This year for Halloween my almost 7 year old really wanted to wear his younger brother’s leather jacket from grandma. We decided that to incorporate this jacket it would work great if he was a “biker” for Halloween. I immediately went to work trying to decide how to put this look together. I didn’t just want him to wear the jacket and some jeans, even though that would have worked. I wanted him to have the whole look, just in case he ended up taking off the jacket at any point.

I decided I wanted him to have a Harley Davidson shirt because most real bikers have some kind of Harley Davidson memorabilia. But after giving it some thought, I decided I didn’t just want him to be a bike owner. It is Halloween after all, so why not make him a bike dealer?!? And if I was going to make him a genuine dealer, I might as well put a bike shop name on the shirt. I know, I know I went a little crazy. So here is how I did it . . .

Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

Still looks like a “tough biker” when he removes his jacket.

Supplies

For the entire look, supplies listed at the bottom of this post.*

Step 1 : Prep

Begin by wrapping a cardboard piece in parchment/wax paper and placing in the shirt so that paint doesn’t seep through to the other side. Now I measured the shirt across and subtracted 9″ to determine what size I wanted to make my template. (Ex. This shirt is 18″ so I made my template 9″ wide.)

For my template, I made the SVG below. Then I cut the template out of vinyl to use as a stencil.Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

Note: To add your own name, just place this SVG into your cutting software, split/break the image and delete my son’s name. Now add your name with the font, Gill Sans MT Bold.

Download zip file of SVG, PNG, and PDF below. Download zip file of SVG, PNG and PDF below. 

Step 2: Stencil Placement

Take stencil or vinyl and stick to shirt. Place vinyl, with it’s backing still on, where you want it on the shirt and tape down. Flip up and remove backing. Spray vinyl with a tacky spray. I use Easy Tack by Krylon. Flip vinyl back down on the shirt and press firmly. Remove the transfer tape slowly making sure all the vinyl stuck well to the shirt. I then use my Mini Pizza Roller to ensure everything is well stuck, like I did here.

{For a step-by-step picture tutorial on how to stick the stencil correctly check out this post.}Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

Now place the template on the shirt. If using freezer paper, iron it into place. If using vinyl, stick it on using this method with tacky spray. I also have a video here that shows how I do it using another shirt I made.

 

Step 3: Painting

Take a paint brush with screen printing paint and paint over the correct areas of the stencil with red and white paint, just like I did. It takes a steady hand and some patience, but the end result is worth it!Genuine Harley Davidson DealerGenuine Harley Davidson Dealer

Note: Harley Davidson’s logo is know for being orange and white, but I have seen a few red logo Harley Davidson shirts out there. I wanted our logo to match our bandana so I went with red.Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

 Step 4: Finishing

Once the paint is completely dry {I wait 12-24 hours, just to make sure} remove the vinyl stencil and cardboard from inside the shirt. Then place a piece of scrap fabric over the painted areas and heat set the paint with a hot iron, like I did here. You can also blow a hot hairdryer on the image, if you don’t like the ironing method.Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

That’s it! Now your biker is ready for a fun Halloween full of festivities!Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer

If you want the entire look we have here, this is what you will need . . .

  • Kid Leather Jacket
  • Torn Jeans, what boy doesn’t have jeans with holes in the knees
  • Tattoo Sleeves, bought ours at Wal-mart for $4/pair
  • Punk Bracelets
  • Bandana, also from wal-mart $1Genuine Harley Davidson Dealer