How To Create Family Reunion T-Shirts

Family reunions are wonderful opportunities to have some fun, catch up with your cousins and get to know family members that live far away. A lot of work and planning goes into a successful family reunion, but the memories are priceless.
Many families choose to make t-shirts to commemorate their reunion -- a great idea! Here are a few tips to help you create terrific tees!

1. Start with shirts in a light color; white or yellow work well. No matter how you choose to decorate the shirts, a light color will make your designs stand out. Also, most reunions are held in the summer and light colored clothing is much more comfortable in the heat.

2. Purchase all of the shirts in the same size, preferably an extra-large, to accommodate all shapes and sizes. If desired, you can also buy large kids' t-shirts (or maybe child-sized hats) for the youngest family members.
3. Get a head count of all those expected to attend, then purchase extra shirts. It's better to have a few left over than to have some people left out!
4. Decide on a design. If you have an artistic family member, enlist their help to create a one-of-a-kind graphic for the shirts.
5. The easiest way to put the design on the shirts is to print on t-shirt transfer paper (available at office supply stores) and iron onto shirts. If you are printing a large quantity of sheets, it may be more cost efficient to have the printing done by a professional rather than using cartridge after cartridge on your computer.
6. Photographs work very well for family reunion shirts. One good choice would be a photo of the oldest family member planning to attend or maybe a picture of the house where the grandparents raised their children.
7. Make it a game. Decorate the shirts with several old baby photos of family members. Everyone guesses who the babies are and the one with the most correct answers wins a prize.
8. Be sure that the date and location of the reunion is on the shirts.
9. If cost is an issue, you can email the design to each family member and instruct them to print it onto t-shirt transfer paper. Each person can then purchase their own shirt and simply iron the design on.
10. If shirts are provided by one person and given to each family member as they arrive at the reunion, provide a bunch of fabric markers so that each attendee can add their name to their shirt -- at a large reunion, there will be many unfamiliar faces.
11. One final idea: make creating the t-shirts part of the reunion day fun. Provide stacks of t-shirts and plenty of fabric paints and markers. Encourage family members to unleash their creativity and design their own special family reunion t-shirt!