How to Design Rhinestone Clothing
Rhinestones can be a beautiful way to embellish and add detail to clothing. Custom designing your own rhinestone clothing can be an enjoyable and economical alternative to buying designer versions from departments stores, and gives you the option to express your own style in your clothing or create unique pieces to give as gifts.
Things You'll Need
- Chosen piece of clothing
- Paper
- Pencil
- Fabric chalk
- Flat-back rhinestones
- Metal settings and tools, or fabric adhesive
Instructions
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Designing Rhinestone Clothing
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1
With the paper and pencil, sketch a rough outline of the piece of clothing you have selected for embellishment. Duplicate this outline several times so that you have 3 to 4 drawings of the clothing.
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2
On your drawings, experiment with different ways to place the rhinestones by marking your desired placement with dots. Consider bordering seams or edges of the clothing with rhinestones, or create a design such as flowers, swirls or words to put on the piece. Try centering your design, then see how it looks if placed asymmetrically in a corner of the garment.
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3
Once you have settled on your design and its placement, use the fabric chalk to sketch the lines of the design onto the piece of clothing. These lines will serve as a guide for attaching your rhinestones evenly in the way that you want to.
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4
With the clothing laid out evenly on a flat work surface, place the rhinestones onto the chalk lines that you drew. Placing them closer together will give a more solid line, more glitz and will use more rhinestones, whereas leaving a half inch or more between them will give a subtler, more abstract look. With all your rhinestones laid out, step back and look at your piece. If you are not pleased, go back and start over until you are. If you are happy with your design, continue on with the process.
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5
According to the website Rhinestones Unlimited, two common ways to attach rhinestones to fabric are with fabric adhesives and with metal settings that attach to the rhinestone from the back side of the fabric. If you intend to wash the piece, ensure that any glue you choose is labeled as "washable." Glue is easier, as each rhinestone that you laid out can simply be picked up, glued and placed back on without moving the fabric. However, glue can wear out over time. For a more permanent--yet a bit more labor intensive--method of attachment, purchase metal settings and appropriate tools from a craft store or online and follow the instructions that come with them to attach your embellishments.
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6
Wash your finished piece thoroughly to take out any remaining chalk marks.
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Tips & Warnings
Be creative with the size of your stones. Larger stones will catch the eye, but smaller ones will be more subtle. Use your imagination to combine sizes to add visual interest.
Using metal settings and tools can involve large amounts of pressure, and should be used with caution.
