Turn a Collared Shirt Into a Cowboy/Cowgirl Shirt

Create a cowboy or cowgirl shirt from a plain collared shirt.  The look is authentic and paired with jeans or skirt, boots, and a hat, and you have an instant costume!
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Gather your materials.  In addition to a collared shirt and fabric, you will need piping and pearl snaps. The amount of fabric you will need depends on the shirt size you are working with.  For this toddler shirt, I used 3/8 of a yard.

Pin the piping to the collar and topstitch using your sewing machine.

Use craft paper to create a template for the shape of the upper portion of the shirt.  Then, use the template and trace around it on the fabric using a disappearing ink pen.  Leave about 1/2" around the template. Then, cut the piece out.

Pin the piping to the bottom edge of the fabric and sew it on. Once attached, flip it under and press the raw edges to the back side.

Place the fabric on the white shirt and fold the raw fabric edges under and pin (this is why you left 1/2" when cutting around the template).   Use an iron to help smooth the fabric and crease the edges so they stay folded under.  You will need to remove the buttons on the shirt so the fabric will lay flat. 

Topstitch the fabric around all the edges. Go very slowly and carefully.

Complete the other side of the shirt by flipping the template over and repeating the process.

Replace the buttons with pearl snaps. The snaps will cover the button holes.

Optional:
Add fabric and snaps to the cuffs.