How to Sew Crochet Motifs to Your Clothes

Have you seen the trend of using crochet motifs as appliques on t-shirts, jeans, bags, and even furniture? It is a brilliant trend! The cute And I decided the little heart motifs from the Crochet Party Decorations set were the perfect design to show you how to sew crochet motifs to your clothes and other items.

So are you ready to create and learn how to apply crochet appliques, patches, and more on your own clothing, accessories, and furniture?

Step 1: Make a Plan

Before you start, you have to have a plan. What are you going to embellish with crochet? You can do something as simple as adding a crochet edging, but this time we want to play with crochet motifs and patches.

Choose a t-shirt, pair of jeans, jacket, bag, or other item that you want to add your crochet to. You can embellish the back of a jean jacket with a mandala, the front of a t-shirt with hearts, the legs of your jeans with flowers; crochet a fun pocket and add it to a jacket or create a fun crochet patch to hide a hole in your favorite jeans . . . let your imagination fly. You can even cover up rips and scratches on sofas, chairs, ottomans, and more with colorful crochet motifs. There are thousands of possibilities.

Step 2: Create The Motifs

Okay, do you have your project planned out? Some of you may already have a detailed, to scale sketch and others might just have an overly general plan to decorate a t-shirt with crochet hearts (maybe you can guess which group I’m in). But whether you know exactly what you’re going to do or are winging it, there are a few things you need to keep in mind when crocheting your motifs.

Yarn Choice

Choose a yarn that matches the care instructions of the item you are embellishing. Sewing a silk or alpaca motif on a cotton t-shirt you plan to throw in the washing machine will end in disaster, and you will probably only get to wear your shirt once.

While I always recommend hand-washing for crochet because it is much gentler, be realistic about care and wear expectations. If you know a pair of jeans or t-shirt are likely going to be tossed in the washer with the rest of your clothes, don’t fool yourself into thinking that for this one item you’ll get over your hatred for handwashing. Just choose a yarn that is machine washable. For hand and machine washing, I usually recommend cotton thread or cotton or acrylic yarn. Cotton thread is my favorite because I love the clean, crisp stitches and shine. It wears very well through repeated washings and adventures.

Pick Your Pattern + Scale

I created six crochet hearts of different sizes from the heart design included in the Crochet Party Decorations pattern collection. This heart pattern has three rounds, and I wanted different size hearts. I created two hearts with only one round, two hearts with two rounds, and two hearts with all three rounds.

Step 3: Attaching Your Crochet Motifs, Patches, and Pockets

When it comes to actually attaching your embellishment, you have a few options.

Safety Pins vs. Glue

There are two options for holding your motif secure during the sewing process. The first option is the easiest. Place your crochet where you would like to affix it and use safety pins or sewing pins to hold it in place. When pinning, make sure that you are not pulling or bunching the fabric. Once the crochet is secured where you want it, you can use a needle and thread to stitch it in place—we’ll talk about which stitch to use in a moment. This is definitely the method I recommend if you are embellishing with a pocket (where you don’t want the middle to be glued down) or using a crochet patch to cover a rip or hole.

Another option for securing your crochet is fabric glue or hot glue. You might have better luck with hot glue than I do, but I much prefer fabric glue. If you don’t trust yourself to eyeball it, mark the motif placement on your fabric with sewing chalk. And if your garment has two layers where the glue could bleed through, like a t-shirt or pair of jeans, place a piece of wax paper between the layers where you plan to place your motif. This prevents you from accidentally gluing the front and back of your shirt together.

Apply the glue to the back of your motif, making sure to cover the edges and middle. Position the motif on the fabric and carefully place a heavy object like a thick book on top. Glue is a great option if you are embellishing an item, like furniture, that does not have much flexibility.

Secure Promptly!

I made the mistake of laying my hearts out on the shirt and then leaving the room to get my pins. My very helpful cat repositioned all of the hearts to her own liking. Thankfully I had already taken a picture of their placement for you, so I didn’t need to start completely from scratch in figuring out the perfect placement.

Step 4: Sewing Your Crochet Motifs, Patches, and Pockets

You could just glue your motif in place and be done, but we’ve all had that item we have to glue over and over again. Sewing your motif, patch, or pocket in place is a much longer lasting solution. I recommend coordinating thread and a sewing needle for attaching your crochet to fabric. If you are attaching a motif to a stiff, curved surface like a chair arm, you can use a curved tapestry needle.

You can use backstitch, running stitch, or whipstitch to sew the crochet in place and each has its own benefits. Backstitch is a very sturdy, secure stitch but can take a little longer. Running stitch is quick and easy and will be strong enough for most projects. Whipstitch is easy and also provides great, strong seams.

Another fun option is to secure your motif with buttons, snaps, velcro, or safety pins to make it removable, repositionable, and replaceable.

Time to Play with Crochet!

Are you ready to sew crochet motifs, patches, pockets, and more to your own clothing and accessories? I hope the instructions given here give you the information you need to try out this beautiful new fashion trend!