# Poor man's bling



## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

Here is a poor man's solution to create a bling without using rhinestone. The sparkle used is Deco Sparkle.


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## ashamutt (Feb 22, 2008)

That is awesome Luis!


How was the weeding?


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## DogPound71 (Jul 7, 2009)

What is Deco Sparkle?


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## sunnydayz (Jun 22, 2007)

Angel its a type of t-shirt vinyl 

Luis that is awesome, that is thinking outside the box for sure, again great job


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## ashamutt (Feb 22, 2008)

Lnfortun said:


> Here is a poor man's solution to create a bling without using rhinestone. The sparkle uses is Deco Sparkle.


 
I wonder if Vintage Puff material would look good pressed underneath the little circles?

Like Josh did in this demo...
http://www.t-shirtforums.com/t-shirt-articles/t72300.html


Cut the puff circles smaller so the deco sparkle circles will "melt" over them.
Then the circles would look kind of like "hot fix epoxy domes" only they would not be as heavy & stiff.


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## lizziemaxine (Nov 14, 2007)

Oh, I really like this and I have some Deco Sparkle here to play with. Thanks for sharing.


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## lizziemaxine (Nov 14, 2007)

ashamutt said:


> I wonder if Vintage Puff material would look good pressed underneath the little circles?
> 
> Like Josh did in this demo...
> http://www.t-shirtforums.com/t-shirt-articles/t72300.html
> ...


Now that's a thought. I don't have any puff stuff right now but I'm going to get some and try it. Oh, such great ideas come from this group.


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## dan-ann (Oct 25, 2007)

where is everyone getting their deco sparkle from - it is awesome- adds a new dimension. thanks for showing us what you did


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## Boomerbabe (Sep 5, 2009)

Really nice. Like it a lot. I would like to know how was the weeding as well. Will have to try this.


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

ashamutt said:


> That is awesome Luis!
> 
> 
> How was the weeding?


Weeding was a breeze. I did blue grid the same day and I struggled weeding tiny letters coming of the carrier. Deco sparkle has more grip on the carrier than the blue grid opaque. I did three shirts without hiccup. Weed the large part off the carrier and every dot stayed on the carrier. I was told hartco works the same way. The good part is Deco sparkle is economical to use. Don't have to fill the template with stones and struggle lifting them off the template. And yes it sparkles like rhinestone. IMHO it sparkled more than the stones. It is cut, weed, press. cold peel and post press. It was that easy.


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

dan-ann said:


> where is everyone getting their deco sparkle from - it is awesome- adds a new dimension. thanks for showing us what you did


You can get the material from any vinyl vendor. There are few listed of preferred vendors in the forum. Check the preferred vendors list in the left side of the screen. I got my sample from Specialty Materials in Florida.Thanks to the link provided by Ashamutt. You can also check their website for vendors near you.

www.specialtymaterials.com


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## ashamutt (Feb 22, 2008)

Lnfortun said:


> You can get the material from any vinyl vendor. There are few listed of preferred vendors in the forum. Check the preferred vendors list in the left side of the screen. I got my sample from Specialty Materials in Florida.Thanks to the link provide by Ashamutt. You can also check their website for vendors near you.
> 
> www.specialtymaterials.com


 


Thanks so much for creating this cool sparkly shirt!
(this will be on my to-try-list)

I am getting ready to order the *PUFF material.*
(Josh does some super-cool things with it in his youtube videos!!!)
I will be ordering it directly from Stahls for 107.00.
24" x 5yards
(That comes out to about 2.33 per 8.5x11" sheet)



I get my all of my *HT vinyl* be the "foot" here..
Specialty Graphics

Here is the link to DECO SPARKLE
DecoSparkle T-Shirt Vinyl 20" x BY THE FOOT

It is 5.32 for a 12" x 20" piece.


