It's time to send the kids off to camp! Our girls about to head to church camp in a few weeks.

I don’t know about you, but the camps my girls attend require you to label everything. Shirts, shorts, socks, blankets. EVERYTHING!

Sure, I could just use a Sharpie and scribble their name onto everything but you guys know me better than that. I just had to turn this into a screen printing project and I’m excited to share it with you today because I think it's a pretty awesome mom hack!

With screen printing and a roll of polyester ribbon, you can make your own personalized labels that will be easy to apply when it comes time to pack for camp.

Supplies for Screen Printing Clothing Labels

• Speedball hinge frame or screen printing press 
• Speedball fabric ink
• Graphic squeegee
• Oracal 651 vinyl
• Transfer tape
• Painter’s tape
• 100% Polyester Ribbon (from Hobby Lobby, I used 5/8″)
• Fabric Tape (The one I used is from Hobby Lobby but similar tape is available on Amazon)
• Scissors
• Heat Press 
• Easy Press Mini or Iron

How to Screen Print Personalized Name Tape with Your Cricut

Step 1: Cut Name on Oracal 651 Vinyl Using Vinyl Cutter

I sized the height of my kids' names at 1/2″ tall in Design Space to fit on the 5/8″ ribbon.  I decided to cut my daughter's name twice to speed up the printing process. 

Once your vinyl cutter has cut your design, weed the letters. You will remove the letters, leaving the vinyl around your letters.  This is opposite of how you weed HTV.  

Step 2: Transfer Vinyl to Screen Printing Frame

Using transfer tape, apply the design to your screen. If you are new to screen printing with vinyl, here's are some beginner tips to help you get started.

Step 3: Align ribbon under vinyl 

With your design on the screen, place your ribbon under and adjust until it is aligned under your design.  

PRO TIP: I like to align my ribbon before adding Painter's Tape around my vinyl. This allows you to see the ribbon through the mesh. 

Step 4: Squeegee ink Over screen

Add a few scoops of your fabric ink above your name.  Using a squeegee and firm pressure, pull the ink over the design. 

PRO TIP: Ribbon does not absorb fabric as much as t-shirts.  I used one squeegee of ink for each print.  Squeegeeing over your design too many times will cause the ink to bleed under your vinyl.

Step 5: Repeat

The beauty of the screen printing process is being able to use your setup to print the same design over and over.  Add more ink as needed and continue to print your name labels.  You can print a few or make extras to keep on hand.

Step 6: Allow ink to dry completely

While you wash your screen and supplies, allow your screen printing ink to air dry.  If you have time, allow them to air dry overnight. 

PRO TIP: Sometimes I will use a fan to speed up the drying process of my screen printed t-shirts. This does not work well with the tiny pieces of ribbon – they will blow everywhere and could smudge the ink!

Step 7: Heat Press to Cure Ink

Just like with screen printing t-shirts, Speedball fabric ink needs to be cured.  Once the ink is cured with heat, it will not fade in the wash.

I lined up several pieces of ribbon to make this process more efficient. With your heat press set to 320 degrees, press for 40 seconds.

Don't have an Easy Press? Here are 6 Ways to Cure Screen Printing Ink

Step 8: Apply Fabric Tape to the Back of your Printed Ribbon

The Perma-Stick Double Sided Tape is a double sided fabric tape. One side will stick to the back of your printed ribbon. The other side sticks to your shirt, bag, hat, etc.

The fabric tape I used (from Hobby Lobby) can be applied with or without heat.  The heat makes the bond more permanent (good idea if you are going to be washing the garments).

To make it permanent so it holds up in the wash, use an iron or Easy Press Mini to heat the labels after you stick them in place.  I have washed my daughter's swimsuits with the labels many times and it is still stuck!

You can also use this Perma-Stick Double Sided Tape that does not require ironing. This is perfect for backpacks or other items that might be sensitive to the heat.

* Be sure to read the instructions on your fabric tape for application instructions.

Step 9: Attach to your clothes, bags, hats, and more

You can attach your labels right away or you can save them for packing day. 

The great part about this project is that you can make a bunch of labels ahead of time and use them as needed.

I'll be saving some of these labels to use when the girls go back to school.

Hopefully with everything well labeled, my girls will make it home from camp with all of their belongings!