It’s that time of year when the weather gets cold, and there are your
typical holiday parties and get togethers.
And guess what? You are invited to the company or a friend’s ugly
sweater holiday party! Unfortunately
(but really fortunately all other times of the year), you don’t own one ugly
sweater! Let’s face it, who goes out and
purchases an ugly sweater? Maybe only
this time of year, but we bet that you would rather be spending your money on other
stuff. Money can be tight around the
holidays, and who wants to waste it on an ugly sweater? So here are some ideas, that won’t break the
bank, for your wardrobe for your next ugly sweater party.
Find a Sweatshirt
Get a cheap sweatshirt at your local craft store or order through Shirts For
Anything,
and you will be surprised that you can easily turn it into an ugly
sweater. Sweatshirts that we think would
make a great ugly sweater are: Hanes, Gildan……
Or if you really don’t want to spend any money, search for a sweatshirt
in the back of your closet. It doesn’t
matter if it’s too small or too big, it will just add character to the final
product! Still out of luck? Call a family member or friend and see if they have
one that they wouldn’t mind departing with.
Uglify Time!
Now that you have your canvas, you can begin the process of creating the
ugliest sweater that you will ever own.
Now remember, uglier the better! Don’t hold back. Remember clashing colors, horrible artwork,
and obscure scenes will make you sweater shine even brighter! Here are some ideas to get you started:
Argyle Sweater: Argyle sweaters are your traditional sweater. Turn your sweatshirt into an ugly argyle
sweater by using: fabric spray paint (or markers) and tape. Simply tape off the design that you would
like to create and color in the lines.
It would be helpful to have a shirt form board or piece of cardboard in
the sweatshirt to prevent wrinkles from messing up your design. Pick clashing colors and go wild!
Cotton balls: Using
cotton balls is a great way to bring the winter theme into your shirt
design. Cotton balls can be left as is
or stretched apart to make: a family of snowmen, a snowy ground cover, snow on
trees, Santa’s beard, or clouds in the sky.
The possibilities are endless.
Just use a hot glue gun or fabric glue to adhere the cotton balls.
Outdoor Scene: Bring
some “real” nature to your sweatshirt by decorating it with items from
outside. Now if you would like to use
the sweater over and over again, this may not be the best choice for you. Try
creating an outdoor snowy scene of trees by hot gluing sticks vertically across
your shirt and then gluing pine needles (or other greenery) to make trees. You can even add some pine cones. Next pull apart some cotton balls and drape them
over the trees, to make a snowy scene.
Add some glittery with glue or glittery puffy paint to make snow fall
from the sky and make sparkly snow. You
can also make a holly leaf shirt by gluing holly leaves to the shirt and then
gluing red pompoms in the center.
Iron-on Transfers:
Try printing the body of a popular holiday character: Santa, Mrs. Claus,
Rudolph, the Grinch, an elf, a nutcracker or a snowman on iron-on transfer
paper, but leave the character’s head off.
Strategically iron-on the transfer with the body of the character
meeting the neckline of the shirt, and you will have turned yourself
into the character! Or print other
holiday scenes and embellish with fabric paint and glitter.
Make an iron-on transfer: What
you will need is an ink jet print, heat decal paper, an iron, and a shirt. Find a design that you like online or through
clipart. Before you print it, make sure
that you have the setting to print on a mirrored image (if you don’t, then any
text will be read backwards). Then print
it on iron-on transfer paper and cut it to size. Cut close to the image to avoid unwanted
residue showing up on your shirt. Place
the design on your shirt, and grab a towel to place over the design. Turn your iron on and make sure that the
steam setting is off. Then iron
away. Simple and easy. Most heat transfer paper work best with white
or light colored shirts, but if you want to go dark, make sure you get transfer
paper that is made for dark apparel.
Old Holiday Décor:
You can use old holiday décor that you were going to trash to make a
super-ugly holiday sweater. Get a green
sweatshirt and turn it into a Christmas tree by decorating it with garland, red
bows, and old ornaments (preferably ones that won’t break). For extra points, sew on an old tree skirt to
the bottom of the sweatshirt for a top-notch finishing touch.
Stocking: Get a red sweatshirt and write
your name on an angle and you have your Christmas stocking. Add some cotton around the neck of the shirt
for some extra fluff. Don’t forget the
loop on the back for hanging it on the chimney with care. And if you have a naughty side, you can have
a bag of coal dangling over the edge of the stocking.
We hope that some of these ideas have sparked some creativity in you, so
that you can get out there and make the best ugliest sweater this season!