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## dan-ann (Oct 25, 2007)

For those who have used deco sparkle how does it hold up being washed


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## ashamutt (Feb 22, 2008)

dan-ann said:


> For those who have used deco sparkle how does it hold up being washed






When my sample arrives and I press & wash it I will definitely let everyone know. 


Luis, how did your "poor man's bling" shirt wash?


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## rhinestonetransf (Feb 11, 2009)

What a great idea - It looks great!


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## jnpgram (Feb 8, 2009)

I use the DecoSparkle all the time and it works out great. I made shirts for both our cheer squad and a basketball team....no complaints. They wash them at least once a week -- sometimes, twice a week.


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## Rhinestones fun (Nov 4, 2009)

Try foil vinyls, they look pretty awesome too. 

You could also do stars or triangles instead of circles to make cool designs and fonts. It can all be done using my SmartCut Pro 2 software.


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

Hey anyone know of anywhere else to get this deco sparkle other than specialtygraphics? It is a 15"x 15 yd roll for $58.95.any better pricing out there for comparable product? I really like the look and need to get some purple asap.


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## Boomerbabe (Sep 5, 2009)

Deco Sparkle Thermal Heat Transfer Materials for Vinyl Cutters from Beacon Graphics, LLC They show the same price for 15" and 19" wide rolls
JSI Sign Systems - Sign Making and Digital Printing Equipment, Software, Supplies and Technical Support $58 for 19" wide 5yd roll
Heat Transfer Vinyl: ThermoFlex® Heat Applied/Heat Transfer Vinyl Film, Flock & ColorPrint Rolls For Cutter/Plotters 20" S58.95 

Just a quick google search for decoSparkle


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## jean518 (Sep 23, 2009)

The Deco Sparkle does just fine as long as you follow the laundry instructions of inside out, cold water, low to medium heat. I have used it and the Glitterflex. I just got some glitter from Stahl's. Going to give it a try. The Deco Sparkle gives kind of a hologram effect. It changes color with the light even though it does come in colors. The Glitter vinyl is a bit harder to weed and does not have a sticky carrier. H


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## Corel Whisperer (Sep 1, 2010)

I made a "Diva" shirt using Glitter Flake (same type of material) using VivaldiD font cut from both gold and silver. Looks fantastic! I did find it a little challenging to see the cut lines for weeding, so I put it in the freezer for a while… that did the trick! Could see the cut lines making it easier for weeding!
CW


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

where do you buy your glitter flake from?


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## JAF (Oct 12, 2008)

I used sprecta "silver sparkle" foil for this garment.


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## Ruby MHarvey (Mar 29, 2008)

Great designs Luis, I am buying me a cutter this weekend I would love to do something like that. Thanks for the post.


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Joto Carries some great Glitter flex that works well for this application

Sandy jo
MMM


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## SHELLY53 (Mar 12, 2008)

Wow those shirts are great! Thanx for sharing!


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

Well I'm just about to start designing with vinyl and rhinestones.I'm pretty excited about it.you can only do so much with stones but when you add another dimension like vinyl it opens up the desing to a lot more possibilities.I also have been working with all ss10 stones and think I'm going to start dabbiling with multi size stone designs.I just wound up ordering the purple deco sparkle from hyatts should be here Monday.bling a ling!


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## irish (Dec 13, 2008)

Since I make designs from infant to adult, I thought this would be a great substitute on the infant and youth sizes for rhinestones. I don't want to mess with the problems of rhinestones on kids clothing but wanted to give the kids some bling too.

I am waiting on some samples from Stahl's to tryout.


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## Kim_t2_au (May 24, 2010)

Corel Whisperer said:


> I did find it a little challenging to see the cut lines for weeding, so I put it in the freezer for a while… that did the trick! Could see the cut lines making it easier for weeding!
> CW


I have terrible trouble seeing the lines in black or white vinyl when I am trying to weed. Can regular htv be placed in the freezer? Would that help with the weeding for those do you think? 

