DIY Superhero Costume

Finley wants to be a superhero this year and I know I could buy a superhero costume for him at the store (complete with built in muscles), but I knew this one would be fun to make and I couldn't pass up the chance to use the tackiest, shiniest fabric I could get my hands on. 

This costume was pretty easy to make and took me about 3ish hours total. You'll notice above that he is wearing a headband rather than the mask I made. He hated wearing the mask. He hated wearing his mask last year so I should have had a clue. Anyhow, I made him a headband instead. I'm including templates for both so you can choose which one floats your kid's boat. 

I broke this tutorial down into three different segments: the t-shirt, the cape, and the headband/mask. You can make just one part or all three. 

What you'll need for the superhero t-shirt:

• T-shirt in color of your choice
• Two sheets of felt in contrasting colors - for washability and durability, I recommend eco-fi felt by Kunin
• Fusible webbing - for this project, I used Heat n Bond lite
• Lighting bolt template (or you can draw your own) - download here
• Child's initial template. There are a lot of free comic fonts available online. I used comica bd. You can download the font of your choice and create your own template for the initial. (The initial template will need to be backwards because the image will be reversed once you've put your applique together).
• Sewing machine/thread

1. Take your lighting bolt and initial templates and place them under your fusible webbing. Trace them.
2. Iron them onto your sheets of felt following the instructions for your fusible webbing. If you're using Heat n Bond, iron them for a few seconds on the wool setting (NO steam).
3. Carefully cut them out.
4. Iron the lighting bolt onto the t-shirt following the instructions for your fusible webbing. Again, if you're using Heat n Bond, you'll iron on the wool setting (NO steam). I like to place a scrap piece of fabric over the appliques on this step just to be safe. Make sure the applique is firmly adhered. Machine stitch the lighting bolt to the t-shirt (I used a running stitch). 
5. Iron the initial on top of the lighting bolt applique. Machine stitch.

What you'll need for the cape:

• You'll need a cape. There are so many great tutorials on the web (like this one and this one) for making capes and I didn't feel the need to reinvent the wheel. Laziness on my part? Perhaps. Both of the tutorials I linked also include instructions for the applique on the back so you can go with theirs or you can follow below to make one that matches the tee.
• Three sheets of felt. One to match the color of your t-shirt and the other two to match the applique that you made for the the tee. Again, I recommend eco-fi felt by Kunin.
• Lighting bolt template - download here
• Child's initial template (use the same one you used for the t-shirt).
• Fusible webbing
• Sewing machine/thread

1. Just as you did for the t-shirt, trace your lighting bolt and initial templates onto fusible webbing. Iron them onto the felt and cut them out. You'll also want to cut out a circle large enough to fit your lightning bolt and initial inside. I did NOT use fusible webbing on my red circle since the shiny cape fabric I used cannot be ironed.
2. Iron the lightning bolt onto the red circle.
3. Machine stitch the bolt onto the circle
4. Place your initial onto the lightning bolt and iron. Machine stitch on.
5. Since I did not use fusible webbing on my red circle, I pinned it onto the cape and machine stitched it on.

 What you'll need for the mask or headband:

• Two sheets of felt. I used contrasting colors to match the applique on the cape and tee but they could be the same color if you choose.
• Fusible webbing
• Elastic
• Sewing machine/thread
• Template - download the headband here or the mask here. These templates are sized to fit my 5 year old's head - you may have to adjust accordingly. The instructions are the same for the mask and headband.

1. Place your mask or headband template under the fusible webbing and trace.
2. Iron it onto the felt.
3. Carefully cut it out. Iron it onto the second sheet of felt.
4. Carefully cut it out.
5. Machine stitch together.
6. Not pictured. Stitch on some elastic for the band (measure your child's head for best fit).

In case you were wondering, Oliver is going to be a bat. I made him some killer ears and a mask to match his wings but he won't wear them either (these kids!).

If you get hung up on any of the steps or have any questions, don't hesitate to let me know. Good luck!

