me 2
me

Blog: Upcycling an Old Graphic Tee with LED Lights

For this project, I’ve chosen to take a previous natural dye T-shirt and upcycle it even more by adding LED Lights to the inside of the shirt to give it a more fun aspect since the natural dye was not as opaque as I wanted it to be. The goal is to change how the shirt lost some of its color and in hopes the lights will bring a more pop of color. LITERALLY! So follow me in making this old T-shirt into something super fun and maybe you can also make this at home with any old garments you might have.

Materials: 

  • Hot Glue Gun
  • Glue Sticks 
  • Old T shirt (or any old garment you want to upcycle)
  • Extra fabric 
  • A flat surface
  • A pen or pencil

Step 1

Now that you have found an old T-shirt, dye it with any natural dye you want to use. I already natural dyed it (cost-effective if you use household items). I used frozen blueberries to give me a light blue to offset the very grey color it was gaining from the multiple washes it had experienced since I purchased it.

Step 2:

After you have done the Dye process, whether you chose a natural dye or a synthetic dye (no judgment, but you should have done a natural dye), you should grab a pen or pencil to start marking where you want to glue the lights. I am choosing to place the lights where the letters can be read clearly. Turn your garment inside out and start marking it as so 

Step 3: 

Once we have mapped out the lights and are satisfied with their placement, we can start to get ready to glue. Place your shirt or garment flat, and place really small glue beads on the shirt, without applying too much pressure or glue, or you might create a weird discrepancy in the fabric. TAKE YOUR TIME!

Step 4: 

Once we are done placing our lights now we have to take an extra piece of fabric (it can be any piece of fabric) that will cover the lights so that it won’t touch your skin. I am using another plain white T-shirt to create an interface and create a barrier that no one will be able to see. I am going to glue to the corner, but you can thread and stitch the fabric to the shirt. 

Step 5: 

Wait for the glue to dry, and now you can wear your garment and show off! 

Findings:

This project was super fun and actually inspired me to play with technology a little bit more. Thankfully I have more Led Lights to keep adding to other garments I had plans of getting rid of, I wonder what it would maybe a pair of old denims would look with LED lights attached, maybe I can make it a denim outfit outfit! The hot glue was fairly easy to use after a few trial and errors but it was great to know that I can upcycle an old garment in more ways than just dyeing it. 

Conclusion: 

This project as a whole open my mind to many different kinds of textiles and how far the textile industry has come along. I knew that creativity was one of the founding stones in textiles but to know that simple inventions like lights can be incorporated into fabrics, and can be made to wear on a human body is astonishing! I enjoyed this project and how it exposed me to Smart Textiles as a whole.