Easy $1 Stenciled Drum Set Tee: Fast Tutorial

When I was at my local 99 Cents Only store, I picked up this gray-green shirt.They had 5 million of them but only in size 2-4T. What's funny is they frequently have colored tees but all in the same size. Like, they had a royal blue, only in size 6.



Other stuff you might need, that I already had (that's why it was only $1 for me: after I've had stuff a couple of years I call it free)
Freezer paper
X-acto knife
Sharpie
Acryilic Paint
Brushes
Cool Stencils

 Places on the web to get cool stencils:
Spray Paint Stencils
Live Journal's Stencil Swap
Stencil Punks

 There are some cute kid ones on Ottobre's website and you can also use cheap plastic stencils for small things or baby items.

 Put the freezer paper shiny-side-down over your printed stencil and trace with a sharpie.This part is just dumb labor and like to do several at once in front of my favorite tv show.

Use the X-acto knife to cut out the design from the freezer paper very carefully.

 put it against a contrasting surface to make sure you've cut accurately. Fix up anything that's wonky.

Using a hot iron with no steam, iron the freezer paper down in the position you want. I press and hold for a count of 5 in several spots being mindful that the tiny edges and details need to be firmly adhered to the shirt for clean edge when painting.

 Look! all ironed and ready to paint.

Find a piece of cardboard big enough to fit inside your tee shirt.

Pin the shirt to the cardboard so it doesn't move when you're painting.

Add your paint to a tray or paper plate. I used plain acrylic craft paint. I used to add fabric medium but experienced no difference in the appearance or longevity of the painted area. Really, every time I spill this crap on my clothes it NEVER comes out. NEVER. It's liquid plastic: once it embeds itself in the fibers, it becomes one with the fabric. Both horrid and wonderful, all at once. I wanted a color I didn't have so I mixed a bit. I need a gold (yellow-orange) and all I had was a bright yellow and plenty of red.

I start off by dabbing, going around all the edges and filling in the small areas.

 I mostly do the first coat by dabbing, really, to get the fibers saturated with paint. I let that dry for 30 minutes and then do regular painting (not dabbing) over it.

 After an hour or so, I peel off the stencil. THIS is the most exciting part, but don't get in a rush to do it. If the paint is wet anywhere it will smear.

 Remove the cardboard from the shirt.

Put the shirt on your kid who has been asking about the "dwums shirt" for two days.

 

Go make a shirt! My kids have made these (the painting part) after I've cut out and iron-on a stencil. If you're new to using an X-acto knife, choose a super easy shape, like a heart or one letter, then move on to something trickier. Anyone could do this and it's a fun way to personalize an inexpensive tee!