Anatomical Heart Reverse Applique T-Shirt

You know those Valentine's day shirts that are like 5 bucks at Walmart and Target.  Um, I hate to break it to you, but everyone will be wearing those in the next few weeks.  You seriously don't want to run into someone else with a sparkly heart shirt.  It will be embarrassing for both of you.

Instead, make a super unique shirt that will be the envy of all.  This shirt is so cool, you can wear it year round.

It is super easy to make, too.  Let's make one!

First choose your shape.  I obviously chose an anatomical heart.  You could choose a standard heart if you wanted or some other shape.  Here's another reverse applique heart that I made for my cousin recently:

So, you get the idea about reverse applique.  It is like a patch under a cut out.

For this you will need,

• Image of your choice (I printed off two sizes & ended up choosing the bigger one)
• 2 Shirts
• Scissors
• Pins
• Sewing machine
• Marker (maybe)

Here's an image of the heart silhouette if you would like to use it.  Just right click, save the image & print it whatever size you want.  I printed mine as a 5x7, then enlarged it by 129% on the copier.

I wanted my heart to face the right way, so I turned the image around and traced the lines.  This makes sense if you are doing a shape where the direction matters, like a letter.  This step doesn't apply if you just make a regular heart.

First, turn your shirt inside out.  I got my long sleeve black tee at Target for $3.60 on clearance.  Then cut out a patch of the shirt that will go underneath and pin the image and the patch to the inside out front of the shirt.  Be careful not to accidentally pin the back of the shirt at any point.  I put a cutting mat in the shirt to be extra safe.

This might sound crazy, but sew right through the paper, that way you can follow the line of the shape.  Since my "patch" was red, I decided to sew with red thread.

It's a little tedious because you have to turn the paper with each curve of the shape, but once you get the hang of it, it's easy.

When you are done, carefully tear off the outer edges around the stitching.  Then tearing out the middle should be a breeze (because of the perforation).

Now turn your shirt right side out and carefully cut through the top shirt, following the guideline of stitching.  Leave about 1/8 of an inch in between cutting and the stitching, so you don't accidentally pull out stitches.

Here is how it looks on the hanger.

Here's how it looks on a human.  Enjoy your unique creation  :)