inside: learn how to make a Valentine Sweatshirt sweatshirt with sublimation print and embroidery. This custom sweatshirt is perfect for Valentines or any other holiday. Use print and embroidery to create a fun holiday sweatshirt.
**Post written in collaboration with Brother Sewing and Crafting but all ideas are my own**
Last fall I made a reverse applique LOVE sweatshirt and it was so fun to make and I’ve been wearing it ever since. With that in mind I’ve made this fun Valentine Sweatshirt with sublimation print and embroidery.
How to make a Valentine Sweatshirt
I wasn’t sure what I wanted to add to this shirt, but I just jumped in and got started. I’m pretty happy with how it turned out in the end. With a custom heart print fabric applique and some sublimation hearts as well, this sweatshirt turned out super cute.
In the tutorial below I’ll walk you through how I made this sweatshirt, but really this is just for inspiration and you can be inspired to create a custom shirt using whatever part of this you want. Use some embroidery, or sublimation, custom printing, all of it or just one part.
Custom print reverse applique sweatshirt
Supplies to make a custom sweatshirt:
- Sweatshirt {this is the one I used} You can use any sweatshirt you want, just make sure its a Poly blend so the sublimation can print well.
- Sublimation Printer
- Embroidery Machine
- white fabric for the applique
- Heart applique design – I used one from the Brother Artspira App
You can use heart fabric that you have or print some fun fabric using the Artspira App. I printed a full sheet of the heart fabric and meant to only iron about half of it onto the white fabric and save half of it to cut up to use the hearts. I forgot and pressed the whole sheet. oops! So I printed another small sheet to cut up later. Use a heat press or hot iron to fuse the sublimation print to the fabric. You can use any white fabric, just make sure it’s not 100% cotton for best color results.
To make it easier to embroider, I opened up the side of the sweatshirt. This shirt happened to have a side seam, so it was easy to open up. Need more tips on embroidering sweatshirts on with single needle machines? Check out this embroidery tutorial.
I marked where I wanted the center of my applique heart to be. Hoop stabilizer and your fabric and place it on the BACK of your sweatshirt with the print side UP. The SE2000 has a 5 x 7″ hoop, so I made my heart as big as I could with this size hoop.
This embroidery machine has a built in heart design you could use AND the Artspira app has a cute heart applique design. It’s made for applique so it’s perfect for this. I transferred it to the machine and then was able to make it a bit larger to fit the hoop.
Here’s how the applique steps out. First it does a single stitch heart. Then it stops.
From there, you trim out the inside of the heart as close to the stitches as possible. Then put the hoop back on the machine arm and the rest of the year will stitch out.
When it finishes, remove the stabilizer and trim the extra fabric.
Remember the extra hearts I printed? I cut out the full hearts and kept some of them in pairs. I decided to put a few hearts around the neckline.
Use a iron or heat press for 34 seconds. I then added a couple more hearts at the sleeve to finish. My final step was to trim a couple inches off the bottom of the sweatshirt as I didn’t love how long it was.
Wordle Help says
This Valentine sweatshirt sounds amazing! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. Your reverse applique LOVE sweatshirt from last fall sounds like a winner too. I once tried making a custom shirt for a friend’s birthday and it was a bit of a sewing adventure. How did you come up with the idea to use both techniques on this Valentine’s sweatshirt?
Waffle Game says
This sweatshirt-making article is great! I love how you combined sublimation and embroidery. It reminds me of when I tried making a DIY shirt for a friend’s birthday. I wasn’t sure how it’d turn out either, but it was so much fun. What other designs do you think would look cool on a Valentine’s sweatshirt?
Tridle says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. It’s so creative. I once tried making a DIY shirt for a friend’s birthday and it was a bit of a disaster. But seeing your Valentine’s sweatshirt makes me want to give it another go. How did you come up with the idea to use both techniques together?
Navto says
This sweatshirt-making article is so inspiring! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. I once tried making a simple embroidered gift for a friend and it was a bit of a stitchy adventure. Your custom heart print fabric applique sounds amazing. Do you think it would be possible to use different fabric colors for the applique to make it even more vibrant? Can’t wait to see more of your creative projects!
Wordle Unlimited says
This sweatshirt sounds amazing! Love the idea of combining sublimation and embroidery. Did you face any challenges making the heart applique? I once tried a DIY and had a few sewing mishaps!
Worldle says
This sweatshirt sounds amazing! Love how you combined different techniques. I once made a DIY shirt for a friend’s bday and it was a bit of a disaster. How did you decide on the heart print fabric for this Valentine’s one?
Crosswordle says
This sweatshirt-making process sounds awesome! I love how you combined different techniques. Have you ever tried adding some glitter to the embroidery for extra sparkle? And what inspired you to go with the heart theme in the first place?
Sprunki says
This sweatshirt sounds amazing! I love the idea of combining sublimation and embroidery. Have you tried using different colors for the hearts? How’d that work out?
Numberle says
This sweatshirt-making article is so inspiring! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. It reminds me of when I tried making a DIY shirt for a friend’s birthday. I was a bit nervous at first, but just like you, I jumped in. Did you face any challenges while attaching the custom heart print fabric applique? Can’t wait to see more of your creative projects!
Wordle Unlimited says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined sublimation and embroidery. It makes me want to try making one for my valentine. Do you think it’d be as cute with a different shape instead of hearts?
Wordle Help says
This sweatshirt-making article is a crafty delight! I love how you combined sublimation and embroidery. Your reverse applique LOVE sweatshirt sounds amazing, and this Valentine one looks equally great. I once tried making a custom shirt for a friend’s birthday and had a blast. Did you face any challenges while adding the custom heart print fabric applique? Can’t wait to see more of your creative projects!
Ipaddress Network says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined different techniques. Have you ever tried adding some glitter to make it even more sparkly for Valentine’s?
Crosswordle says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. It’s so creative. I once made a DIY shirt for a friend’s birthday and had a blast. Did you face any challenges while working with the fabric applique?
Infinite Craft says
This sweatshirt-making article is so cool! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. Your reverse applique LOVE sweatshirt sounds amazing, and I can picture how cozy it must be. I’m curious, did you face any challenges while adding the custom heart print fabric applique? I once tried something similar and had a bit of trouble getting the edges just right. Can’t wait to see more of your creative projects!
Wordle Hint says
This sweatshirt sounds amazing! Love the idea of combining sublimation and embroidery. Did you have any trouble getting the heart print just right? I once tried a DIY shirt and the pattern was a bit wonky. 😜
Dordle says
This sweatshirt-making process sounds so cool! I love how you combined sublimation print and embroidery. Your reverse applique LOVE sweatshirt from last fall sounds amazing. Did you face any challenges while making this Valentine one? I once tried a DIY shirt and had trouble with the fabric sticking.
Block Breaker says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined sublimation and embroidery. It’s so creative. I once made a DIY shirt for a friend’s birthday and it was a bit of a disaster. How did you decide on the placement of the hearts? Any tips for a newbie like me?
Tridle says
This sweatshirt-making process sounds awesome! I love how you combined different techniques. Have you ever tried adding some glitter to the embroidery for an extra sparkly Valentine look?
Connect 4 says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love the combination of sublimation and embroidery. Have you tried adding other fun elements like sequins?
So Smart AI says
This sweatshirt looks amazing! I love how you combined sublimation and embroidery. It’s so creative. I once made a DIY shirt for a friend’s bday and it was a disaster. How did you manage to get the heart applique so perfect?