The blog is moving!

So I told you last time that I was going to re-do some things on the blog, right? Well, I also decided to re-name it, so I'm moving the whole thing over to a new site. The new URL is http://theupcycledwardrobe.blogspot.com/  I have a new tutorial for you on how to make a faux undershirt on a low cut shirt.

I decided I needed to refresh and switch name mostly because when I started blogging, I didn't really have a clear idea about what I wanted to blog on. I thought I might be blogging more on how I do bags and wallets with a few clothing posts on the side, but I never got around to doing a single non-clothing post! My sewing tastes were not what I thought, and my focus has been more on re-making clothes. I felt that I needed to shed the old name and focus more on what I actually blog about.

Anyway, In a few weeks, I will try to figure out how to automatically re-direct you to the new site, but for now, you'll have to click on the link. Please feel free to leave a comment on the new blog. I would love to hear what you think!

Patching Jeans

Today, I wanted to show you how I patch jeans. It's really simple, but maybe not the first way you would think to do it.

To start, you will need a pair of jeans in need of patching, a scrap of material (preferably jean) and matching thread.

Step 1: The better your scrap matches your jean, the less it will be seen. Cut your scrap of jean a little large than the hole you want to patch. It's better to cut it too large than too small; we can cut off the extra later.

Step 2: Slide the patch inside the pants leg

By feel, position it behind the hole, then pin close to the corners. It's really important that you pin close to the edge, otherwise the patch could fold over as you sew.

Step 3: Pull the jean leg over your sewing machine arm, being sure that you will only sew one layer. (This can take some wrangling.)

Using the straight stitch, sew back and forth over the patch, moving sideways with each pass. I usually move from right to left. (The second picture below should help you visualize)

Turn your piece, and sew perpendicular to your first stitches. You can pull out the pins as you tack down the corners.

 This is what the front should look like. The camera makes the thread stand out, so the stitching probably won't be so noticeable. Also, a thread tip; if you don't have matching, darker will hide better than lighter.

Step 4: Turn the pants inside out

 

Trim the extra edges off of the patch, but don't trim too close; you don't want to cut a new hole in your jeans! I used pinking shears to keep it from fraying more, but regular shears work fine

here's what your back should look like:

And, that's pretty much it! (The bubble effect isn't noticeable when you wear it, and goes away when you wash , or iron it)

This works pretty much anywhere on your jeans!

So don't throw out your favorite jeans; make them wearable again!

(Although your mom might keep telling you it will only last so long...)

 One more quick tip: if it's really worn out, and you KNOW it's going to get a hole soon, you might want to patch it before it does, since it will be less noticeable.

Sorry for the short post today, but I'm hoping to get ready for some blog changes. I've been thinking a lot about re-doing the feel of the blog, since the cute little animals just don't seem to go with my blogging goals any more. So stay tuned for that!

Stenciled T-shirt

Okay, I finished my wonder woman shirt. What do you think?  

 Looks pretty good, right? Well, it’s pretty easy, but you’ll need a few things:

Freezer paper (NOT waxed paper), an Exacto knife, fabric paints (or paint and paint medium) paintbrushes, cardboard, a printer and an iron.

I guess before we get started, let’s talk fabric paint. I have been using Tulip soft matte fabric paint (like this), 

which I find at Joann’s. It seems to last really well, and paints like acrylic. Another type that should work is fabric medium and acrylic paint. I think I might try that after I run out of these, because you don’t have to buy one bottle of each color of paint; you just mix it with whatever paint you need for the project. (That means no more wishing that I could trade my mostly full bottle of green paint for some blue.) I’m sure there are other kinds of paint that work great, just keep in mind that for this project, you will want something that doesn’t bleed, so that you get straight, crisp lines.

Step 1: Find your awesome design, and prepare it for printing. I searched on Google images, and found this picture:

 

which I really liked the lines of, if not the colors. Obviously, this was going to use a lot of ink to print as-is, so I took it into Photoshop for a makeover. I’m not going to do a Photoshop tutorial on this part (unless someone really wants it), but I used the magnetic lasso, the magic wand, and the “select color range” to help me turn it into proper line art. So in the end, I printed this:

a little more printer friendly. If you don’t have Photoshop, I’m sure there are a few things that you can do in Paint to help you, or you could just skip this altogether.

