flipping after each knot, watching your “ball” grow by wrapping around itself.
- You can leave a few tempting ends for your pampered pup to carry and grip, or wrap and tuck them into the toy, as shown, to make a tidy ball. These will inevitably be pulled out during play, but are easy to tuck back in again, if you wish.
A giant looping knot like this isn’t a uniform smooth ball, but it does have a ball-like shape if you work with care. You can take a little extra care on the final layers to position the fabric for an attractive finish. Not that the dogs will object if things are a little less than perfect! You can also tie hems together or separately if/as needed to create size and/or to wrap the final loop ends into the ball.
DIY Recycled T-Shirt Hem Stick Tug Toy
From Scrap Time to Play Time
This is a variation on our square knot dog tug toy. Unlike basic t-shirt fabric strips, these wide strips of hem were very durable (surprisingly so). Making a scrappy tug toy was a great way to give the scraps a second useful purpose. Although the ball was a fun experiment, for my dogs and our style of play, a tug was a much better option for using my hems.
You can swap the hems for the fleece strips in any of our DIY dog tug toys. Depending on the style of tug and size of shirt, you might be able to use them as loops (similar to a pair of strands doubled up), cut to form a strip, or join strips for more length.
Sizing Options and Different End Knots
Since I had large t-shirts to work with, I used the hems as big uncut loops instead of strips. I made this tug as stick, with one concealed end and the other tucked. I may mix it up with different ends in the future. Humphrey loves tassels… See our post on end knots for DIY dog tug toys for other knotting options and styles. We also have a post on tug toy strips and finished toy size if you need sizing information.
Making a DIY Dog Tug Toy from T-Shirt Hems
- Gather your hem loops.
- Use one to tie the bundle together (I used). This secures the starting point for weaving the tug toy.
- Spread your hem loops from the starting knot and arrange them into four groups in a cross shape. I was using eight hems paired in sets of two, so there are two left, two top, two right, two bottom.
- My tug is woven with a square (box) weave, but you could switch to a spiral or other pattern if you like. Need more weaving details? See our square knot tug toy or spiral tug toys for instructions, weaving pattern diagrams, and step-by-step images for weaving.
- Spread the strips in a cross (+) shape.
- Fold the top of the vertical strip towards the bottom.
- Fold the bottom of the vertical strip towards the top.
- Fold the right end of the horizontal strip towards the left, passing over then under.
- Fold the left end of the horizontal strip towards the right, passing over then under.
- Pull to secure. The stands should now look like a woven square.
- After the first square knot, flip so that this shows as your “pretty” starting end, then continue weaving from the other side. Unlike the ball, you do not continue to flip after this beginning point. Simply continue weaving until you approach the end of your hem loops.
- Tuck the end loops back into the toy, as shown, to create a stick tug. The tucked end pieces might be pulled out during play, but are easy to tuck back in again, if you wish.
Even if your starting t-shirt hems were all the same size, you may find that you start to run out of knotting space on some hems before others. If this happens, you can continue with the remainder (try to capture any shirt ends inside the toy) until you can no longer weave. Alternatively, you can trim and tuck, if you prefer. As a scrappy hem tug, a little imperfection is all part of the quirky character.
Safety first, furfriends! Remember, no matter what a toy is made of or how it’s made, toys are meant for supervised interactive play. Know your dog before giving him or her any new toy. Some dogs try to eat toys or parts (whether bought or handmade) and that’s doggone dangerous. Toys are for playing, and playtime is always safer (and more fun!) with you involved. You can read more in our dog toy safety post, including tips and helpful links for safer playtime. Have fun and play safe!
