Quick No-sew DIY Sequin Hoodie Tutorial
Join me, Orly Shani, as I teach you how to hack a $1850 floral sequin hoodie for just $27!! The technique can be used on any item–from t-shirts to bags to cashmere sweaters.
Instead of buying individual sequin appliques, we’ll buy a yard of floral, sequin fabric and simply cut from the fabric. It will take slightly more time, but it will be worth the money you save. The project is entirely no-sew, but I will show you where you can use sewing if you’d like.
Try to find a sequin fabric in which the tulle backing is a similar color to your sweatshirt. If this is possible, it will save you a ton of time during the cutting process. You’ll be able to use a rotary blade more loosely around the flowers as opposed to using scissors, which can get tiring.
Tools and materials:
- 1 yard of floral, sequined fabric with a mesh base material
- 1 sweatshirt
- Fabric scissors
- Rotary blade
- Lighter
- Fabric glue
1. Cut out the flowers
Use either a rotary blade or scissors to cut around the appliqués. Cut away large patches of the netting and then start laying out the flowers on your hoodie.
If you chose a different color hoodie, use your small scissors to cut as close to the edge of the flowers as possible.
2. Fine tune the edges
Use a lighter to curl back the edges of the netting, just until it disappears. You’ll barely touch the flame to the fabric so as to protect the sequins and your hands. Be very careful! Ask an adult for help if you are under 18.
3. Place the appliqués
Start by covering any stains or holes in the fabric and work your way out until you have the design that you like.
You might also need to cut larger pieces down into smaller pieces to fill in gaps until you have an even spacing.
4. Glue each piece
Once you’ve achieved the desired layout, adhere each piece with fabric glue. For the larger pieces, I recommend leaving them exactly where they are and just folding back sections at a time, adding glue and laying them back down.
Use a very thin line of glue and push the glue in with your hands so that the decals lay flat.
I threw the hoodie on my dress form to determine where I wanted to add more decals. This way, I could see the shape of the garment and see what would show and what would be hidden. If you let the flowers wrap around the seams and shoulders, it gives a more 3D, high end look.
Here’s a closeup:
At this point, if you wanted to, you could use a needle and thread to tack down the edges.
A few final tips
1. Hand wash
While fabric glue is machine washable, I recommend hand washing or spot cleaning an item like this.
2. Glue first, then sew
If you'd like to sew this project instead, I still recommend gluing the appliqués first and THEN sewing around your edges. It will be much easier than pinning each one on and trying to sew them flat.
Here’s the final look:
DIY sequin hoodie
I hope you loved this sequin hoodie tutorial. Show me your DIY hoodie in the comments below.
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You've definitely upscaled that plain pink hoodie - brava! 😘
Wow. It looks awesome