How to Make a Long Sleeve Shirt Folding Board

Fold shirts like a professional with a long-sleeve shirt folding board.

Retail stores and custom closet professionals are able to fold shirts with precision by using a shirt folding board. Folding boards make the process of folding shirts easy by eliminating the guesswork regarding where folds should be placed. Make a long-sleeve shirt folding board from a piece of cardboard or a sheet of plastic. The project can be completed in less than an hour.

Things You'll Need

• 8-inch-by-10-inch piece of cardboard, optional
• Clear packing tape, optional
• Box cutter, optional
• 12-inch ruler
• Plastic spray can cap
• Pencil
• Masking tape
• 8-inch-by-10-inch piece of 1/4-inch Plexiglas
• Drill
• 1/4-inch drill bit
• Jigsaw with a fine-tooth blade
• Medium- and fine-grain sandpaper
• Propane torch
• Matches

Instructions

1. Draw an 8-inch-by-10-inch rectangle on a flat piece of cardboard to make a fast, easy, and inexpensive shirt folding board. Use a box cutter and a ruler to cut along the lines. Use a box cutter to cut an oval-shaped handle near the top of the board. Tape the outside edges of the cardboard folding board with clear packing tape

2. Purchase a 1/4-inch-thick piece of Plexiglas that measures 8 inches by 10 inches to make a plastic long-sleeve shirt folding board. Use a pencil to draw a 1 1/2-inch-by-5-inch oval handle, 1 inch from the top, in the center of the shirt folding board.

3. Place masking tape over the corners and center area where the handle will be cut on both sides of the folding board. Use the cap of a spray can as a guide to draw rounded corners on the shirt folding board. Drill a 1/4-inch hole in the center of the handle. Insert the jigsaw blade into the drilled hole and saw around the line that was drawn around the handle. Saw the curved corners that were drawn on the folding board.

4. Use sandpaper to remove rough edges in the areas where you sawed the Plexiglas. Light a propane torch with a match. Round the edges of the Plexiglas by holding the flame of the propane torch about 4 inches from the cut edges of the Plexiglas. Keep moving the Plexiglas to prevent bubbling and burning.

Tips & Warnings

• Practice rounding the edge of Plexiglas with a propane torch using scrap pieces of Plexiglas.

• Use your long-sleeve shirt folding board as follows: Button the shirt and place it front-side down on a table. Smooth the shirt and place the folding board in the center of the shirt, beneath the collar. Fold the left side of the side of the shirt toward the center and fold the left sleeve down at a 90 degree angle. Repeat on the right side. Fold the shirt in half -- placing the hem of the shirt near the back of the collar -- and remove the folding board. Turn the shirt over.

• Cut the Plexiglass slowly, and with minimal pressure to prevent the Plexiglass from melting.

• Do not hold the torch in one place when when melting the edges of the Plexiglas. Doing so will melt too much of the Plexiglas or cause the edges to bubble or burn. Keep the folding board moving when rounding the edges with the propane torch.

References

• Robert H. Ham: Shirt Folding Board
• "Ask John Eakes": Use a Propane Torch to Round the Edges of Plexiglas

Resources

• Quality Logo Shirts: Long-Sleeve Shirt Folding Board