Making My Own Jay Garrick Shirt
So, I got this idea in my head, right? I really dig Jay Garrick, the original Flash. Love that classic lightning bolt look. But finding a decent shirt? Forget about it. Everything looked kinda cheap or just… off. I figured, how hard could it be? I’ll just make one myself.
First thing, I needed a base. Hunted around and finally found a plain red long-sleeved shirt. Nothing fancy, just a solid red cotton thing. Felt like the right starting point. You know, classic comic book feel.
Then came the tricky part: the lightning bolt. Man, that bolt is iconic. Had to get it right. I wasn’t sure if I should paint it or use fabric. Painting felt risky, like I could mess it up easily. Fabric seemed safer.
Stuff I gathered:
- The red shirt, obviously.
- A piece of bright yellow felt. Found some in my craft box, lucky me.
- Fabric glue. The strong stuff.
- Scissors, paper, pencil – for the template.
I spent a good while sketching the bolt shape on paper. Tried a few versions until I got one that looked sharp enough, like Jay’s. Getting the proportions right took a bit. Didn’t want it too skinny or too fat. Once I had the paper template, I carefully pinned it to the yellow felt and cut it out. My cutting wasn’t perfect, gotta admit, a bit shaky here and there, but looked okay overall.
Next up, sticking the bolt onto the shirt. This was the nerve-wracking bit. Laid the shirt flat on the table. Measured like three times to make sure the bolt would be dead center on the chest. Put down some newspaper inside the shirt so the glue wouldn’t seep through to the back. Then, carefully applied the fabric glue to the back of the felt bolt, edge to edge. Placed it onto the shirt, pressed down hard, smoothing it out from the center. Put some heavy books on top of it and just left it alone for a whole day to make sure that glue really set.
After waiting impatiently, I took the books off. Pulled the newspaper out from inside. The bolt was stuck on solid! Looked pretty cool, actually. The yellow felt against the red shirt really popped. It wasn’t store-bought perfect, you could tell it was handmade if you looked close, but that’s kinda what I liked about it. It felt authentic, you know? My own Jay Garrick shirt, made with my own hands. Tried it on, felt pretty good. Ready to run… well, maybe just walk fast.
