One of the most wonderful things about being creative is the abiltiy to express oneself, even if it is on a simple t-shirt. That is just what we decided to do when we found these iron-on (fusible) letters from SEI at our local craft store! We knew we wanted to "express" our new web address and be creative at the same time! Each set of letters comes with the full alphabet and a few extra letters, so you will need to know beforehand what you are spelling out so you can be sure that you have all of the needed letters.
We began our t-shirt project by pre-washing the t-shirts, laundering them as we normally would following the instructions on the shirt's label. We dried the shirts likewise, making sure that they were completely dry before we applied the letters. By doing this we knew we wouldn't have any surprises with shrinkage or colorfastness from the t-shirts. A quick press with the iron to remove any wrinkles and we were ready to go. Following the instructions provided on the packages, we chose our words (Erik Homemade, of course) and since the directions give two different ways to apply the letters, we decided on the "peel first" method. We carefully peeled the needed letters from the backing sheets and were able to position each letter in its place. After a few attempts the letters were correctly centered and ready to be fused with a hot iron and press cloth. It was that simple!
Our t-shirts were a success! So much so that we made more t-shirts! We really liked peeling the letters and placing them face up as they appear on the final project. By seeing the letters right side up, we were able to catch spelling errors easier (thank goodness we hadn't ironed that word down yet!) as well as judge spacing and straight lines better. We added just a tiny amount of plain glue stick, the school kind, to the back of each letter for the final placement because we were afraid that when we placed the press cloth over the loose letters, they would shift. If the kids are helping out with this project, be sure and help them with the hot iron. Following SEI's instructions, all of the letters applied correctly on our first pressing, so much so that if we had made a mistake, we wouldn't be sure how to get the letter off! The letters are solid and have already withstood a few washings very well.
As you can tell, we really liked these letters from SEI. Since there are several styles (fonts) you can mix and match making your text more interesting. Don't let yourself be stuck on making just t-shirts and clothing either! We even think that these letters can be fused to wood, paper, and glass, or anything that could support the heat of the iron! The letters come in several styles, in both black and white, and are very reasonably priced. Rest assured, you can express yourself, very well, with nothing but a hot iron, a press cloth, and your great imagination!
Our first attempt at "apparel advertising". We used two different styles of letters; one single letter, and letters from a package, fused to the back of the shirt.
Of course, the first attempt was not only successful, but also a lot of fun! Here is our t-shirt asking about subscribers!
