Colorful Baby Onesie Sew-ons

I love little baby shirts with pictures of animals and vehicles on them. Many of them that you find in the store even look homemade…

But, they aren’t. So why not make them myself instead? It really can’t be that difficult to make.

I decided to use Wunderunder fusible web, since I had used a lot of this heat-bonding material in the past and it always worked great. I made some stockings for Christmas and am currently illustrating a children's book using fusible web and various material. I know the pros and cons of such a product. The main advantage is that it is super easy to use, the disadvantage is that it can start to peel after awhile.

Baby outfits, especially onesies, are washed a lot. I knew that if I used Wunderunder, I would also need to sew around the edges to prevent fraying and peeling over time.

So, I decided to make some simple patterns which I could sew up quickly. Babies grow really fast, and I figured, that if I didn't get something finished within a couple of weeks, it probably wouldn't fit my baby anymore.

Here are the first two onesies that I made and the How to:

1. Prewash your onesie and iron it flat.

2. On a sheet of paper, draw the pattern that you would like to use. Simple items, like cars, animals, and shapes are good to start with. Make sure that your pattern is the right size for your onesie. I decided on a simple dog and a more complicated frog. If you are not good at drawing, find some simple designs in a children’s book.

3. Take a piece of white paper, lay it over your pattern and trace the large areas that you will need to cut out. Remember, any fine details, you will need to sew on later. Mark an X on each area and cut them all out (The X is so that you remember later which side is up).

4. Cut out squares of your material making sure that you have enough for your pattern. Cut out a piece of Wunderunder the same size and iron it on to the material following the package instructions. Let cool.

5. Lay the paper cut-outs in reverse on your fabric with the Wunderunder paper side up, trace them, and then cut them out.

6. Peel off Wunderunder paper backing and iron the material pieces onto the onesie.

7. Now, you will need to take a needle and thread and sew around all of the edges of your pattern so that even if it peels later, it will stay put. You can also add little details, like eyes, shadows, and hair if you’d like. I had to add quite a bit of stitching on my frog, but my dog went very quickly. I always double my thread to make the lines darker.

8. Once your stitching is finished, iron over your pattern one more time. Finished!

Depending on your pattern and the material you use, your onesie may not make it through a thousand poopy washloads. However, if your child grows as fast as mine does, your onesie will probably look great long enough.