I love the way a crisp white shirt looks. Simple and classic. But sometimes you need a little bit of personality.
Queue in your sequined message.
I originally intended to make striped sequin shirts, but when I noticed how easily and beautifully the sequin trim loops and curls, I knew it was destined for cursive writing.

With my shirt on sale for $4 and the sequin thread (or trim) in the $1 bin at Michael’s, this project cost only cost me $5. Crazy! One spool (4.5m) will be more than enough sequin trim.
What isn’t shown above is a pen. I found the pencil very difficult to show up on my shirt. If you trust you won’t make a mistake while writing, use a pen instead.

1 Using pencil (or pen) write your word or message on your shirt.
2 Pull off some sequins to get long frayed ends. Tie those frayed threads in a knot as close to the first sequin as possible.
3 You’re ready to pin your sequin trim on, but remember to always have the front side (less thread showing) face up.
4 When pinning the trim, you’ll always want it face up (the side with less thread showing).
5 Cut off the extra frayed thread close to the knot you created then pin your sequin trim over your letters, ensuring it’s always face up and follows your lines. You can just leave the excess at the end as is and cut later (you may want to do embellishments) or cut it now leaving about a 6 inch tail just in case you need it.

6 Double thread your needle. Your first sew is from inside the shirt. Push the needle through the knot you made with the thread ends. Sew back through the hole in the centre of the first sequin.
7 With your next sew skip 2-3 sequins. You don’t want to sew through every sequin since you want flexibility in the fabric when the shirt is worn.
8 To thread the needle through always start from the inside of the shirt. Push the needle through one side of the sequin’s hole. Pull the thread through. Sew it back down the same hole, but on the opposite side of the thread. This way the thread you’re sewing should only be shown every 2-3 sequins and only in the centre of each sequin.
9 Repeat this until the end.
10 When you reach the end, make sure the thread is pulled through on the inside of your shirt. Cut your thread with a fair bit of length to work with and use the two strings to tie several knots. Cut off any excess.

I had a lot of extra trim when I finished sewing on ‘love’ that I just had to use. So I extended it around the back, adding a little curl and a lot of flourish. Apologies for making you look at pictures of my bum above.

Jump with joy in your new shirt and treat it with love! (hand wash only)