This is particulary pertinent as I broke my favourite weeding tool today. It was made of plastic and I had only had in 12 years; you just can't buy quality these days  Bet I can't find another just like it now I want one. Boo Hooo for me .

Kim


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## Corel Whisperer (Sep 1, 2010)

I have done this with Thermo Film with out a problem.
CW


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## charles95405 (Feb 1, 2007)

Harbor Freight has a pack of sharp picks that work very well for weeding...under $5 for about 5 different shapes


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## Kim_t2_au (May 24, 2010)

Corel Whisperer said:


> I have done this with Thermo Film with out a problem.
> CW


Thanks for that, I am going to try it. My poor old eyes will be very relieved if it helps with white or black.

Kim


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

You folks are missing the point when doing poor man's bling. If the cutter is set up properly, does a clean cut and use the right vinyl material you don't need to see the line or use a pick tool. The method is to keep the dots on the backing when the large portion of the transfer is peeled off from the backing. Then press the dots that are left on the backing. 

The method is opposite from weeding the small excess around the image like fonts that requires a pick tool. There is a bit of picking and weeding with the text "Caring Mom"in the sample shirts I posted but that was very minimal.

Like Charles said you can buy a set of pick tools from Harbor Freights. I bought mine from there and I did not pay a premium price of some vinyl vendor's asking price.


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

I didnt miss the point. Im not sure how much cheaper it would be then using stones.I just think alot more can be done design wise using foils.I havent done and actuall shirt yet with the foil but I will soon.here is an example of what im talking about.


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## BML Builder (Jul 8, 2008)

Hey Eric, I really like that design. It looks really good with the foils and the rhinestones together. I really like the idea of mixing like that!!


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## Ruby MHarvey (Mar 29, 2008)

Neat I like that those colors go so well together also.


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

Thats what im saying you can do so much more with mixing the foils and stones.This was my first attemt Im sure I got some sweet designs coming out soon! I just think this is going to take my designs to a whole new level!


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

whipped this up in like 5 minutes,just as an example.


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## Ruby MHarvey (Mar 29, 2008)

BaDaBling again!!


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## JAF (Oct 12, 2008)

What I liked about using the foil is that it had plenty of sparkle and interest. Didn't need any stones.


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## jnpgram (Feb 8, 2009)

Leg cramps said:


> whipped this up in like 5 minutes,just as an example.


How cool. Now, will the rhinestones stick to the foil?


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

No they wont stick to foil.you have to design a hole in the foil so your stone can glue to fabric.Im using acs studio software.I make circles bigger then my stones and just use the basic weld and it cuts the holes out of the foil.easy cheesy.


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

here is another quickie,im really liking this foil/rhinestone combo!


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## BML Builder (Jul 8, 2008)

Eric I really like your Peace christmas tree!! That looks really nice. I agree, the foil rhinestone combo really looks great. I have done a lot of printing or embroidery and rhinestone combos but I haven't tried the foil rhinestone combo. I may have to try it seeing all of yours. They are really nice!!


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## LEO (Oct 10, 2006)

Do you press the vinyl/foil full time and then the stones full time?

My stones (Pellosa) go on at 320* for 10-15 secs.

Do have to use vinyl/foil which applies at similar temp as your stones?

Just getting the hang of all this...

THX> LEO


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

irish said:


> Since I make designs from infant to adult, I thought this would be a great substitute on the infant and youth sizes for rhinestones. I don't want to mess with the problems of rhinestones on kids clothing but wanted to give the kids some bling too.
> 
> I am waiting on some samples from Stahl's to tryout.



Irish you will love it, I have been doing this for a few years,, 

dont forget to work with different shapes too, instead of just circles,

It goes over very well on kids cloths,


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Lnfortun said:


> You folks are missing the point when doing poor man's bling. If the cutter is set up properly, does a clean cut and use the right vinyl material you don't need to see the line or use a pick tool. The method is to keep the dots on the backing when the large portion of the transfer is peeled off from the backing. Then press the dots that are left on the backing.
> 
> The method is opposite from weeding the small excess around the image like fonts that requires a pick tool. There is a bit of picking and weeding with the text "Caring Mom"in the sample shirts I posted but that was very minimal.
> 
> Like Charles said you can buy a set of pick tools from Harbor Freights. I bought mine from there and I did not pay a premium price of some vinyl vendor's asking price.


