T-shirts are one of the most used garments in the world because of how comfortable and fresh they can be. Men and women use them since they are very young since they can be used to do any activity such as shopping, exercising, or going to university.
Sometimes we have a lot of T-shirts in our wardrobe that we don’t wear because for us they are very repeated or have lost their importance. A garment that is usually very simple when they are unicolor, boring both those who wear them and the people around us.
That is why it is important to learn how to make printed t-shirts on our own. By acquiring this knowledge we will be guaranteeing to be able to use them until their useful life is over. They are very easy procedures to perform at home and with materials that are not impossible to obtain.
What do you need to make printed T-shirts?
- transfer sheets
- normal sheets
- drop cloths
- Iron
- A t-shirt
- Work table or flat surface
Instructions for making printed shirts
- Look for the shirt. It may be one that you already have in your closet or you can also buy one in the store that has only one color (so that the design fits better). It does not matter where you get it, the most important thing is to have it and above all that it is in good condition. We don’t want a dirty shirt or one that is already giving its last months of life. After you have it, make sure it works for the type of stamping you want to do. Some prints are best on linen and other fabrics, but one of the best fabrics for this type of art is cotton. So if you already have one of this type, you already know what to do with it.
- Prepare your workplace. Before you get to work, whatever technique you have chosen, it is good that you have a surface to work on properly. It must be completely flat, to guarantee that the designs will not move and be ruined for the same reason. It would also correspond to you that it is as clean as possible, it can get dirty working but we do not want accidents to occur in our next-to-print shirt. Likewise, have on hand all the materials and tools that you are going to use and if you do not know how to use one, ask for help, do not be ashamed.
- Use the crayons. One of the first printed t-shirt techniques that we wanted to teach you is one that you can do at home and without many complications. You just have to have some wax crayons on hand, the kind that is quite greasy and sharpener. It also includes an iron that we will be using later. We are going to sharpen the crayons little by little, do not worry about them breaking since the idea is not that it is completely perfect. The waste that is left must be accumulated in a cup or a plate, whichever is more comfortable for you.
- Do it with different colors to make the design even more original. Then you can make a stencil with a simple design that you like to shape your pattern. It doesn’t have to be very complicated, just a silhouette that you can guide yourself by like a flower, a bird, a star, or a heart. Place the template over your t-shirt and with the waste from your wax crayons go filling little by little to your taste. After you have the drawing, remove the template and proceed to place a very fine fabric over the colors to be printed.
- The idea is to protect the wax so that it can melt and not burn. We will do the final process with the iron, passing it little by little over the protective cloth, you will see how the colors will adhere to the fabric of your shirt. To finish, remove the fabric and wait for it to cool down very carefully, This technique is much better on light colors since the rest of the shades can be used properly. And ready with this you will have a printed shirt in a very short time and in your own home.
- More detailed designs. If crayons are not your thing and you want something much more detailed for your printed t-shirts, we recommend sublimation. But before starting this technique you must define very well what you want to look like in terms of your design. The main advantage of this type of printed t-shirt is that you can make almost any type of design. From very extravagant to more classic, going through your favorite characters or phrases, you can imagine many things that will be possible to transfer to your garment. Another idea is that you make your drawing on the computer and then pass it to where you want to implement it.
- The transfer also works. You already have your design, it’s time to get to work. What you should do is print what you have chosen on a special paper called transfer for fabrics, you can look for it without much inconvenience since lately, they are very profitable. When doing this, you must wait for the ink to dry properly to avoid accidents and ruin what you want to do. Then we are going to take our shirt and protect its layers, previously, we are going to apply our design on the fabric with an iron, which is warm and not completely hot. With this, the procedure is finished, the idea is that you do it little by little to make sure that everything adheres perfectly and that the work you have done is not going to be damaged. The best thing you can do is, depending on the paper you use, seek to protect it when ironing it by placing something on top of it like a very fine cloth or something similar. And ready you will have your printed shirt with a few simple steps.
Tips for making printed T-shirts
- If we want our printed t-shirts to last us for a long time, we must take some precautions when washing them. The best thing is that we do this process with the garment inside out in such a way that we can protect the image that we have made (it also applies to ironing).
- You should also try to wash them with cold water, remember that the prints were made with heat, so continuing to place them at high temperatures would make the design disappear. Also, avoid passing it through the automatic dryer.
- Another piece of advice that we give you is that you do not repeat them so much or do not use them every moment. First of all, because many prints are delicate and with constant weather changes they could become damaged in a short time. We also tell you this because it is a way that every time you bring your design to light you will generate surprise in those who see you, something that does not happen if we use them all the time.
- Being able to make a printed shirt yourself is putting creativity into everything you give. Let your imagination fly and give life again to those clothes that you have not used for a while. That personal touch that you can give it will make you feel proud for a long time and at the same time it will make the people around you understand that you can exceed your expectations.