Confession time: I like working with vinyl and I hate working with heat transfer vinyl (HTV). I think this is mostly because I don’t have a heat press or easy press, and using a clothes iron to create t-shirts isn’t fun. I do have an easy hack, though. If you’re making something that is more costume than fashion, regular vinyl will totally work! Bonus-it’s also way less expensive to buy regular vinyl. Want to try this for yourself? This DIY Black Panther costume shirt could not be easier!
How To Make A Black Panther T-Shirt
To make your own Black Panther shirt, all you need is a black t-shirt, silver vinyl, a digital cutter or craft knife, parchment paper and a clothes iron.
If you have a digital cutter, this is super easy. Grab the image above, trace it, then cut it out of silver vinyl. If you don’t have a cutter, print out the image and use it as a template. It’s a simple enough shape that doing this by hand with a craft knife shouldn’t take long. How many pieces you’ll need will depend on the size of your shirt. An adult small took 14.
Rather than using transfer tape, I positioned each piece of vinyl by hand around the neck of the shirt. I used one piece of vinyl as a spacer. After I placed one piece, I put down the spacer. I placed the next piece of vinyl, then picked up the spacer and repeated the process. After all of the vinyl had been added around the neck of the shirt, I covered it with a piece of parchment paper and pressed with an iron on medium heat. This will seal the vinyl onto the shirt. (You can see how this changes the look of the vinyl in the photo above-the middle is unpressed, the two sides are pressed.)
Now for the sad part… I called this a costume shirt because you’ll for sure get one good wear out of it. The ironing will keep the vinyl in place. I just can’t guarantee it will survive the washing machine. The shirt will, however, still be wearable as a plain black t-shirt. Just peel off any vinyl that sticks after washing. Of course, you can always create the exact same design with HTV and wear it indefinitely. Or should I say you can wear it for Wakanda forever?
Want to save this Black Panther Costume T-Shirt for later? Click on the photo below to add to Pinterest!
