How about a Super Easy Valentines Day Project. In my book this project has it all. It’s fast and easy, perfect for a child, doesn’t require special skills or expensive equipment, and you get a lot of bang for your buck.
Begin With a Onesie
I am almost embarrassed to even show you the steps because there is so little to this. The photo above really shows you what to do. However, if you’ve never done an appliqué before, then you might want to check out some of my other posts on the subject. I pretty much cover all of the basics you will ever need to know.
Almost all of my posts on appliqué begin with, “I needed a baby gift.” And, it just happens to be Valentine’s Day. Why not combine them. {Personally, I think this idea would work for most holidays – a fall leaf, a shamrock, a Christmas tree, etc. – just replace the heart with the current holiday}.
Anyhoo, back to the project. You will need a onesie for a baby or a t-shirt for a child. Be sure to iron out any wrinkles.
You will need some fabric scraps. Iron these as well. I chose a marble-y red scrap for the heart and a modern print with a white-ish background for the letter.
Iron on a fusible web product like Heat ‘n Bond Lite to the back of the fabric. Notice how I used scraps of fusible web. (affiliate)
Adding the Design
Here’s where having a Silhouette really comes in handy. I loaded a heart into my Silhouette software and sized it to fit the onsie. I wanted it to dominate the onesie so I went really big. If you don’t have a Silhouette, no worries. Just trace the heart onto the paper side of the red fabric and hand cut it out. (affiliate)
For the letter ‘K’ I did the same thing. I loaded a Times New Roman letter ‘K’ into my Silhouette software. If you want to do this by hand, then type the letter into your word processing software and enlarge the font size until it fits the heart. Most importantly, reverse the letter when you trace it. This tutorial better explains.
Any way you do it, cut out the heart and the letter of choice. Carefully place them on the onesie. If you notice in my photo, I have marked the placement with a water soluble marker.
Give it a good press with the steam iron. I usually hold it over the appliqué for about 10 seconds.
Stitch down the heart first and then the alphabet letter. I used a straight stitch set at 3 mm.
It doesn’t get much easier than this. I think I spent about 30 minutes on this project. Best of all, I spent $0 because I had everything on hand.
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If you want to further develop your appliqué skills, check out my eBook:
Applique Made Easy: A Beginner’s Guide to Simple Appliqué Techniques
I’ve included a short applique video to better explain.
I really like this! It’s fast, cute and doable. Sometimes I need to be reminded– and all projects don’t have to be “over the top” complicated!
What a wonderful little valentine’s day project. I love the fabric you choose to use for the K initial, too. So adorable.
Cute!
Adorable! I love how easy this is and yet so special.
This is so great! Thanks for the info!
Hello! I saw your linky on Think Pink Sundays at the Flamingo Toes blog, and thought I’d stop by to say hi! LOVE your blog! What a cute idea!
This is beautiful. I tried doing shirts Christmas a year ago with the grands but failed. My paint got hard.
Totally adorable! A great addition to your gallery on #simplybebetsy
Have a wonderful day,
Sharon and Denise
So cute!!!
Leslie, I’m rather new to sewing and just discovered the wonderful world of fusible webbing. This looks like such a great project–easy and quick!
Super easy for a newbie.
Precious! I haven’t tried using fabric in my Silhouette yet, but you make it look so easy. Sewing always intimidates me a little, but you’re instructions make me believe I can take on a project like this 🙂 I’m pinning to my Valentines board now, but I’m adding the project to my immediate to-try list!
-Molly from Just a Little Creativity
Such a sweet and simple idea for gussying up a plain, white onsie.
This is so cute and perfect for Valentine’s Day! Thanks for sharing this with our Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop readers!
Thank you for the interesting information on cutting out fabric, it has helped alot. Thanx
This is so cute! How simple to coordinate kid’s outfits for little hoilday. Great tutorial. Thanks for sharing!
Super cute<3 Pinned
I love applique projects. They are so fun and turn out so cute! I LOVE this onesie. It is adorable and so perfect for those little bundles we all love so much! Thanks for sharing. PINNED!
This is adorable! I’m not much of a seamstress but I think even I can handle this :). What a great, personalized gift idea!