Watch Lutz Huelle Transform a Tee Into a Slinky Going Out Top

Welcome to “What Can You Do With a Tee?” Vogue Runway’s Earth Month series exploring exciting ways to reimagine our old stuff. Throughout the week, designers around the world will be repurposing old T-shirts into new garments and accessories.

When Paris was under strict stay-at-home order in the early days of lockdown last year, Lutz Huelle posed a question on Instagram: “Wondering what to wear post-confinement?” The designer’s solution for re-emergence dressing was a twisted tee, made from cutting up an old one and knotting it into a new, cropped silhouette. That X-front gray shirt became the first of many that Huelle would show how to DIY in what became a tutorial series on his account. A t-shirt by his friend Wolfgang Tillmans became a plunge-front tunic. A Justin Bieber tour tee was slashed at the waist and turned front-to-back. 

Splicing and dicing old tees became the official theme for the Huelle’s fall 2021 Paris Fashion Week video. And anyone familiar with his optimistic way of being could have easily predicted it. A master of remixing knits into bombers and pajamas into gowns, Huelle has always had an ingenious way of looking at garments.

For Earth Day, Huelle created a special tee tutorial for Vogue. Suffice to say the halter top he cuts and knots together is, in fact, the perfect post-confinement look. 

Here’s how to DIY your own—no sewing required.

Step 1: Lay the tee face down and cut a straight line in the middle of the shirt about 8 centimeters long.