Father's Day gift: men's shirt refashion

My husband is pretty hard to shop for, not because he has everything, but because he usually ends up buying his own gifts. But every now and then I get a great idea and can surprise him. For Father's Day this year, I planned on buying my husband a tshirt from a local brewery. He is a cyclist, and the shirt reads "Ride Bikes Drink Beer". Just one problem: when I went to purchase a shirt, all they had left was XXL and Small. Whomp whomp.

But like I always say, when life hands you an XXL shirt, you just cut it up and custom-sew a new one (don't you always say that?). Last summer, I taught my husband how to sew, and part of his lessons included copying his favorite tshirt and making a pattern. Before cutting up the tshirt, I double-checked that it would work and laid the pattern on top.

It was close enough :) I decided to keep the neckline and shoulder seams intact, so when placing the pattern on top of the shirt I offset it by the amount of the seam allowance.

Next, I cut the sides of the tshirt open and cut the sleeves off at the seam. I folded the fabric down the center and used the pattern to cut the front and back. I also cut the sleeves down to fit the pattern. 

After reassembling my new pieces, I now have a smaller shirt!

My husband was happy to get a custom-made shirt, and I was happy to use my skills to overcome an annoying problem of a sold-out gift. 

Have you ever cut down a too-big shirt to fit?