Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @littlegirldesigns.com #owl #babyclothes

Make an Owl Iron-on T-shirt

Learn how to make a simple owl iron-on t-shirt by repurposing a baby onesie. So cute!

I was rummaging through my craft drawers a couple of weeks ago looking for something when I came across a wonderful book of iron-on transfers that I had completely forgotten about. There was an owl in particular that I thought was cute, but I wasn’t sure what shirt I could use them on for my daughter. It is hard to find plain t-shirts these days for toddlers and to be honest, I just wanted to make a project rather than go out and buy something.

That’s when I realized I could probably use some plain onesies that I had purchased several years ago. I love embroidering onesies as gifts for baby showers and have several left in my craft drawers. I pulled out the largest one I could find and slipped it over my daughter’s head and it fit. Well, it almost fit. She’s too tall for it to snap so I figured I would cut the bottom off and make a t-shirt. Problem solved!

Make An Owl Iron-on T-shirt

You will need:

White onesie
Stitch Witchery
Scissors
Iron
Iron-on transfer (I used the owl from this book)
Embroidery floss in matching colors (I used teal and brown)
Embroidery needle
Transfer pen
Embroidery hoop

Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @dev.jenniemoraitis.com #owl #babyclothes

First, I prepared the t-shirt. I cut the bottom of the onesie right above the leg openings. Then I turned the edges of the shirt under and ironed them to give them a crisp edge. This also allowed me to make sure the edge was straight before I sealed them with Stitch Witchery.

 

Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @dev.jenniemoraitis.com #owl #babyclothes

Since I don’t have a sewing machine that would survive this fabric and because I love Stitch Witchery, I decided to go that route rather than hem the bottom of the t-shirt. I tore off pieces of Stitch Witchery and tucked them in the “hem”. Then I ironed the fabric to seal the hem. I forgot to take a picture of this part, but hopefully this makes sense.

 

Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @dev.jenniemoraitis.com #owl #babyclothes

Next was the fun part! I cut out the owl transfer and positioned it on the t-shirt. I knew I wanted to embellish the owl with a branch and some leaves so I made sure that it was positioned so I could do that. I followed the instructions on the iron-on transfer packaging and found that 30 seconds of ironing did the trick for this particular transfer. It did crinkle a little bit so maybe next time I’ll cut down the time a bit. After letting it cool for a couple of minutes, I peeled off the paper, and wow, why have I never done this before?! It was so cool!

 

Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @dev.jenniemoraitis.com #owl #babyclothes

At this point, I took out my transfer pen and drew a branch and several leaves under the owl. I put the t-shirt in an embroidery hoop and used a back stitch to “draw” the branches and leaves. (See how to back stitch here.) After I was finished, I rinsed the ink from the transfer pen off and let the shirt dry completely.

Make your own owl iron-on tshirt with this adorable pattern! @dev.jenniemoraitis.com #owl #babyclothes

I love how quickly this project came together and how satisfying it was since most of the difficult work was done by the cute design in the transfer.

Have you ever created a project using iron-on transfers? Where do you get your plain t-shirts? I’d love to know! Now I’m off to find more blank surfaces to embellish.

Have a lovely {and creative} day!


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31 responses to “Make an Owl Iron-on T-shirt”

  1. Lindsay Avatar

    Such a cute idea! I would never have thought to embroider a small picture to add to the iron transfer.

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks, Lindsay! 🙂

  2. Cheri Gamble Avatar

    Cute! Unfortunately all I have are boys 🙂

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      🙂

  3. Jasmine Avatar

    Oh so cute! Thank you for sharing! I must try this!! 😀

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Glad you like it! It was so fun to make! 🙂

  4. Gina B Avatar

    This is so adorable! I love it, looks easy too. Thanks for sharing.

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks so much! I really like how fast this project came together. 🙂 🙂

  5. Sarah Avatar

    What an adorable shirt. My bff hosted an iron-on-onesie baby shower for me. We all sat together and made clothing for my soon-to-be-born baby girl. This would have been a precious idea.

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      What an awesome baby shower activity–so creative! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by and congratulations!

  6. Stella Lee @purfylle Avatar

    Your embroidery really makes this shirt! Thanks for linking up today at the Pin Party.

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks! 🙂

  7. Marie Avatar

    LOVE the owl, but the stitching most of all.

    Marie @ In Our Happy Place

    l

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks so much, Marie! 🙂

  8. Angela McKinney Avatar

    So cute! Great way of reusing too. Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks, Angela! 🙂

  9. Keri Avatar

    Cute! And you made it look so easy. 🙂

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Ah, thanks! It really is a simple project, promise! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by! 🙂

  10. Heather @ Southern State of Mind Avatar

    This is really cute! I love a good craft and will be adding this to my “try” list! Thanks for sharing with the Pretty Preppy Party! http://www.southernstateofmindblog.com/2015/03/pretty-preppy-party-march.html

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      I think you’ll like it! 🙂 The only sad part is how fast munchkins grow out of these cute outfits! :/

  11. Theresa @DearCreatives Avatar

    Thanks for sharing at the Inspiration Spotlight party! Pinned & shared. Hope to see you again this week.

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks so much, Theresa! 🙂

  12. Samantha @ Stir the Wonder Avatar

    This is very cute! I love how you added the embroidery! Thanks for linking up at the Thoughtful Spot Weekly Blog Hop! We hope you join us again next week!

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks so much, Samantha. I love your party–always get so much inspiration of things to do with my daughter. 🙂

  13. Lou Lou Girls Avatar

    This looks so cute! Loving it! Pinned and tweeted. Thanks for being a part of our party. I hope to see you tonight at 7. Lou Lou Girls

  14. Jenny @ Women With Intention Avatar

    We’re going to give this a whirl for my almost 4 year old. She LOVES owls! 🙂

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Yay! Let me know how it turns out! I was surprised how easy it was to do an iron on (where have I been?!) Have a great day!

  15. Jacquie Avatar
    Jacquie

    So adorable! The stitched branch makes is so unique. My daughter is just learning some sewing so this type of project would be perfect for her — now to find a dolphin iron-on since it’s her favorite (I bet she could sew on some waves 😉

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Oh my goodness, a dolphin in waves would be adorable! Love that idea!

  16. Cristi Avatar
    Cristi

    This is so cool! Thanks so much for sharing how you did it! Have an awesome weekend!

    1. Jennie Avatar
      Jennie

      Thanks, Cristi! 🙂 Hope you have a great weekend too! 🙂

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