Step 2: Cut a sheet of freezer paper to printable size. 8 ½ by 11 is usually big enough for a traditional centered graphic. 

Then put your page in the printer by itself (no other pages to accidentally print on) so that you print on the matte side of the paper. The shiny side will need to be down, since that is what will keep your stencil in place. Check your settings so that it prints the right size, and print.

At this point, you will want to decide what order you will paint the colors in. In this case, I chose to do blue, yellow, then black.

Step 3: Using your Exacto knife, cut out the image. (Be sure to put cardboard, or a cutting mat underneath, so you don’t cut the table!)

Step 4: Ironing! First, you will want to iron your shirt so that the freezer paper goes on properly. Then, insert your cardboard, and make sure that it covers where you will be painting.

Then, carefully piece your image back together. I started with the black piece to help me center the image better, then used the white to help me not distort the black. I made sure to put the stars in the same hole that they came from.

At this point, since the blue was to be painted first, I removed the blue pieces that helped me place the stars, and re-ironed the stars securely.

Step 5: Painting the first color. I use a metal juice can lid as my mini-palette, since it cleans up easy, and squirt out my color.

 

Since the part I want blue is the only thing exposed, I just slap the paint right on, making sure that the paper doesn’t peel up. A few tips here, DON’T use water, it will make the paint bleed under the stencil. Also, as your color does not wash out well, use a paintbrush that you don’t mind staining. If you are worried about the paper coming up, paint starting on the paper, inward, or blot the paint on. I did this around the stars. One more thing; the spaces between colors can have gaps (you can especially see some between the black and yellow on the “W”s), so to make it easier later, be careful not to paint there. 

Step 6: Let the first color dry to the touch before adding the second color. Peel off the paper covering the next color.

For the yellow layer, I knew I was going to have to do more than one coat to cover the red, so I painted it white first, in hopes of making it bright yellow, rather than orange-ish. First, I carefully filled in the stars. Obviously, there was no paper to keep me from painting the blue bit, so I used my small paint brush and filled it in. Then, I filled in the papered part like before.

Step 7: Again, let the paint dry to the touch before peeling off the next color.

As you may see, I got a bit of paint inside my letters, but since the next color was going there, It wasn’t a problem. A sneaky tip for consideration, though; if I had gotten paint on the part I wanted to stay red, I could have mixed up a red paint to match, and concealed the painted spot. It’s not perfect, but from a normal distance, no one would notice.

Anyway, the third color was basically all careful work. I had my outlines, and I just stayed in them as I worked slowly with my small paintbrush. This part was a bit frustrating, and I had to take lots of breaks to let it dry, so that I didn’t smudge black all over. I think it’s worth it, though. I almost left it red, but I’m really happy with it black.

Once you finish, touch up any problems with the other colors, and (the most satisfying part) peel off the paper. Double check any spots that may need touch ups. 

Step 8: Let it dry. Okay, so you don’t really do anything for this step, in fact doing nothing is kind of important for this. If I remember correctly, the bottle of paint tells you to let the shirt set up for a certain number of hours. I just left mine alone overnight, and started the next steps in the morning. (Yes, there are still a few more things that you will need to do to ensure that your design stays on the shirt.)

Step 9: Place a sheet of scrap paper over your design. With the iron on a medium setting, press the shirt. This will heat set the design, and help it last longer. 

Then, turn the shirt inside out, leaving the paper in between to protect the design. Press again from the wrong side. 

That’s it! I think you have to wait 72 hours before washing, but you should be fine to wear it. Just be sure to turn the shirt inside out when you wash it, and the design should last longer.

There are so many possibilities with this technique. The fewer colors, and the simpler the design, the easier it will be. I think that this was probably the second hardest of the ones I’ve done so far, mostly because the colors were all touching, and I had to do a lot wothout the stencil. Here are a few more that I’ve done:

I made this one for my little brother, and I’d probably say that this one was the hardest. The design was quite hard to cut out, but fairly easy to paint.

This was my first try. I drew the graphic myself, and it was fairly simple to do.

To get the crackled effect on this one I mixed in some regular acrylic with my fabric paint. 

This one is definitely one of my favorites. The center part around GLaDOS’s eye was the only part I had to paint freehand, and I intentionally painted it lightly to give it a different effect.

Anyway, I hope these give you some great ideas about how to create your own t-shirt. If you make one, I’d love to see it!