Yes it is like weeding reg heat press,, all the dots stay put,,

MMM
Sandy jo


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

ok well this will be my last post in this thread.here is a design with multi size stone with the font in deco sparkle vinyl for the font.


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

Thank you for all the images you posted. Although they are nice they don't fit the bill with this thread. It is not exactly poor man's bling.


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## Ruby MHarvey (Mar 29, 2008)

I really like you peace christmas tree with the stones that is awesome! Where do you get all you ideas or are you just that creative?


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## Downtowndesignz (Jul 29, 2010)

love this!!!! may have to try it...love the great ideas I get on here!!


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Here are some images of poor mans bling done with Ez Sequins vinyl.

I just cut reg Rhinestone size dots,, and peel the rest off like Luis said...

The clear carrier sheet needs to be sticky. to hold the dots down untill you press.


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Princess shirts,, for the lil princess's


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## SHELLY53 (Mar 12, 2008)

nice shirts!


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

This is cut out of the gold,,,, and sparkles like crazy,,,,


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

This is a sequins sticker that i stuck to a Coraplast black piece.

This works great for windows , mirrors, ect.


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## 135367 (Mar 10, 2011)

Where do you get this Deco stuff?


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

I am not using deco vinyl,, others might be,,

I am using Ezcut Sequin vinyl. Because it has a clear sticky carrier sheet so the dots stick to it well,, 
Do a google search for Ezcut Sequin vinyl
This is also Lead free and comes with the documents needed.
For us to keep on hand,, 
I do put tracking info on the inside hem of the bottom of the tee, for tracking.

I am not cutting any thing smaller than 10ss-3mm stones yet,,, 

But this lets me in the kids market once again,,,,,, 
with a rhinestone look, and ohhhhhhhhhhh how i have missed it.......


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## jnpgram (Feb 8, 2009)

Can you tell me the difference between the Deco Vinyl and the EZ Sequin Vinyl?


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Tricia,, 

I have only used this one, and some other glitter halo stuff,, 

the biggest thing is to have the sticky clear carrier sheet,,,,,,
to hold those dots in place and a nice soft hand

just ask whomever you are thinking of purchasing from about the hand and the sticky clear carrier sheet..... and you will be fine

mirror and cut on the matt side

I press at 320 for this and 14 sec 

cold peel


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## Bayac (Oct 23, 2008)

How are you making and applying your inside tag?


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

I use a small piece of a screen and screen print with water based ink,, and cure in my heat press.... 


On the inside of the tee,, down on the bottom of the seam,,,,
Works very well


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## Amandazon247 (Dec 2, 2010)

New baby tee using this method.


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

Amandazon247 said:


> New baby tee using this method.


Those totally rock and they are so fun,,,,,, without worry about the rhinestone lead issue,, 


Sandy Jo
MMM


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## Amandazon247 (Dec 2, 2010)

Thanks Sandy I am getting there.. I am learning slowly about the tweaking and all that .. and am actually coming up with some neat stuff...


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

You are doing great!
Sandy jo
MMM


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## lizziemaxine (Nov 14, 2007)

These are just great. Keep up the good work.


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## allhamps (Mar 15, 2007)

Thanks to the original poster of the "poor man's bling" idea. I had a kickball team that wanted bling on their socks to match the jersey. Of course, with the ribbing on the socks AND the stretch, I knew it wouldn't work. Then I remembered this thread. I bought some ALLOY from Imprintables, because it has the mirror finish AND it stretches, and made the design in poor man's bling. Worked like a charm


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## Lnfortun (Feb 18, 2006)

You are welcome I am sure. It is meant for us people with shallow pocket.


