So the mere whisper of the DIY kids birthday shirt idea I was drumming up was enough to capture 1000% of Mo’s attention.
On a rare trip to Walmart, I stumbled across a gold-trimmed shirt I’d describe as “understated Lady Gaga,” which is also known as “perfect for a toddler.” It even has a POCKET. And the pocket can fit small animals in it. This is the stuff of dream childhoods.
I heart this project for three reasons:
- We made it together! The entire process was collaborative, hands on and memorable.
- A DIY kids birthday shirt is super special to wear the actual day of the birthday party, just in case there’s any confusion about WHO is having a b-day.
- Kids can take so much pride in making something themselves that they get to wear and tell people about.
Creating the number stencil to add to the shirt is as easy as finding a font you like, typing one number, increasing the font size to, like, infinity and printing it out.
Buuuuut, if you just want to plug and play, I’ve created a birthday shirt template in this font for numbers 1-9 and added it to the Make & Do Crew Subscribers Vault.
Simply enter your email in the pink and green box at the bottom of this post and you’ll gain instant access to download the template, plus all of our other free patterns and templates.
DIY KIDS BIRTHDAY SHIRT SUPPLIES
So you can spend more time party planning and less time shopping, this post contains affiliate links at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!
• spray fabric paint (I used Tulip Glitter Spray Paint in Glistening Gold)
• a cotton shirt (Lady Gaga details optional. Ours was $5 at Walmart.)
• birthday number template (subscribe at the end of the post to download)
• freezer paper
• tape
• iron (for the grownup to use)
• utility knife (for the grownup to use)
• thick paper for inside the shirt
• newspaper to protect surrounding area
1. Wash and dry the shirt.
2. Print the appropriate number from the template or create your own. Tape the printed template on top of a piece of freezer paper. Use a utility knife to carefully cut out the number. (Obviously, this is an adult job.)
5. Have your child spritz the fabric paint around the entire edge of the number. This proved to be a little trickier for 3-year-old hands than I hoped. I ended up doing a lot of the spraying, while she showed me where to put it. I think a slightly older child would have no problem.
8. Practice endless birthday dress rehearsals with this crochet birthday cupcake until the big day rolls around!
Potato Stamp Towels
Modern Popsicle Stick Hearts
GET INSTANT ACCESS TO THE BIRTHDAY SHIRT TEMPLATE!
Plus my entire library of free patterns and project templates.
2 Comments
jackie lungley
February 24, 2016 at 1:35 pmPlease could you let me have access to the number templates please thanks
Jess @ Make and Do Crew
February 24, 2016 at 3:57 pmHey Jackie–
Thank you so much for pointing out that I left the “subscribe” box off of this post. Oops! I’m sorry if that left you confused. Noooow if you enter your email address in the pink and green box above, you’ll be sent a password to access our exclusive Subscriber’s Vault where you’ll find this template, plus lots of others. (Once you enter your email address, be sure to check your email for a confirmation email. It might be in your spam or promotions folder. Click that big “confirm” button and you’ll have the password in your inbox in no time 🙂 Let me know if you need more help. I don’t want anything to stand in the way of your crafting!
Thanks for reading Make and Do Crew.
jess