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From: lucyinthesky
Date: 03-13-2005, 11:33 PM (1 of 14)
| I want to put a design I have onto a t shirt. Can someone tell me the different ways of putting a design on a shirt? What gives the best finished look? Which is least inexpensive? Which is easiest? Thanks. |
User: lucyinthesky
Member since: 03-11-2004 Total posts: 19 |
From: MaryW
Date: 03-14-2005, 06:21 AM (2 of 14)
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Would this happen to be a homework assignment?
MaryW
owner/editor of Sew Whats New |
User: MaryW
Member since: 06-23-2005 Total posts: 2542 
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From: paroper
Date: 03-14-2005, 08:10 AM (3 of 14)
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Fabric paint Freestyle embroidery...using the machine like a "paintbrush",,requires some skill Applique (applying a design from another piece of fabric, sewing around with a wide zig-zag) I think this is very cute but also requires a little control of the machine Embroidery by hand (I think that tear away fabric with cross stitch is the easiest but you can use an iron on image and hand embroider that). Embroidery by machine Nailhead/rhinestone designs None of these things requre a lot in themselves. I think that Anything that requires a machine is expensive unless you have the machine, threads and a design or can download a free one. The least SKILLED thing in this group is the machine embroidery. Freestyle embroidery and applique requre some command of the machine but would be the least expensive in the machine category. The cost of doing a design by hand is a very few dollars including thread (very inexpensive), possibly tear away backing, stabilizer, hoop, and again, a possible design Fabric paint almost speaks for itself. It rather depends on how many colors you buy. Nailhead and rhinestone are not terribly expensive nor do they requre much skill. The new rhinestones and pearls that can be heat applied are wonderful and would probably last longer than paint. The ones that I have done have lasted well through several washings. I understand they can be applied with an iron. I have a tool that can range from 13-24 dollars depending on where it is purchased and what is included. The most time-expensive would be the hand embroidery. pam
Bernina 200e, Artista V5 Designer Plus, Explorations, Magic Box, Bernina 2000DE & 335 Bernette Serger, Bernina 1530 Sewing Machine, Bernina 1300 DC Overlock (with coverstitch) |
User: paroper
Member since: 02-03-2004 Total posts: 3775 |
From: DorothyL
Date: 03-14-2005, 10:06 AM (4 of 14)
|
You can also buy computer printer paper that you can print the design on and then iron it onto a shirt. I've had great success with this -- but it wasn't on something that gets washed. I've heard it fades. Dorothy |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: Sparky
Date: 03-14-2005, 11:33 AM (5 of 14)
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Another option is silkscreening. This is especially good if you want to reuse the screen and put it on more than one shirt. A silkscreen kit is not all that expensive, and the directions sound easy, but you'll want to practice because it's not as easy as it sounds. If you are not determined to do it yourself - that is, if you're more interested in the finished result than in the process - you might find a shop that will put your design on for a fee. There are places that do custom embroidery and places that airbrush or silkscreen designs. These places have access to machinery that is prohibitively expensive for non-commercial use. Sparky
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User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005 Total posts: 94 |
From: lucyinthesky
Date: 03-14-2005, 01:57 PM (6 of 14)
| Perhaps I shouldve worded that better. The shirt is not homework its just something I wanted. The design is a picture of a dove. I know of the computer iron on but I was told that that doesnt work so well. I would love to try silk screening but I have no idea how to do it or where to find a kit or whatever. Can anyone give me any other ideas of ways to put the dove on the shirt? Also could someone explain what exactly silkscreening even is? Thanks. |
User: lucyinthesky
Member since: 03-11-2004 Total posts: 19 |
From: paroper
Date: 03-14-2005, 03:45 PM (7 of 14)
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I'll try to explain this as best I can. I used to have professional silks done for my Girl Scout Day Camps. The easy way is to explain the way I did it. I would have the kids design a good high contrast design for the camp logo. Then I would take the design, computerize it and print it in NEGATIVE and backwards on a piece of transparency paper. Then I would take it to a professional silk screen company and have them develop it onto a piece of silked framed cloth much like a photo image. They would coat the cloth with a chemical that closed the cloth pores and put it under a heat lamp. Where the transparency was dark, the cloth did not develop, it develped light in low contrast areas and where the transparency was clear, the chemical coated the cloth entirely. Then they would wash the silk. Once the silk was developed and dry, I would take it home and use a squeege with special (rather expensive paint...but I purchased large quanities). I would place the silk over the skirt to be painted, put paint on the coated portions of the silk, use the squeege to run the paint back and forth across the silk to get a good print from the uncoated areas. Then we would use the hot Oklahoma sun to heat set and dry the paint...we also told the parents to use a hot iron to further heat set the paint. There are special paints that are recommended to use. We were always told that the better paints were very good (commercial grade) and were guaranteed not to come off, but they also had a terrible chemical smell. As Girl Scouts we were not allowed to use those, we used a water based commercial paint and it worked VERY well. The thing about this process is that if you want more than one color, you need more than one silk screen and the second would be applied after the first is dry. It is a rather tricky thing to get it lined up just right. In a commercial business, the silks are mounted and the shirts are timed so that the shirts rotate and the paints do not cover each other...so the shirts rotate from color to color while they are still wet. I understand that this process has been adapted for home use and there are kits that can be purchased. I would do upwards from 250-350 shirts in one week so we needed a good silk screen that would take a lot of abuse (the squeege is hard on the silk). I think that there are silks that can been thrown away one they have been used a couple of times.