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## saiqa (Mar 14, 2011)

These are fab so creative!! What sort of price would you charge for these?


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## MDsUnique (Nov 19, 2009)

Amandazon247 said:


> New baby tee using this method.


 Amanda:
Would you please share what material you used for this design? It's truly adorable and I have a baby shower coming up where I could use this!


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## Amandazon247 (Dec 2, 2010)

MDsUnique said:


> Amanda:
> Would you please share what material you used for this design? It's truly adorable and I have a baby shower coming up where I could use this!


I used Specialty graphics hologram in silver and purple. I have since purchased some deco sparkle from them and plan on using this method too.. they have a rainbow style that I cut a peace sign in and it was super cute.....

I just notice you were in Florida .. while I was there 3 weeks ago we went to Space coast Harley ... Fun fun ...


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## Amandazon247 (Dec 2, 2010)

saiqa said:


> These are fab so creative!! What sort of price would you charge for these?


 these are 15.00 without the hat ... 20.00 with a hat .. I try to stay with reasonable pricing ..


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## slingingink (Mar 29, 2011)

what is weeding? deco sparkle? sorry new to heat transfers and all....


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## slingingink (Mar 29, 2011)

can this be hand cut ... I do not have a plotter or vinyl cutter


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## Amandazon247 (Dec 2, 2010)

slingingink said:


> can this be hand cut ... I do not have a plotter or vinyl cutter


Well I dont think handcutting this is feasable and it would be about 100 dollars worth of labor to make a 15.00 product.... deco sparkle is a kind of vinyl .. and weeding is what has to be done to vinyl once it has been cut by a cutter. personally I would not hand cut any of the designs I see ... I am glad I saved up did the research and just bought myself a cutter and the right software... this is a great forum to research and help make a decision on what things ou will need and you tube has some really good videos to help understand the whole process by seeing it done ...


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## slingingink (Mar 29, 2011)

thank you for the reply ... any suggestions on a low cost cutter??


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## slingingink (Mar 29, 2011)

any suggestions on low cust cutter?


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## allhamps (Mar 15, 2007)

slingingink said:


> can this be hand cut ... I do not have a plotter or vinyl cutter


Debbie, if you are doing single, silhouette type designs, yes you can hand cut. For example, if you just wanted to do some alphabet from a stencil, or an outline shape of an apple. However, the material is specifically designed to be used with a cutter so that you can take advantage of being able to get fine detail, like the individual circles in the posted samples. Trying to do anything other that simple shapes by hand is highly discouraged, though not impossible.


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## agensop (Dec 11, 2008)

slingingink said:


> any suggestions on low cust cutter?


1) what do you call low cost? (price range wise)
2) how much work are you willing to put into learning it? i know signwarehouse has some fairly cheap, serial based cutters, but their software kinda leaves you there to figure it out on your own. i have used them before and it kinda sucks hard if you dont know what the hell you are doing. 

also how much cutting do you plan on doing is this for hobby or for business. if for business i would say dont go low cost, i am suffering through that right now myself. but its my fault for being stupid and trying to cut corners. i am sure as hell paying for it now with crappy non functioning equiptment. i knew the risk, rolled the dice and crapped out.

my next purchases will defiantly be a gcc cutter and eventually winpcsign for that reason.


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

slingingink said:


> can this be hand cut ... I do not have a plotter or vinyl cutter


You could put a ad in the referrel area and I am sure someone could cut you designs, if you needed
untill you get your own cutter..


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## sunnydayz (Jun 22, 2007)

Here is a link to a cutter that is very affordable and also comes with the ACS software that has rhinestone capability's. It looks like they are out of the silhouette right now, but you could contact them to see when they will have more in. If it were me, I would go this direction as its a low cost investment that gives you all you need to cut rhinestone templates. Just a thought, Here is the link Klic-N-Kut.com: Klic-N-Kut Groove-e


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## Leg cramps (Feb 9, 2009)

I got a 15" groove e from klik n kut and works great.easy to learn.great customer service.


