tshirts easier than tie dye!!!

[asktriplets]

hi.

i'm not sure if this suggestion has been posted, but i just found a FABULOUS (and super easy) way to make a Mickey head tshirt that looks similar to tie dye...

my kids, who are 4, have all done "practice" mickey heads and ears on old tshirts and they have really enjoyed it! the greatest thing about this project is that they can actually do it themselves. we've played around with differently sized circles for the ears and head, different colors, and differently shaped marks with the markers (straight lines and squiggily lines as opposed to just dots).


i found this project in "Wonder Time" magazine:

http://wondertime.go.com/create-and-play/crafts/science-project.html
(hope this is ok to post this link)

my plan is to make the shirts tomorrow (we're putting up our countdown calendar tomorrow, so we're having a "Mickey Day"!)....i'll try to post a pic. when we're done.

have fun,

 

[bethbuchall]

That looks very cool! Please post the photos of your finished product and maybe even a few along the way to show the process.

 

[PNO4TE]

What a great idea. PLEASE post pictures of your finished shirts!

 

[asktriplets]

my kids made their "hidden mickey" shirts yesterday, and it went so smoothly! they are, obviously, not nearly as all-over colorful as the tiedye shirts, but i think they probably would look much brighter if i used a colored shirt instead of white.

once we found 2 different sized cups (bigger 1 for head, smaller one for ears), it took about 20 minutes to make the shirt design....i positioned the cup and put the rubberband around the rim of the cup. the kids made their marks and dropped the rubbing alcohol, and then i used the blow dryer (about 2 mins.) to set the color and then we moved on to the next circle. SO EASY! i did put the shirt in the dryer, as directions indicate, when we were all done.

there were a few things i did above and beyond the directions from wondertime:
-used a hair dryer right after the marker ran to the edge of the cup to make sure the colors didn't smear or run past the rubber band

-we found using the markers to make slash marks alone, or along with dots, added more color in the circle

-depending on how the tshirts are made, the alcohol/marker may run more quickly horizontally or vertically. we found tilting the cup/shirt and dripping the alcohol so it dripped toward where more color is needed helped (but still drop the alcohol in the center, or the colors will run in a different pattern)


i'm not sure how to attach a picture. i'll do some searching for directions for posting pics (unless anyone has a link for me?).

 

[asktriplets]

here are the shirts....

the one on the right was our first one, and on this one i learned that i needed to make sure that the marker color ran right to the edge (that 1 ear looks a bit disconnected).

i think the shirt in the middle looks best, as it is all the same color scheme, but my other 2 kids were going for maximum color!!!

hope this easy design works for others.

 

[KBerly]

Cute!

 

[DISNEYDUET]

They are terrific!! I have made the tie dyed mickeys before and it was a lot of work! This would be great for our family trip October 2008. I would need to make 14! Better get crackin'! I think I am going to try for a colored shirt. I will post back and let everyone know how it went.

 

[ms_mckenna]

Very cool thanks for the idea. I am looking into making at total of 64 shirts for the next trip and looking for something different on some of them. If anyone does them on colored shirts I would love to see how they look.

 

[SueRS]

These look great. Any sound easy that 4 years can do it. I wonder if it would work with a black t-shirt and neon markers.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

 

[asktriplets]

These look great. Any sound easy that 4 years can do it. I wonder if it would work with a black t-shirt and neon markers.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

hmmm....do they make neon permanent markers? i would think that because the marker is absorbed into the shirt fabric (rather than painted on top), it wouldn't show up very well.

i could absolutely be mistaken, though.

sorry i can't help.

(you could always try it out with an old dark rag/sock before trying it on the shirt)

 

[bethbuchall]

Those look awesome! I'm glad that you figured out how to post photos. I am going to have to try some out.

 

[KarenW]

These look great! Did you use 100% cotton shirts? I usually buy my shirts from Hobby Lobby and they are 50/50, so don't know if this would work as well. I also want to see pics if anyone uses color shirts.

 

[asktriplets]

These look great! Did you use 100% cotton shirts? I usually buy my shirts from Hobby Lobby and they are 50/50, so don't know if this would work as well. I also want to see pics if anyone uses color shirts.

these shirts are 50/50 (2 for $5 at Michael's last week). i didn't prewash, and i'll be washing them tonight. i'm curious to see if/how much the color fades. i'll let you guys know.....

 

[PNO4TE]

They look TERRIFIC! Thanks for posting the picture and giving the hints.

 

[LITTLEKID58]

These are great txs for sharing.

 

[java]

Ok another question- the color bleeds inward? or outward? becuase your sharpest lines are outer lines I am thinking inward. I am confused over what size object to trace around to get the right size! After last nights Tie dye fiasco I am ready for an easier project.. Oh and yes I am completely Hot Pink today(not my clothes either ME!!)

 

[UP Disney]

Those t-shirts are awesome! Thanks for the new idea.

 

[bear74]

those look great.

 

[my3princes]

I love those. Looks like I have another project in the works. I'm also planning to try the spray dies with some sort of stencil. And to think I wasn't going to make shirts for everyday

 

[asktriplets]

Ok another question- the color bleeds inward? or outward? becuase your sharpest lines are outer lines I am thinking inward. I am confused over what size object to trace around to get the right size! After last nights Tie dye fiasco I am ready for an easier project.. Oh and yes I am completely Hot Pink today(not my clothes either ME!!)

when you read the directions from the link i posted (wondertime magazine), you'll see that it says to put a bottlecap/penny/something round in the middle of the fabric that is stretched over the cup, and then you make your marks around that object. then remove the penny/object and drop the rubbing alcohol in THAT spot. the alcohol then spreads OUT. the "sharp" edges come, i think, from the ink reaching the rim of the cup and the rubberband (it can't go any farther, so it collects/dries along that edge). thanks for asking this, because i'm not sure that i clarified that my posts ALONE don't adequately describe the process.

for our specific tshirts, my kids made marker lines out from the center toward the edges of the cups (rather than the dots around the penny as the directions suggest), so plenty of our brighter colors are farther out toward the edges of the circles.

i have to remake one of our shirts (IT BLED IN THE WASHER ), so i'll take some pictures along the way and post the process here.

hope this helps!