There are 2.5 million girl scouts in the United States. There are over 8 million registered motorcycles. Do you know what those two massive numbers mean? They mean that a ton of people are out there wearing vests that is probably going to want to sew vest patches on them at some point.
Vest patches are a fun way to not only commemorate achievements but to trick out your vest so that it shows off your unique sensibilities.
If you’re interested in using a thread and needle to adhere your new patch to your vest, keep reading and we will walk you through exactly what the process should look like.
1. Scope Out Your Spot
The first step in sewing on vest patches step is a simple one. Just look over your vest and figure out where you’d like your patch to be adhered to.
That’s it!
You can do this by holding your patch over various areas of your vest to get a rough idea of where it’ll look its best.
2. Put Some Adhesive On Your Patch
Now that you have your spot picked out, it’s time to temporarily adhere your patch to that area. There are a multitude of ways that you can do this but our team has a simple and favorite method that we rely on…
Tape!
Take a piece of standard scotch tape, fold it over so that it’s double-sided, and stick the tape on the back of your patch. As an alternative, you could use spray-on adhesive.
Avoid using double-sided tape as this particular type of adhesive will be hard to remove in a later step.
3. Set Your Patch
With your adhesive in place, you need to set your patch in its final resting place.
Wherever your patch ends up during this step is where it’s going to stay. For that reason, you’re going to want to do your best to make sure that you get your vest patches exactly where you want them before proceeding.
When your patch is where you’d like it, step away from your vest to make sure that the patch doesn’t look crooked from afar. If possible, ask for an opinion of another person to see if they think your patch is on straight as well.
4. Thread Your Needle
- Now to the fun part! It’s time to start sewing your vest patches onto your vest.
- Before you start pushing your needle through your vest, you’re going to have to thread your needle.
- Make sure that you use nylon thread and not cotton. Cotton thread deteriorates over time.
- If you don’t have nylon thread, you can buy it online for cheap from a number of eCommerce shops.
- Additionally, you’ll want to make sure that you’re using a leather-piercing needle if your vest is made out of leather.
- If you’re working with leather, also take extra care to use a thimble since leather piercing needles are extra sharp.
- Be sure to knot the end of your thread before proceeding.
5. Push Your Needle Through
- Patch in place? Check!
- Needle Threaded? Double check!
- Now it’s time to push your needle through your vest and patch to start sewing.
- When you push your needle through, push from the back of your vest and upwards through your patch. You’ll want your needle to come in just below your patch’s border.
- To make things easier, you’ll also want to start your needle in one of your patch’s corners. If your patch is circular, pushing your needle through any section is fine.
6. Complete Your First Whipstitch
With your needle pushed up and through, you’re now going to want to push it back down through your patch and vest in the opposite direction.
Make sure that you push your thread through close to your original hole. Tight stitches not only look better but they’ll keep your patches a lot more secure.
Once your needle is pushed back down through your patch and vest, congratulations! You’ve just completed your very first “whipstitch”.
7. Repeat Until Your 70% Done
Now that you understand the basics of what you need to do, keep repeating the process of whipstitching your patch all the way around its circumference until you’re 70% done.
Once you’ve gotten to that point, slip your fingers under your patch, remove your adhesive (assuming you used tape) and complete your stitching.
8. Tie The Knot
Your stitching is done and your patch is looking wonderful… Now what?
Cut away any excess thread, knot the end of your last stitch so it can’t slip back through the hole you made and enjoy your finished vest patches!
Some Faster Alternatives
Not into hand threading? You may be able to get away with a simpler process provided that you’re working with the right materials.
A. Use A Sewing Machine
If you have a sewing machine on hand, using one to sew in your vest patches can save you a tremendous amount of time. Just be sure to get comfortable with your machine before piercing your vest so you don’t end up ruining it.
B. Iron On Your Patches
You can’t iron on patches if your vest is made out of leather. If your vest is made out of a less sensitive material however and your patch is iron safe, you’re in luck!
You can view options online as to the kinds of patches that are out there that work well with ironing.
C. Wrapping Up How to Sew On Vest Patches
- We hope that our crash course on how to sew on vest patches have you feeling more confident than ever when it comes to getting your favorite patches on to your favorite vests.
- Best of luck with sewing and remember to have fun as you learn!
- Curious about how to do more things? We’ve got you covered.
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