Easy No-Sew Reverse Appliqué Sweatshirt DIY Tutorial

I found the most beautiful placemat at HomeGoods and just knew I had to get creative with it. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was going to make, but I couldn’t leave it behind! While playing around with ideas, I discovered the technique of reverse appliqué, and it was the perfect way to let this pretty placemat shine. With a little fabric glue and some simple cutting, I turned a plain sweatshirt into something totally unique—no sewing required!

Here’s what you’ll need to get started:

1. A sweatshirt of your choosing

2. A placemat from Home Goods

3. A Surebonder Hot Glue Gun and Extra Glue Sticks

4. Scissors

If you’ve ever wandered through HomeGoods, you know it’s a treasure hunt every time you walk in. Their placemat selection is one of my favorite spots to browse because you never know what you’ll find—seasonal prints, fun textures, and unique patterns you won’t see anywhere else. The best part? They’re usually super affordable, which makes them perfect for experimenting with DIY projects. Whether you’re making wall art, handbags, or in this case a fun reverse appliqué sweatshirt, HomeGoods placemats are a great way to bring color and personality into your creations.

The first thing you’ll want to do is turn your sweatshirt inside out and lay the placemat on the inside of the shirt where you want your appliqué to be. Take a moment to make sure it’s centered and even on both sides before moving on to the next step!

Now, just lift up one edge of the placemat at a time and apply a line of hot glue along the edge. Once the glue is in place, press down firmly on the back of the placemat to make sure it’s nice and secure.

Keep going until you’ve worked your way all the way around.

Once you’re finished, turn your sweatshirt right side out.

Now it’s time to start cutting away the sweatshirt to reveal your appliqué!

Gently lift the fabric in the middle of the area and begin cutting toward one of the edges.

When I reached the edge of the fabric, I decided I didn’t want the white part of the placemat to show. As I cut, I added hot glue along the way so the sweatshirt fabric would stop right at the yellow part of the flower.

The best part about this DIY is that your cutting doesn’t have to be perfect! The beauty of it is the raw, unfinished edge—that’s exactly the look we’re going for.

The sunflower shape did take a little extra time to cut around because of all the petals, but if you choose a design with smoother edges, the cutting will go much quicker.

I simply kept cutting and adding glue until the whole design was finished!

And that’s it—your no-sew reverse appliqué sweatshirt is ready to wear! I love how this technique turns something as simple as a placemat into a one-of-a-kind piece you can actually wear. It’s such a fun way to play with colors, textures, and patterns, and the best part is you don’t need a sewing machine to make it happen. I hope you’ll dig through your craft stash or make a trip to HomeGoods to see what inspires you, then give this DIY a try!

20 Comments

Nola Hamel on January 8, 2026 at 11:48 pm

I love this!! Have to try it! Any idea if the placemat will shrink when washing the shirt or if we should pre-wash it? I need to try this one.

Nancy Kimbrell on August 21, 2025 at 12:08 pm

Barb, this turned out amazing.Love the color of the top with the placemat.💦💦💦🌲

Amy Willett on August 21, 2025 at 12:00 pm

Such a good idea ! I am going to try it . Think I am going to do a ghost.

Brenda Soto on August 16, 2025 at 1:22 pm

Barb really like how it turned out . I am definitely going to have to give this a try . Thanks for this great idea .

Holly Garrison on August 17, 2025 at 11:03 am

Endless possibilities with this technique! Would even make a canvas tote pretty! I love your flannel shirt idea too! Thanks Barb and Courtney!
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- Karen Certain on August 18, 2025 at 2:35 am
  
  My number one favorite
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