DIY Valentine’s T-Shirt

Show the world you’re a love machine with an easy to make DIY Valentine’s T-Shirt!

Having boys is a ton of fun, they are playful and energetic and they love their mamas. I love being a mom of boys, except when it comes to clothes shopping. All the cute clothes are reserved for girls! On Valentine’s day the girls wear pretty pink and red to school, while the boys typically wear their everyday t-shirts. This year I got a little crafty and made my little ‘love machine’ a fun t-shirt to wear on Valentine’s day.

Any ol’ solid t-shirt will be the perfect backdrop to create a fun design for your child! For this DIY Valentine’s Day T-Shirt I used a black tee my son already had in the drawer.

Materials:

• Solid colored cotton t-shirt
• Vinyl cutting machine (like a Cricut Explorer); you will also need a cutting mat
• Iron-on vinyl in 2 colors
• Iron
• Scissors

Directions: 

Design your image: I found the robot design in my Cricut Explorer’s digital image library, and created the overall design including the font, on my computer. Choose the wording and font style you like, and set your machine to cut making sure it is on the ‘mirror image’ setting. Place the vinyl onto the mat glossy side down, and cut your image. Peel away the uncut vinyl around your image.

Following the directions on the iron-on vinyl, use a hot iron (turn steam function off) and go over the t-shirt to make it hot. If you are using multiple layers like I did, then add the background color first. In this case a little patch of red vinyl for the hearts and mouth did the trick. Place the vinyl (glossy side up) onto the t-shirt and go over it with the iron for several seconds up to a minute. Carefully remove the plastic liner making sure the vinyl completely sticks to the material. Continue this process for all layers.

The kids in his first grade class may not associate the “I’m just a love machine” reference with the classic song, but the teacher and other parents certainly will! The inside joke is part of the novelty!

Iron-on is machine washable, and I can tell you from experience it lasts a long time. It’s relatively inexpensive and isn’t limited to clothes, use it to decorate pillows, drapes or anything you like, the possibilities are endless! My little guy will be stylin’ this Valentine’s day. Click here for more iron-on ideas. What can you do with iron-on vinyl?