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## bek416 (May 12, 2012)

After reading through this entire thread, I have just a couple of questions --- let's say you're using CorelDraw to create a design. Since you're not going to be cutting a template, rather, cutting the little circles you make, I'm guessing the spacing isn't as much of an issue? How small of circles can you cut? There are some very complicated designs that I've been given to practice with, and honestly I'm losing my patience with rhinestone templating them - they are multicolor and multi size stones to get the look I want. Some are intricate and a stone placement system is what would do the job better. I don't have said system and I'm not in the market to spend $6000k + to get there. I think this may be my alternate choice and will LOOK terrific and not COST as much as the same design in rhinestones.

I'm just curious how small the circles can be and if spacing is an issue. I'd say not, that you can cram them in there as long as they don't touch - which would make my job A FAT TON EASIER as I'm trying to design these things! 

SO EXCITED!!!


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

You can space them as close as you want as long as you can still cut the membrane out of each 360 circle , so they do not touch and weed good.


When doing multi colors, Do the Kiss Press, just press for 5 sec and then peel and apply the 2nd color,, and so on. 

You will still be layering but they look great,, and are safe for children as well.


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## bek416 (May 12, 2012)

sjidohair said:


> You can space them as close as you want as long as you can still cut the membrane out of each 360 circle , so they do not touch and weed good.
> 
> 
> When doing multi colors, Do the Kiss Press, just press for 5 sec and then peel and apply the 2nd color,, and so on.
> ...


So I will need to peel the design apart and create sections of each color, right? Wondering how to do this without wasting too much vinyl but that may not be possible...


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## sjidohair (Apr 9, 2008)

I would cut by color and you will have to line each color up on the garment after kiss pressing each one


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## SandyMcC (Jul 23, 2009)

bek416 said:


> So I will need to peel the design apart and create sections of each color, right? Wondering how to do this without wasting too much vinyl but that may not be possible...


Since you'll have a cutting mat, you'll be able to save and cut scraps for other projects. 

Obviously the membrane around the little circles won't be reusable... UNLESS you want to use it as a stencil and do fabric painting with it! I'm not resourceful with my scraps but I have friends who would do that in a heartbeat!


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## bek416 (May 12, 2012)

SandyMcC said:


> Since you'll have a cutting mat, you'll be able to save and cut scraps for other projects.
> 
> Obviously the membrane around the little circles won't be reusable... UNLESS you want to use it as a stencil and do fabric painting with it! I'm not resourceful with my scraps but I have friends who would do that in a heartbeat!



I'm still trying to visualize how I would cut and line things up - I guess it isn't as tedious as doing stones on transfer tape, because you can kiss press, then line up the next color/layer, and move around until it's correctly placed, right?

Oooo yes, resourceful - that's a great idea!


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## SandyMcC (Jul 23, 2009)

You can always create some reg marks of some kind... like empty circles off to the side or whatever. There are different options in case you don't feel like you can trust your own "eyes!" But when I do iron-on projects, I definitely just look at it... in combination with having the cut design on the screen, of course. I've not done the "poor man's bling" yet, however, so there may be some other tips that members can share.


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## bek416 (May 12, 2012)

SandyMcC said:


> You can always create some reg marks of some kind... like empty circles off to the side or whatever. There are different options in case you don't feel like you can trust your own "eyes!" But when I do iron-on projects, I definitely just look at it... in combination with having the cut design on the screen, of course. I've not done the "poor man's bling" yet, however, so there may be some other tips that members can share.


I eyeball everything. My husband can't believe how precise I am - I don't even know what a level is........LOL!! I tried eyeballing my frist 2 color rhinestone template and.......... that didn't go so well.  After that, I lined it up the way I was supposed to. I didn't know if this was the same, but it sounds like there is more time to manipulate.


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