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A small pile of pink metallic and pink glitter homemade sequins, made from this How to Make Sequins Tutorial.
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5 from 1 vote

How to Make Sequins & Spangles

It might not be a skill you'll need often, but knowing how to make sequins and spangles can come in handy for custom spandex costuming!
Prep Time5 minutes
Active Time15 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Keyword: DIY Sequins, DIY Spangles, Heat Transfer Vinyl, how to make sequins, paillettes, sequins, spangles
Author: Marie
Cost: $10

Equipment

  • Iron
  • Scissors
  • 1 16" Hole Punch

Materials

  • Metallic / Foil Heat Transfer Vinyl
  • Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl

Instructions

  • Decide how big of a sheet you’d like. A little goes a long way, and it’s easy enough to make more later, if you underestimate it!
  • Cut a piece that size out of both the metallic and the glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl.
  • Position the pieces of heat transfer vinyl together, shiny / glitter sides facing out.
  • Following the directions on your HTV, iron the pieces together.
  • For this brand, that meant having the iron on the “Cotton” setting - no steam - and pressing down for 10 seconds, but the brand you use may vary from this.
  • Allow your sheet to cool fully, on a flat surface.
  • If there’s a curl to it at all, set something flat and heavy on top of it, while it’s still hot.
  • Peel the plastic sheet off the glitter side, if you’d like.
  • Leaving it on gives more stability, and can protect the underlying garment from snagging on the glitter (if it’s something fragile like chiffon).
  • Peeling it off gives it a more flexible structure, and more sparkle.

For Larger Sequins

  • Once sequin sheet is fully cooled, use scissors, a large punch, or a cricut machine to cut your sequin / spangle shapes from it.
  • Use the 1/16" hole punch to carefully punch holes in your sequins in the desired location.
  • And you’re done!

For Smaller Sequins

  • Once the sequin sheet is fully cooled, use your 1/16" hole punch to punch the center holes in the sheet.
  • Be sure to leave room to accommodate 2x the radius of the sequin in between each punch.
  • Position your larger / shaped punch over the small holes you’ve punched, aiming such that the small hole will be in the desired spot of the finished sequin.
  • Punch your shapes out.