Disney DIY: Leopard Print Mickey Shirt

If you’re following my on Instagram, then you know that I’m currently in my very favorite place… Disney World! I’m a frequent WDW guest and I wear my ears very proudly. Ears are the icing on the cake, but the cake itself is your Disney-fied wardrobe! If you’re like me and you love to dress head to toe Mickey when you’re visiting the happiest place on earth, then you’re going to love this east tutorial for this Leopard Print Mickey Shirt.

I knew that for our day in Animal Kingdom, I wanted to sport something on the ‘Wild’ side. I’d seen a couple photos of adorable leopard print mickey shirts, but couldn’t find any for sale that weren’t vinyl prints or children sizes only. I knew I wanted more of an appliqued look for my shirt. So I decided to do it myself (story of my life – I recent cut my own hair bc of diy… AHH). This shirt was SOOOOO easy to make and super cheap as well! You can definitely pull this off. Keep reading to see the full tutorial.

Step 1: Materials.

You’re going to need a few things to pull this off.

• T Shirt: I ordered this super comfy baseball tee in a size medium. But any old tee will work.
• Fabric: I only bought 1/4 yd of a simple cotton fabric. You can pick any pattern. I also think it would look adorable in floral.
• Iron-on transfer paper: Be sure to get the ‘no sew’ kind. Even though I am going to stitch it later, I want to be sure that it will stay by itself.
• Needle: A decent sized one. Not to small, not too big. I used the largest needle in this pack
• Embroidery Thread: I like that it gave me a thick, noticeable stitch.
• Scissors
• Iron
• Maybe some pins and a measuring tape.

Step 2: Print your Mickey Template.

I’ve linked the template I used to create my Mickey below. If you print it at 100% it should be the perfect size for a women’s medium shirt! You can, of courses, resize it to meet your dimensions.

MICKEY TEMPLATE

Once printed, cut it out as cleanly as possible.

Step 3: Trace your Mickey.

Open up your transfer paper and trace your Mickey head onto it and cut it out.

Step 4: Iron onto Fabric

Turn your fabric WRONG SIDE UP  and iron your Mickey head onto it. Read the direction on your transfer paper for instruction on how long to hold the iron on it. Also, be sure to iron your fabric first or to place the paper where there aren’t any creases or folds.

Once you’re done ironing, cut out your Mickey head as close to the edge of the paper as possible. Use sharp fabric scissors to ensure that the fabric doesn’t fray.

Step 5: Line it Up

Peel the back paper off (should leave only the transfer on the Mickey) and place your Mickey Head where it should go. You probably want to measure it out a bit to be sure it’s centered. I used some pins to keep mine in place while I began to iron.

Step 6: Iron it onto Shirt

Now go ahead and iron it on. Again, read the directions on your transfer paper to be sure you iron it for the correct amount of time. It should be stuck on all the edges when you’re done.

Step 7: Start Your Blanket Stitch

Technically, you could stop at the above step, but I like the finished look that this step provides. Even if you have no sewing experience, you can pull this one off.

Start your stitch in one of the corners of the Mickey head using the largest needle in this pack and some embroidery thread. Be sure to knot the end of your thread so that it doesn’t pull all the way through.

Watch THIS VIDEO to see how to perform a blanket stitch around your applique.

Tie off your blanket stitch and BAMMMM, you’re done! Isn’t this just the cutest shirt. I even made a bow for my ears to match so that I could wear it on Animal Kingdom day!

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