About
Turn a beloved old t-shirt graphic into a back patch
Is there an old t-shirt you love, but it's totally falling apart and you want to rescue that graphic and give it new life? Have no fear! This tutorial will show you how to add structure to the fabric so it's sturdy enough to work as a large patch, and prepare it for sewing onto a denim jacket or bag. Note: This tutorial only covers the prep work, sewing time is not included in time estimate.
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Jill M. favorited T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 02 Apr 02:25
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JadeSucksAtLife favorited T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 23 Feb 16:43
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CraftyCat added T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch to Sewing 14 Jan 08:47
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CraftyCat favorited T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 14 Jan 08:47
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jesta b. favorited T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 25 Dec 01:36
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Crafterella featured T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 22 Dec 23:00
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Emma H. favorited T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 22 Dec 02:47
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PixieFey added T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch to Shoes, Clothes, Accessories 21 Dec 11:13
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Lais W. published their project T-Shirt Graphic Into Back Patch 20 Dec 09:54
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Step 2
Get out your non-woven, fusible interfacing and read the directions. This one is made by HTC, I got it on Amazon.com for about $8 (15" x 3 yards). It says to put the interfacing rough side down on the back of your fabric and press with a steam iron at wool setting for 12 seconds, not moving the iron. Use a damp cloth if you don't have a steam iron or if your iron will not produce enough steam.
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Step 4
Dampen a piece of scrap fabric (a scrap cut from an old cotton pillowcase works great) slightly larger than your project and place it over both layers of fabric. You might want to put another piece of damp scrap cloth under the T-shirt first—the screen printing ink started sticking to the fabric of the ironing board cover a bit when I did this because of the high heat and pressure.
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Step 8
Put a magazine behind the fabric and lightly paint the edges with clear or matching-color nail polish so they don't fray. I recommend using matching-color polish (black here) for dark colors because the white interfacing sometimes shows a little on the edges. Any brand of nail polish is fine, but the quick dry types are best because you don't have to worry about it coming off on another surface when you put it down.