DIY Metallic Iron On Decal Tutorial

Posted on August 27, 2014 by Roeshel

I know, I know. I just shared a t-shirt tutorial a few weeks ago that I created for my sister but making up your own personalized iron on decals is so fun! Recently my blog buddy Julia from Cuckoo 4 Design (love her!) shared on her FB page the coolest t-shirt. It read “#BLOGGER”, however it’s only available in Germany so thinking along the lines of DIY (as usual), I decided to make my own for my August Happy Crafters project. They have a great selection of metallic iron on vinyl that I couldn’t wait to use.

Materials:

Happy Crafters Happy Face Metallic Iron on Vinyl (gold medal shine)
black t-shirt

What I did:

Open up your Silhouette Studio Design Edition software and create the text “#BLOGGER” for the front of the shirt. I also added “@DIYSHOWOFF” for the back of mine. Center on a 12×12 space.

Right click the text box to bring up the edit menu and select “flip horizontally”. You’ll need to mirror the text for cutting.

Load the iron on vinyl into the machine gold side down (back side up).

Adjust blade setting for heat transfer and send to cut.

Unload from the machine and weed away excess vinyl. The silver/gold side will peel away from a tacky transparent side (your text will be stuck backwards to the tacky side).

Smooth out the shirt onto an ironing board. Place iron on vinyl decal tacky side down in the spot where you’d like it to show on the front of the shirt.

Cover the decal with a cotton dish towel (or scrap fabric). Iron on high adding pressure according to the instructions provided with the Happy Crafters iron on vinyl.

Slowly peel away the transparency. If you notice that the vinyl hasn’t adhered, replace transparency and iron again applying more pressure.

Once transparency is removed, I replaced my cotton dish towel and ironed the lettering flat.

Repeat the same steps for adhering the iron on vinyl decal to the back you may want to slide a piece of cardboard inside of the shirt first to prevent re-heating the front iron-on decal.

That’s it. I may have ironed mine on too high a temp so I have a sort of distressed look to my decal … which I love! So you may want to do a practice run/test to get it just right if you’re not a fan of the distressed lettering. Good luck!

And…it coordinates with my black and gold polka dotted iPhone case. #stylish haha!

What hashtag would you choose for your shirt?

*This post is sponsored by Happy Crafters. Tutorial, experience and opinion is my own. Check out all the supplies at Happy Crafters for inspiration for your next project.

Glitter Iron On Vinyl Decal Tutorial

Posted on July 31, 2014 by Roeshel

Many of you have asked how my sister is doing and guess what? She’s finally completely “all done” with her treatments! Hurray! Confetti & champagne! My hero! And my hero’s superpower is “hope”…

…and like most heroic milestones, it’s an occasion for a celebration, right?! Right! Well, that’ll be coming up in just a few weeks when we celebrate her birthday with a super-hero themed “Bobbi-fest” but in the meantime, I whipped up a cute breast cancer survivor shirt.

What I used:

a knit peplum style t-shirt from the thrift store
Happy Crafters party pink glitter iron on vinyl

What I did:

1. Using my Silhouette design studio software, I created a design using text and a breast cancer ribbon, keeping the overall size in mind for a good fit on the shirt.

2. Right click each part of the design and choose “flip horizontally” to mirror the text and image.

3. Load the vinyl shiny-side (pink glitter side) facing down into the vinyl cutting machine.

4. Choose glitter/flocked iron on adhesive from the drop down menu in the cut settings. Adjust blade settings. (Always do a test cut first to ensure the blade doesn’t cut too deep or too shallow.)

5. Hit “cut”.

6. When cutting is complete, remove from machine and peel away excess vinyl. Weed away the vinyl surrounding the design.

7. Following the iron on’s printed instructions, I laid out the shirt on an ironing board and smoothed out the wrinkles. Place vinyl onto shirt.

8. Cover with a cotton dish towel or cotton fabric and iron, applying pressure 25-30 seconds and then moving to the next spot on the design and repeating. I used the highest setting on my iron (no steam).

9. Slowly peel away the transparency. (If letters peel away too, repeating step 8, applying more pressure/holding a few seconds longer.)

Ta-da!

Despite nausea and having tests done the same day, she agreed to model my handiwork. Isn’t she beautiful? {I love how despite not feeling 100%, she smiles. And how her hair is growing back with curls!}

Now that the treatment is behind her, she’s free to focus on recovering, building up strength and feeling better every single day. Thanks for your prayers! xoxo

Glitter is so difficult to photograph. It’s a more uniform and sparkly than shown above.

*This post is sponsored by Happy Crafters. Tutorial, experience and opinion is my own. Check out all the supplies at Happy Crafters for inspiration for your next project.

Upcycled T-Shirt Tote Bag

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Roeshel

This post may contain affiliate links.

Going green? It’s great to have reusable shopping bags handy. How about one that’s DIY, upcycled and customizable? All the better!

YOU CAN NOW SHOP AT MICHAELS.COM online! YES! Find a project, simply add the supplies to your cart or shop for similar supplies for your own spin, check out and begin your DIY project the day your materials arrive at your home! You can now purchase all of your favorite arts and crafts supplies on any computer, tablet or smartphone. You can also check out what’s trending on Michaels Pinterest page by scrolling and shopping through the “Favorite Pins” section. Free Shipping on $50+ at Michaels.com.

This upcycled t-shirt market bag project from Michael’s was the perfect inspiration.

My take on the Upcycled T-Shirt Tote Bag

Materials I used:

short sleeved sport gray adult medium t-shirt
black parachute cord
black distressed iron on letters
gray thread

Skill Level: Easy

Project Time: 30-60 minutes

You’ll also need:

scissors
sewing machine (optional)
needle
iron

Michael’s Coupons:

What I did:

1. Start with a washed, dried, and ironed t-shirt then flip inside out.

2. Next sew the bottom hem of the shirt closed using a sewing machine (you could also do this by hand).

3. Cut off the sleeves.

4. Cut off the neckline (squared).

5. Flip t-shirt right side out. That easy – it’s a bag!

The following steps are optional. Use your imagine to come up with your own creative take on it!

6. Embellish! I chose to use iron on letters (apply to t-shirt according to package instructions) but you could also decorate with fabric paint and/or stamps as shown in Michael’s instructions.