DIY Sequin Heart T-shirt Tutorial for Valentine’s Day

Buenos dias, hoy es Lunes! Can you believe it is already February 1st people!?!? This means Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Have you made plans yet? Our plans are to get the kids into bed early so that we can cuddle and enjoy the mid-season premiere of The Walking Dead. As parents of 3 kiddos, we think that is pretty darn romantic (especially when it’s our favorite show on TV).

Okay, so back to this…. I really wanted to make something cute for my older daughter to wear for Valentine’s Day

And when I say cute, I mean unique, and when I say unique, I really mean I gotta do it myself!

So, I thought I would share how INEXPENSIVE and EASY it is to make this DIY sequin heart tee for Valentine’s Day.

First you need a plain white T-shirt. I bought this one from Wal Mart and I was lucky it was marked down to $2.50

Then you will need a template of a heart. In this case I used a cookie cutter. You know you have one of those somewhere!

I traced the outer part of the heart with a regular #2 pencil.

Then you will need the following:

1. Red thread (which I already had)
2. Sequins $1.99 (I used my 40% coupon for this at Hobby Lobby since it was the most expensive item on the list)
3. Small red glass beads $2.99 (they were 50% off at the time)
4. Beading Needle $1.47 (pack of 2)

*I recommend using the beading needle instead of a regular threading needle because the glass beads are so small the eye of a regular needle won’t go through the beads.*

Also, to make things easier you should use an embroidery hoop to hold the fabric taut.

I already had one of these, but you can get these from anywhere between $1.50 to $2.99 for the smaller ones at Hobby Lobby, depending on what material you want to use – they come in wood or plastic like the one above.

Now for the fun part….

Here is what you do:

Step 1. After you loop your thread through the needle head and tie the 2 ends to a knot, bring the thread from the back of the fabric towards the front through any point on the line.

Step 2. Bring the needle/thread through the sequin

Step 3. Go through the glass bead

Step 4. Go back through the front of the sequin

Step 5. Bring the needle/thread back through the fabric just next to the original entry point where you came in.

By going through the bead, then back through the sequin you will end up with the glass bead in the center of the sequin and no visible thread. Nice and clean!

Then just repeat these steps following the pattern that you drew on the shirt using the line as a guide. Once you go all around, it will look like this.

Then continue filling in the rest of the heart. Just follow the sequins already there, but place the sequins in between the sequins on the outer rim (so that they are staggered) allowing less of the fabric to show through.

Make sure that when you come to the end of your thread to tie (or sew) it in several knots on the back so your hard work does not fall apart. You will have to do this more than once – I used 3 threads since there were so many sequins. I would suggest you do the same in case one thread does come undone, you won’t lose all of your work.

And there you have it! I spent a total of $6.65 plus tax on a completely unique Valentine’s T-shirt for my daughter.

And the great thing about this is, you can do it for any occasion/holiday and on just about anything!

I see some sequin cushions in my future…

But seriously though you change the color of the T-shirt (maybe pink). The sequins also come in color variety packs – you can make an ombré effect! And this is a great solution for when you just can’t find the right thing for your kids to wear. I know I come across this often. And it really is just that simple! All it takes is a little patience. And trust me when I tell you, your child will love it! My daughter got so excited when I was done, I felt like a real life super hero!

Ooooh…. maybe I can make me a sequinned cape!

I mean look at the proof!

It looked so cute paired with a jean jacket. The bow she is wearing I also made myself. I will do a tutorial on the easiness of that bow as well!

Well, that is all for today! Hope you enjoyed this little tutorial. Have a wonderful Monday!

Your Latina,

Yami