DIY {BE...} Appliqued Tees

This is going to be one of the very few tutorials I post over the summer and I'm really excited to share it with you. My good friend Laura of Laura Winslow Photography and I were chatting over dinner a few weeks ago how our little guys (both just 5 years old) are *already* starting to feel pressure from friends and classmates to act a certain way, hang out with certain kids, or do certain things. We both feel strongly (really, I'm sure most parents do) that it's our job to give them the confidence and sense of self worth that they need to be comfortable with who they are. We came up with these designs and this super fun shoot to help our kiddos learn to embrace who they are and let their unique personalities really shine. 

Laura is not only an amazing photographer, but she is the one person who can really get my kids to be themselves in front of the camera.  They had such a blast with this shoot and it was so fun to see Laura in action. I'm pretty sure her mantra is BE AWESOME - because she totally is. To see more photos from our fun day (and to read a far more eloquent reasoning behind this idea), you can visit Laura's blog here. Take your time. It's pretty amazing.

We thought it would be fun to create a tutorial of this and share these three designs with you all. Yay for you! Aside from the designs you see in these photos, you can create so many others...BE UNIQUE, BE YOURSELF, BE HAPPY, etc. I kept these designs short so I didn't have to sew too many letters. 

What You'll Need:

Blank t-shirt, one piece, or tank (pre-washed)

Felt or fabric piece for the applique (I prefer to use eco-fi felt by Kunin - it holds up great in the wash)

  Sewing Machine or embroidery floss and needle

Scissors (small scissors with a pointy tip work best)

Fusible webbing

  Templates for the applique (download here - BE RAD, BE COOL, BE KIND). Adjust the size of your template as needed. 

 Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me and I can help you. 

Getting Started:

The first thing you'll want to do is take the template and place it under a sheet of your fusible webbing. Take your pencil and trace your letters on to the webbing. Any time you applique letters or numbers, you'll want to trace them in the reverse since you will flip them when you adhere them to your garment.

 Next you'll want to iron your webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut out your letters. Peel off the paper backing.

Place the letters exactly where you want them on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the appliques on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. I ironed BE first and then KIND second. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the appliques are firmly adhered to the shirt.

At this point, you can either hand stitch the letters using a basic straight stitch (great tutorial here) or you can use a sewing machine. I usually prefer to hand stitch but for this project I used my machine. If you use your machine, you'll do a running stitch just inside the border of each letter.

Once the letters are stitched, trim the thread and you are finished.

Easy, fun, cute, encouraging.

 As always, if you get stuck on a step, feel free to let me know so I can help!

A HUGE thank you to Laura Winslow Photography for these amazing photos and designs.

DIY Appliqued Dream BIG Tee

I wanted to make an updated version of my original dream BIG tee for the boys (this is a great design for girls too). The previous font I used was when I was on a big circus kick. This time around, I wanted to update the font to something a little more modern and clean. I love how it turned out and apparently, Oliver does too.

The technique for this is very similar to my appliqued love tutorial - just a bit more involved and time consuming since there are more letters.  

What you'll need:
Blank t-shirt, one piece, or tank (pre-washed)

Felt or fabric piece for the applique (I prefer to use eco-fi felt by Kunin - it holds up great in the wash)

  Embroidery floss and needle

Scissors (small scissors with a pointy tip work best)

Fusible webbing

  Template for the applique (download here). Adjust the size of your template as needed. If you're intimidated with the detailed lettering, blow it up a bit - that will make it easier.

Since I use Heat n Bond, my instructions will follow Heat n Bond's instructions. If you are using a different fusible web, simply change out my instructions with the instructions on the package. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me and I can help you. 

Getting Started:

The first thing you'll want to do is take the template and place it under a sheet of your fusible webbing. Take your pencil and trace "dream big" on to the webbing. With the "dream," I made the lines connecting the letters together slightly bigger when I traced so it would be easier for stitching. Any time you applique letters or numbers, you'll want to trace them in the reverse since you will flip them when you adhere them to your garment.

Next you'll want to iron your webbing onto your felt or fabric. For Heat n Bond, set it on the "wool" setting (NO STEAM). Iron the design onto the felt or fabric for about 3 or so seconds so it looks like this:

Carefully cut the appliques out. This applique is a bit detailed so having small, pointy tip scissors will come in handy here.  I use the micro-tip scissors from Fiskars and they work great.

