Can't Knit Space Shoes? Make a "Summer of Fun" Tee-Shirt Instead

Here's a fun, easy summer activity: decorate tee shirts with fabric pens. We are calling these our "Official Summer of Fun T-Shirts." (I know, it's cheesy, but I'm putting on my brave get-through-the-summer face.)

Making tees wasn't some grand idea I thought up and planned. It all came about because my son (age 4) recently said,

Mommy, I need you to knit me some space shoes.

Yup. You read that correctly:  he wanted me to knit him space shoes. Aside from the obvious question, "what in the world are 'space shoes'?", I have not picked up a pair of knitting needles since I was 10 and decided that I hated knitting and purling. I didn't even know he knew what knitting was.

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There was a bit of a tantrum when I informed him I was unable to fulfill his request. Nevertheless, we came to a compromise: we would make space tee shirt together.

Upon hearing our fashion plans, Kiddo (age 8) decided to get in on the action. He chose birds as his subject matter. I love how in the top photo you can tell exactly what subjects my boys are currently obsessed with!

I purchased some plain white tees at a neighborhood store and fortuitously I had a package of fabric pens buried in our art supply cupboard. I was worried that since the markers were several years old and sat unused in the box, they would no longer work. But they did! Hooray!

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At first it was tough for my older son to get used to drawing on fabric. (See end of post for our eventual solution!) He got rather upset, actually. I explained that he had a choice to either exercise patience and keep trying or not do it at all. Sometimes he does give up, but I was really proud of him that he decided to see it through. He's very proud of his creation.

Now, I realize that since my 4-year-old did not do his own drawing, only his brother's shirt is officially "kid-made". The 4-year-old was upset by his inability to make a perfect circle so I drew the planets according to his instructions. It was still easier than knitting him some space shoes.

The older child decided that his brother's space shirt needed a message on the back. In case you are wondering (as I was), Eris, Ceres and Makemake are dwarf planets. Don't forget about them!

UPDATE:

We made more tees and discovered an trick to allow the kids to draw on the fabric without it bunching up and causing frustration. Clip the shirt to a piece of cardboard with a couple of binder clips. If the fabric is stretched taut it will stay (relatively) flat.

This was my first time making tees with the kids, even though I know it's a common craft idea. Have you made tee-shirts with your kids?

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