pam
Bernina 200e, Artista V5 Designer Plus, Explorations, Magic Box, Bernina 2000DE & 335 Bernette Serger, Bernina 1530 Sewing Machine, Bernina 1300 DC Overlock (with coverstitch) |
User: paroper
Member since: 02-03-2004 Total posts: 3775 |
From: Sparky
Date: 03-15-2005, 09:40 AM (8 of 14)
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I bought a silk screen kit for my daughter (for Christmas, one year) at a local artist's supply store. I think it was around $50. The staff there was also very knowledgeable about what kinds of paints to use to paint on fabric. I'd suggest that if you're interested in learning more about silk screening you check out a place like this if you can. Sparky
|
User: Sparky
Member since: 03-13-2005 Total posts: 94 |
From: paroper
Date: 03-15-2005, 09:43 AM (9 of 14)
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Silkscreening is the common way to put names on shirts. This is what you see in stores all over the place where the design is painted on the shirt. The way that it wears is in the paint and the drying process. With the right tools and products it can wear as long as the shirt even if it is done with a home kit.
pam
Bernina 200e, Artista V5 Designer Plus, Explorations, Magic Box, Bernina 2000DE & 335 Bernette Serger, Bernina 1530 Sewing Machine, Bernina 1300 DC Overlock (with coverstitch) |
User: paroper
Member since: 02-03-2004 Total posts: 3775 |
From: LeapFrog Libby
Date: 03-16-2005, 11:54 AM (10 of 14)
|
Why don't you use the Penelope canvas and cross stitch the image onto your shirt.. The Penelope canvas is disposable, and the way you recognize it is that every 5th thread is blue.. You can buy it in packages at craft stores.. Or by the yard also..When you finish doing your counted cross stitch design, you just wet it and the glue dissolves and you pull the canvas threads away with a pair of tweezers... We used to embroider a pocket (fake, with thread) and something sticking out of the pocket on all our t-shirts years ago.. (My teen-age babysitters loved them). Stuffed animals were really popular. Bears that looked like they were peeping out of the pocket were the most popular..
Sew With Love
Libby |
User: LeapFrog Libby
Member since: 05-01-2002 Total posts: 2022 
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From: DorothyL
Date: 03-16-2005, 01:39 PM (11 of 14)
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You mean waste canvas, Libby. Penelope means it has two threads instead of one for the weave. Waste canvas is usually Penelope canvas but not all Penelope canvas is waste canvas. You are right -- it is the stuff with the blue threads. Dorothy |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: sewerzzzzzz
Date: 03-16-2005, 05:57 PM (12 of 14)
|
I've taken designs and manipulated them in a program called Photoshop then printed out the design on iron on transfer paper. This transfer paper will fade and peel and I do not recommend it as it does not hold up well to washing. I like some of the other ideas. |
User: sewerzzzzzz
Member since: 02-27-2005 Total posts: 81 |
From: DorothyL
Date: 03-17-2005, 07:09 AM (13 of 14)
|
Susie (the NY one) prints directly onto fabrics with a method she says holds up well. She discussed it on the crafts board. Dorothy |
User: DorothyL
Member since: 12-09-2002 Total posts: 3883 |
From: Carol in ME
Date: 03-17-2005, 06:58 PM (14 of 14)
| You could also you one of the temporary spray on adhesives to mount the t-shirt to a piece of cardboard to keep it stable. Then use an opaque projector, (either a cheap-o from a craft store, or convince a school to allow you to use theirs) and trace your design outline onto the shirt, you can then color it with paint. |
User: Carol in ME
Member since: 01-27-2003 Total posts: 105 |
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