DIY Christmas T-Shirts

It is no secret I love my cricut…the project ideas are endless. This year I was thinking about our Christmas card what I could do to make it original. We didn’t take any really amazing family pictures, next year we will have to work on that!

So, I decided to go with the ever so popular family pajama Christmas photo. To make it my own I thought I could make my own t-shirts. I asked my kids what they would like and my daughter of course suggested emojis or unicorns. Emojis won since I didn’t think my son would appreciate a picture of him in a unicorn shirt! The best part is I had all the shapes my cricut already and didn’t have to buy any emoji images. All I needed was the t-shirt and iron-on. The most difficult part of this t-shirt is the layering of the iron-on. It was a longer process then normal but the finished product came out so cute.

DIY Emoji T-shirts with the Cricut

Supplies:

• Cricut Machine (mine is a Cricut Explore Air)
• Cricut Easy Press (not necessary, can use an iron as well)
• Iron-on material (I use cricut brand but there are others out there)
• Cricut Mat
• T-shirts
• I-Pad or Computer (to run Cricut Design Space)
• Scissors

Step 1: Start off by designing your t-shirts in the Cricut App on the iPad or Computer. You can use cricut downloaded fonts or characters and there are lots of project ideas with instructions included in the app. I usually just buy my images through the app or use the free ones, but you can download images off the internet onto your computer and import them into the app as well. There are also lots of people who sell downloads on etsy or through Pinterest. For this project I used shapes already in my cricut design space.

Step 2: Once the design is done, press the green button that says Make It. That will take you to another screen where the mats will be laid out. When working with iron-on be sure to Mirror the Image (there is a slide button). Also, with iron-on place the shiny side down on the mat so the cut will be on the back side not on the clear top.

Step 3: Now to cut the iron-on. For the t-shirts, I had to cut 4 different colors, so I loaded the mat and cut the first one and so forth. Once all 4 are finished, I cut around iron-on cuts the cricut made with scissors. Then weeded the negative space around what I was designing. Leaving my design on the clear plastic.

Step 4: Next, put the t-shirts on an ironing board or cricut press pad and line up your design to make sure everything fits right. Then remove it and warm the area on the pillow with the cricut press or an iron for 5-10 seconds. Place your design on the warmed area and place the press/iron on top and press the button for 30 seconds. Hold the press with light pressure.

Different materials require different temperatures so just double check that information before you use the cricut press. I check on the cricut website to make sure I am using the correct temperature. If using an iron the processes is similar it just takes a little longer to cover all the area. My t-shirts had layers so I did this step 3 times with each layer. Next flip the pillow over and put the press/iron over the back for another 15 seconds or so. Peel off the plastic cover and double check all the edges are secure.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!