DIY Fabric Labels - Printed Method

A few years ago when at SteamCon I fell in love with a girl's hat.  I asked her where she got it.  She took off her hat and showed me the label underneath.  I copied down the name and searched it up online. Aren't labels useful?

As many of you know I have an Etsy store and recently I've started putting labels onto my orders before sending them out.  But how do I make them?  I'm not going to glue paper on to a hat, that would look cheap.  But I'm not going to pay to have them mass made, nor am I going to use a Sharpie to write them all out.

Here's what you do:  Iron-on transfer and ribbon!

Here I've printed my Artist Name SmallRiniLady with the Etsy link.  READ INSTRUCTIONS.  This transfer paper needed me to print revered, although I believe I've also used other transfer papers that didn't require the backwards printing.  

 Iron

Peel.

Look look, isn't that cool?

I keep my labels on the roll and cut them off as I need, that way it stays a little more organized.

You can make little ribbon bows or puffs to make it look a little glamorous, but since I used cheap ribbon I simply just cut around the logo and glued.

DIY Fabric Labels - Handmade Method

This week we are sharing our techniques for making fabric labels (i.e. tags) to put on your creations.  So why would you want to put labels on anything?

1. If it's an item you are selling, you want the buyer/recipient to know where it came from so they can tell other potential customers where to get one.
2. If it's a gift or personal momento (quilts, etc.) you'll want to put your name and date on it for posterity's sake.

There are many different ways to go about making labels, so you should choose the method that makes the most sense for you!

First, I'm going to share the one-off handmade method. This is great for:

• quilts
• custom personal items (e.g. a ring bearer pillow for your friend's wedding)
• unique, handmade gifts
• artsy creations
• one-of-a-kind costumes or garments

Example 1: Hand-embroidered lettering on a quilt label

Find a coordinating scrap of fabric without a pattern on it, secure it in an embroidery hoop and use thick embroidery thread to create lettering. Trim it down to a square, press under the edges, then hand-applique it onto the back of your quilt near the bottom corner.

Example 2: Discrete hand-embroidered lettering in metallic thread

Hand-embroider the letters directly onto the back of your quilt, making sure you only go through one layer of fabric. Use a thread that coordinates with your quilt design but blends into the quilt. This gives you a discrete label that you can find if you look closely, but it won't be obvious from a distance.
Example 3: Hand-painted garment labels

Use fabric paint to paint lettering directly onto a piece of fabric. Use a serger to finish the edges, then stitch the tag into your garment.

There are some reasons why you might not want to hand-make your labels.
- it's time-consuming just to make one label
- if you need to make a lot of labels, they will not be uniform/identical
- legibility may be a challenge
- limited room for cramming in text

All of these reasons could make this method quite daunting. That's okay. SmallRiniLady has a Printed Method she will share, and you'll find that her method solves these problems very well. You'll want to use her method if you are making items to sell!