Place the appliques exactly where you want them on the t-shirt with the glossy/fusible webbing side face down. Iron the applique on to the t-shirt pressing for about 10 seconds. I ironed "dream" first and then BIG second. Again be sure to use the wool setting with no steam. Check to be sure that the appliques are firmly adhered to the shirt.

Now that your appliques are attached to the t-shirt, you're ready to start the applique process. To stitch by hand, cut about 3-4 feet of your embroidery thread. Your skein of thread will have six strands. Separate two of the strands from the piece you've cut and thread them through your needle.

For this t-shirt, I use a straight stitch. It's a basic stitch and great for a beginner. You basically bring the needle up through the t-shirt and back down making straight little stitches about a 2 cm in from the edge of your applique.

A great video tutorial for the straight stitch is available here. The nice thing about sewing coordinating thread (floss) on felt or fabric is that it's hard to see so it's very forgiving if you're a beginning stitcher. If you're an experienced hand stitcher, it is fun to experiment with contrasting threads and different stitches.

Once you have finished stitching all of the appliques, you are finished. You could play around with different colors or even create your own design using different fonts.

If you get stuck or have any questions, please let me know.

DIY Chevron Stripes for Summer

I was looking through old photos from my Finley and Oliver line last night and came across the pictures from our super FUN summer shoot with Laura Winslow Photography. Sherri from Noah and Lilah and I worked on a collection together and Laura captured it magically. Some of my favorites from the shoot are of my friend's daughter in a navy tank with white chevron stripes.

Admittedly, I haven't embraced the chevron trend quite as much as others (you know who you are), but I do love the clean, modern aesthetic of the design and think it dresses up an otherwise plain tank or tee perfectly.

You can easily make your own little (or big - I made one for myself over at Sewing in No Man's Land) chevron tank for summer by following the exact instructions from my chevron onesie tutorial here.

View the entire shoot over at Laura Winslow Photography. So magical, so fun, you will love it.

Instructions to make your own chevron tank or tee here.

(If anyone would be interested in a tutorial on making the feather crown seen in these photos, let me know. It was so much fun to make and I love to share if anyone would like me to.)

DIY Star Wars Freezer Paper Stencil T-shirt

I've received several questions about Oliver's Darth Vader freezer paper stencil t-shirt from this BOY style post.  That tee is a huge hit with my boys so I figured I'd better make another one so they don't come to blows over it. We decided on a storm trooper this time around.

What You'll Need:

Blank t-shirt or one piece (pre-washed)

Fabric paint - I used black fabric paint by Tulip

Paint brush - I used a fabric paint brush by Tulip

Freezer paper - available at most super markets

Exacto knife or small pointy scissors

Pen

Stencil template - I got the Star Wars templates here

Getting Started:

You can do one of two things with the template. Either print it out and place it under your freezer paper (wax side down - paper side up) to trace it. Or you can cut an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of freezer paper and print out the template directly on to it. My printer is somewhat sketchy so I chose to trace the stencil. A few of the lines were super thin so drew them slightly wider so they'd be easier to cut.

With your exacto knife or small pointy scissors, cut the stencil out. If you use an exacto knife, be sure to lay down some cardboard or a cutting mat to protect your work surface. The Star Wars stencils are pretty intricate and took me forever to cut with my scissors. If I was able to find my exacto knife (and had taken a little more time), the cuts would have been much easier (and neater). However, the finished product looks fine. Only the ultimate Star Wars geek might notice the discrepancies.

With the wax side down, use an iron to affix your stencil to the t-shirt.

Now it's time to paint the stencil. Place a piece of cardboard in the middle of your t-shirt so the paint doesn't soak through to the back side. With your paint brush, apply a thin, even layer over the stencil with short brush strokes. You don't want it too thick but you want to be sure it's applied evenly and covers the entire stencil.

Once you've finished painting, wait for the paint to dry completely. You can use a blow dryer to speed things along if you're impatient like me. Again, be sure it's completely dry and then carefully lift the stencil up. With a scrap piece of fabric on top of the stencil to be safe, iron for a few seconds to set the paint.

Voila! Finished. These are really easy to care for. I've washed the Darth Vader tee (machine wash cold/tumble dry low) at least 20 times and the paint is holding up brilliantly.

If you get stuck or have any questions, let me know.