Last year my friend group got together for Christmas to do a small gift exchange. I love giving gifts. I also love saving money. But most importantly I love getting a laugh. So I put together little care packages of individualized homemade gag gifts for each friend. The set of gifts I gave to my friends Doug and Stephan were the most rewarding to give. You see, they are a gay couple that are quite tight-lipped in their ways of intimacy.
So of course I put together a “Slut Box”. The box was filled with blush-worthy (fake) kink gear. There were “Cum Goggles”, a “Who’s in my Mouth?” eye mask game, a candle labeled with a leud phrase, a party-sized nipple clamp set and of course a custom jockstrap with the writing, “BREED ME” on the back. (It’s worth mentioning the font was glow-in-the-dark.)
Which brings us to today’s focus: Novelty Underwear for the win!
Look, a jockstrap that reads, “BREED ME” is pretty niche. But it lends itself for you to think outside the box as to what other simple designs or gifts you can create for that special person or event. It’s exhausting to google “funny gift ideas” and see the same thing done over and over. Hey internet: Not all of us are wholesome, okay?!
So here is how I created one of the many inappropriate items to publicly embarrass my buddies:
MATERIALS NEEDED
- Underwear will be needed for this project.
I chose a jockstrap I found on Amazon. I liked that the back had a curve to the cheek straps, giving a bit more room for the font to be warped and attached to. Places like Amazon and TJMaxx are great places to find cheap undergarments.
Keep in mind that the biggest part of this gift is the initial reveal. These are first and foremost a gag gift, so it’s not necessary to buy premium garments for something that may only be worn once (if at all).
- Glow-in-the-dark HTV.
I used Siser Easyweed Glow-in-the-dark. This is available on Amazon or can be picked up at most craft stores. Specifically Michaels or Jo-Ann where they are often on sale and if not you can almost always find a coupon.
- A Cricut or other cutting machine.
I have the Cricut Maker 2, but this project is so small it can be made on any Cricut machine , including the Joy.
- A heat press. – I have the EasyPress 2 (9×9).
CHOOSE YOUR PHRASE
The first thing to do is figure out who this gift is for and what saying or image you want on it.
This project could be used in many different ways. Is it a gift for a cocky jock? Maybe buy some tighty whiteys and put an image of a magnifying glass right on the crotch with some reference to it being hard to find his wittle pee-pee. Or is it for a gassy uncle? Ta-dah! He now owns Fartproof Underoos.
As stated above, my friends are a prude gay couple, so for this project I’m doubling down on treating them like a coupla’ slutbags. “Breed Me” it is!
DESIGN & CHOOSING THE RIGHT FONT
With a phrase like “Breed Me”, imagery of dripping liquid comes to mind. So for my projects I am choosing a font that has a dripping effect to it.
Your project might work best with a blockier font or a handwritten style. Play around with the font options in Design Space or look online for other fonts that may suit your design. Just be mindful of usage rights, especially if you come up with something so funny you could actually sell it.
Because the jockstrap I chose has a unique shape to it, I also have a little bonus tip that has come in handy for so many different projects: PROCREATE.
Admittedly I am not all that savvy with Illustrator or Inkscape, but I do enjoy playing around on Procreate. I have found that you can get away with a lot of stuff with this app, especially for simple tweaks that can later be dropped into Design Space.
In regards to this project, I wanted the beginning and the end of the phrase to sort of swell and droop down with the cut of the fabric. So I created a canvas roughly the dimensions of the fabric surface area and, using the warp tool, stretched the font to better fit the product. It is also helpful to take a picture of the actual product to use as reference when resizing the font.
Once I was happy with the look, I made sure the background (and photo if applicable) were turned off and simply saved it as a PNG. Next just upload it into Cricut Design Space and do some resizing final touches.
DON’T FORGET TO MEASURE
I have wasted so much HTV through laziness and winging it. So be sure to measure out your underwear to properly size your design. For the jockstrap design and its unique curving shape, I also did a sample cut with some cheap leftover HTV that I didn’t care too much for. That way I could see if the design would fit without wasting the more expensive product. In the past I have also just cut it out of paper and used a transfer sheet when I didn’t have extra HTV to use.
MAKE IT!
Now that we’ve created and properly sized our design, it is time to send it to the Cricut. REMEMBER TO MIRROR YOUR IMAGE!
Put the vinyl glossy side down onto the mat. Load your mat and press the Cricut logo. I am a weirdo and still like to watch it cut.
Once the design has been cut it is time to weed the HTV. I like to preheat my press as soon as I have unloaded my mat from the Cricut. That way by the time the image is weeded, the press should be ready to go.
Lay out your underwear on the heat mat as flat as possible. Quickly press the fabric for 3-5 seconds to remove any moisture. Place your design in the appropriate area to make sure everything fits properly and you like the location. For this jockstrap it took a little finagling to get the design to lay right, and I did end up stretching out the elastic with my hands a bit before pressing.
Using light/medium pressure, press the design at 315 degrees for 20 seconds (using Siser Easyweed Glow-in-the-dark HTV with 100% Cotton fabric).
Depending on your HTV brand and fabric, your temperature and time may differ, so be sure to follow manufacturers recommendations.
AND VOILÁ! YA’ DONE.
AND THAT’S IT!
This project is extremely simple and cost effective for how much it packs a punch.
I spent under $5.00 on the jockstrap and a 3-foot roll of the HTV was on sale for less than $14.00. I also used the glow-in-the-dark HTV on some “Cum Rags” as well as sublimating images onto dark shirts (which I will get into in another post). But as you can see I was able to use the HTV on multiple projects, so this gift was super inexpensive.
I hope this explanation sparks ideas for your own projects, as it really showcases that you don’t need to spend a pretty penny on a unique or wildly inappropriate gift.
So what are you going to put on your inappropes panties? (Totally kewl if you steal this idea or come up with your own.). Now go make some weird shit!
…Okay, bye.