I don’t have a sewing machine. The no ghost logo seems pretty thick and sturdy. Anyone have any tips as to how they went about sewing it on? I was considering just sewing it on in a few places around the edge, but then there may be a black thread crossing over a white bit or a white thread crossing over a black bit and that may spoil the look.
I’m also considering simply supergluing it on! Though I imagine it may then end up coming off in the wash in the future.
Being too lazy to sew is not worth ruining a suit over. Just get some clear thread and sew all the way around the patch. I use it for all my no-ghost patches. Black thread is better for the nametag since it blends in. Just hand sew around the edges and be sure to pin it in place before you begin.
Heh, well I just figured that since I would never want to take the logo off, superglue stains underneath the patch wouldn’t matter. I’m guessing there’s some other problems I haven’t considered though. Sewing it is…
Don’t have any clear thread, don’t have time to get any (will be wearing outfit in a few days). So it’ll be black and white threads.
I actually spent a whole night trying to sew my no ghost on a new suit and breaking needle after needle and jamming my sewing machine. Lots of headaches and F-bombs being yelled, I ended up literally just using hot glue and sticking it on. And honestly it’s been so tough and never showed sign of ware or weak points. I’ll get around to sewing the rim of the patch sooner or later, but so far it’s stood over every possible condition or situation I put the suit through. most people are against using glue, but to me if it works than it works.
You’re not supposed to sew on patches using a machine unless the material is thin, like the nametags. The no-ghosts tend to be extra thick because of all the threading on the red part of them.
Doing it by hand will make your work much more accurate and you won’t waste needles. Just get a sewing kit and a thimble and get to work.
Due to my severe lack of sewing abilities, I had my mom sew my no-ghost on. Of course when she was pinning it in place for sewing, she inadvertently sewed both myself and the patch to the suit. It felt terrific. Anyways, hand sew that bad boy, don’t glue it.
After having a ton of trouble with mine I ended up taking it to the nearest dry cleaners. 5 bucks and 24 hours later I had a perfect sewn on patch. I just didn’t want it to look all wonky.
Yeah, sewing the patch more secure. I’ve tried the iron-on route and had my nametag peel off halfway through a convention. It also makes for easy removal/replacement if it gets damaged, you want to use new patches, or want to sell your suit. No gross residue to scrape off either.
I just received my Tru Spec flight suit. It has the Velcro patch where the name tag goes. What do you guys recommend for sticking the velcro to the back of my name tag? Ideally Id like to be able to swap out name tags instead of just sewing one on permanently.
My Tru Spec suit had a velcro patch as well. I simply sliced the threads with an x-acto knife and it came right off, very easy.
I have never sewn anything in my life, and I was able to sew both patches on by being careful and taking my time. It wasn’t easy, and it took a while, but it was worth it to do it myself correctly.
Tip: Stick the needle in from behind, through the patch, on a LONG piece of thread. Go back down through the top of the patch right next to where it came up. Tie the thread to itself in a double knot. Repeat ad nauseum (minus the knotting), all the way around. When you get back to the beginning, tie it again. That patch is never going anywhere.
For the symbol, I simply did this in multiple sections for the red edges, and secured the ghost’s head and hands with black thread.
I successfully sewed on my GB2 arm patch and name patch to my GB2 suit this past week. I used transparent thread for the arm patch which was kind of maddening at times, and black for the name patch. The name patch was much easier as it was thinner and easier to push the needle through. On the arm patch since it was multilayered I was struggling to push the needle through, didn’t feel great on the old fingers, that is for sure.
But the feeling of accomplishment of sewing on my own patches was fantastic, lol.
If you want to glue your patch on, or iron it on, or whatever, then by all means DO IT. If I had to remove my patch and sew it back on again, I would probably just sell the entire damn costume. Such a tedious affair. That said, this is how I did it, and it made it much easier:
I took a small book (like an address book or planner) and shoved it into the sleeve, around where the patch would be sewn. This will be used as a means to assist in pushing the needle up through the fabric.
I started with red thread, stitching the prohibitory sign first. Cut a long length of string, and tied a knot in one end. On the other end, I threaded a needle (don’t tie anything up there, just double it over and hang onto it). Starting from the inside, I simply positioned where the first stitch would be, and pressed the sleeve and patch down onto the needle (which was positioned on the hard book for extra ‘grip,’ so to speak) and up through the fabric (and patch). Pull it all the way through, and then push back down through the fabric as close to the patch as possible. Make sure you pull each stitch nice and tight. If you run out of string, just leave enough to tie a knot on the inside of the sleeve so the stitch doesn’t come out. This is a tedious affair as well. Generally, there’s a little bit of slack in the knot I tie on the inside, so I try to make it a point to kind of secure that slack down in the next stitch I make.
After doing all the red, I went back and used black thread to secure the “ghost” portions of the patch.
As I am no tailor, I will say that this entire ordeal probably took the better part of 2 hours, and many swear words were said. The outcome is that I have a patch that is on there VERY securely.
Those who would rather iron on, or glue on: I don’t blame you one bit. For something as minor as a damn patch, you shouldn’t expend that many brain cells or cortisol on it.
I have sewed on 3 and I did the same, I top my patch to walmart and for a red thread that matched, black is simple, threw in a movie and started sewing. I did buy a thimble. For less then a dollar, it can be nice to have.
A bit of a necro, but IMO not worth starting a brand-new thread over:
So I got GB1 patches from katarra and GB2 patches from the shop for my new suits. Both are iron-on, though I plan on sewing as well. I think, well I may as well iron 'em on first, that way they’ll be sure to stay in place as I sew. So I do my new GB1 suit, they stick on pretty well (esp. considering that some of the adhesive had come off where I was using duct tape to temporarily stick them on for some pics).
Now I’m a little hesitant to sew them on, at least until the iron-on adhesive starts to fail. I’ve had experience with regular iron-on patches to mend clothing before, in general they will sooner or later start to come loose around the edges - they won’t just up and completely fall off. Then again, the GB patches required quite a bit more heat to get going than those things. Should I go ahead and get it over with, or “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it?”
I’d sew it on. Not much for half arsing anything. If you want it to stay throughout the life of the suit and not really have to worry about it later, take the time.
Plus, (especially for all of you guys out there) sewing is a great and impressive skill to have.
This is true, and useful for much more than costuming!
I honestly never learned to sew, and don’t know why. Too late now to have either my Mom or Mamaw teach me . My main problem starting out was my basic technique was all wrong. It wasn’t until I watched a YouTube video not all that long ago that the light bulb went off in my head about why nothing I tried to sew would stay on. To illustrate:
Now I have a little kit of sewing supplies including oddball stuff like:
-Fishing line: strong, and easy to thread because it’s so stiff. HOPEFULLY I’ve found the right balance between big enough to be strong but small enough to be almost clear.
-Small pliers: I use my mini Leatherman on really tough jobs ,like when I sewed industrial-strength velcro on my flightsuit for the leg hose connector. I left the backing on it since I didn’t want to get the glue on my suit, especially if I wanted to move it later. GOOD CALL, that ■■■■ was ■■■■■■■■ - I went through two needles where they would keep on gumming up on me as I sewed.
-Seam Ripper: VERY handy for stuff like removing the velcro name patch holder on flightsuits without damage.
. My main problem starting out was my basic technique was all wrong. It wasn’t until I watched a YouTube video not all that long ago that the light bulb went off in my head about why nothing I tried to sew would stay on. To illustrate: