When talking about something as simple as “how to attach patches” is interesting to see how many different ways of getting the job done.
If you are looking for the most complete, easier or most accurate way of attaching your patches to any item, you are in the right place.
We have done all the research for you!
Many of the methods we found are similar but there are few variants depending on:
- The type of garment you are sewing on.
- T-shirt or Shirt
- Jacket
- Pants
- Hat or snapback
- The material your patch is made out of.
- Fabric
- Embroidered
- Woven
- Soft rubber PVC
- Fabric
- The type of backing your patches count with
- Plain back
- Hook and Loop backing
- Iron-on backing
- Peel and stick
- The type of tools available
- Just needle and thread (handmade)
- Regular sewing machine
- Small embroidery machine
- Industrial embroidery machine.
- Your skill level.
How to Attach Patches to Clothes?
In our research we have found a number of posibilities.
Some people state that there are 5 ways of attaching embroidered patches to your garments. Others claim that there are 8 ways of attaching patches on clothes and finally there are those who assure that there is even a 9th way to do so.
In our humble opinion, there are not 5, not 8 or 9 ways of attaching patches to jackets, hats, shirts, jeans, pockets, sleeves, or to pet’s clothes.
There are 10 total ways of doing it. We will show you each one of them.
At the end you will find useful tips on how to apply these techniques according to the type of materials you be working with.
How To Attach Patches Without Sewing?
Embroidered Patches and woven patches can be attached to the cloth without the need of a needle and thread.
The most of the techniques that enable this stress-free way of attaching your patches involve some kind of special backing such as heat-seal, self-adhesive or Hook and Loop.
If your patch has a plain back, the only other way of attaching it to your garment without sewing is by using glue.
1. How to Iron on Patches?
One of the most popular ways of attaching patches without sewing is by using patches that comes with a heat-seal material on the back, also called iron-on patches.
The YouTube video with more views about the subject by the moment this article was written is called How To Apply Iron On Patches.
With its half million views, this simple video is made with an overhead shot in close up of an iron table. A voice over explains step by step how to apply an iron-on patch to a polyester shirt.
The patch is placed at the left side of the chest and they spend the most of the time explaining how to align the patch in an accurate way.
How to Iron an Iron-On Patch Tutorial (BlindCat Arts) is another super simple and super easy to understand YouTube video. Here, a woman shows all the process of ironing a patch and explain it step by step.
The shot is a fixed close-up of the area of some fabric bag where she wants the patch to be, which is helpful. She shows how to pill out the paper that protects the back face of some of those patches. Behind the paper there is a thin film of glue that will melt at high temperatures making a solid bond with the piece of fabric.
In her YouTube channel Braelyn B., also showed how she attached a bunch of patches to a nylon jacket by ironing them on. In the video DIY PATCHED BOMBER JACKET | No Sewing Required, she shows how to do the thing adding glue.
2. How to Stick Patches on Clothing?
Another way for attaching your patches without sewing is by using patches with self adhesive backing.
These are like fabric stickers, you don’t need an iron, just to peel and stick them to the fabric surface you want. Sometimes people confuse self-adhesive with iron-on patches.
Nevertheless, they are quite easy to differentiate, the first one is sticky without being heated, the second one is not.
What’s the difference between iron on backing and adhesive backing? is a great video for solving this kind of doubts.
3. How to Apply Hook and Loop Patches?
This hook-and-loop fastener system is a suitable solution, extensively used not only for military badges, but also for brand logos and civilian emblems as well.
Hook and Loop patches should and should not be here.
On the one hand, they shouldn’t be listed as a “without sewing solution”. This is because you do need to sew the backing of the patch to the surface you want your patches to be.
The only exception to this rule is in the case you be using a patch mount system which works great for backpacks for instance.
On the other hand, Hook and Loop patches do deserve to be here! The reason is because once the hook-side of the patch is installed, you will be able to attach and remove the patch as many times as you want without sewing.
If what you want is to know how to sew an square Hook and Loop backing to a piece of cloth with a sewing machine, this video will help.
In the case you be wondering How to Sew Hook and Loop On A Morale Patch, this is a different matter. Here we talk about a DIY tutorial on how to transform a simple embroidered morale patch with plain back into a hook and loop patch.
However, the easiest way of adding Hook and Loop to your custom patches is to request this feature when ordering.
4. How to Glue Patches?
We all suppose that patches can be attached with glue, the question is what type of glue we should use?
And again the answer is very simple: fabric glue.
There are many different brands selling fabric glue out there. However, some of them are specially made for attaching patches, as the one used at How To Use Easy Patch Attach
Other kind of glue is used in the video titled Gluing A Patch On Your Vest where it is used the E6000. According to the YouTuber it works quite good.
Fabric fusion or fabric glue is tested over a denim vest in another great youtube video about the subject.
How to Sew on a Patch?
Check Out Our Updated Article about the different ways you can sew on a patch in 2022.
Sewing a patch is still in the XXI century the most reliable way of attaching them to any kind of piece of fabric.
To hand sew a single patch shouldn’t be a big problem for anyone having a needle and thread.
However, if you are not dealing with only one but with several patches, it’ll be better for you to use a sewing machine or an embroidery one.
1. How to Sew on a Patch by Hand
Before starting sewing let’s attach the patch to the place you want it to be with a couple of pins. This way you will be sure it won’t move.
Besides, in this video the user shows the process of sewing a patch to a military jacket sheet step by step. The video is the one with more views about the topic in the entire english platform at least.
2. How to Sew on a Patch with a Sewing Machine
Attaching a patch using a sewing machine can be kind of tricky especially for those who don’t know how to use them.
But don’t panic, because the youtube channel Let’s Learn To Sew has a great video where an adorable lady explains every single detail of the process.
As seen before when learning how to do it manually, the first thing is to pin the patch to the exact place where you want it to be. Afterwards, it is important to operate the machine at low speed in order to follow precisely the edges of the patch.
It’s important to highlight here that PVC patches come with a sewing channel which is an advantage because it makes the job of attaching the patch easier.
3. How to Sew on a Patch with an embroidery machine
You can also attach a patch using an embroidery machine, this is the most recommended way to do so and it is especially helpful when you have a lot of work.
Although there are several types of embroidery machines, the most of them work quite similar. They use special software to generate shapes, paths and patterns. These are like vectors that are uploaded to the machine via USB (or some sort of digital port) where the files are processed.
In the episode 32 of Embroidery Hub, Laura, the host, shows how to operate a big industrial embroidery machine in order to attach a patch. She operates a touch screen interface and it seems very easy.
If you have a big embroidery machine the last video will be enough. Otherwise, if you have a tiny one, maybe you should consider watching How-to Sew Patches | EverSewn Hero Embroidery Machine. Here, April will show you, step by step, not only how to attach embroidered patches but also how to make them from the scratches.
4. How to Sew on Applique Patches
The word “applique patches” is commonly used to name embroidered or woven patches as a synonymous.
However, according to the Cambridge Dictionary the term defines:
“A decorative work in which one piece of cloth is sewn or fixed onto another”
Thus, the term also defines the technique of decorating cloth by sewing or embroidering directly over the garment. This method is explained by Larissa at the beginning of “DIY: CUSTOM EMBROIDERED PATCHES || 3 techniques“.
It is used both as a mere decorative element or as a mask to hide stains. scratches, stitches, holes, rips or some other sort of fabric damage.
5. How to Make a Reverse Applique Patch?
Sew a patch (or a piece of fabric) on the reverse of your garment.
Then, cut the front side of your garment to show the pattern or design of the fabric sewn beneath.
Ready? Great! You have made a “reverse applique” patch!
It is commonly used to mask holes with a punky rebel style. The technique have been broadly detailed in the video “Kiki Magazine Presents: How To Sew a Reverse Applique T-shirt”
Bonus. How to Do Darning?
Even though darning does not require a patch, to darn it self implies to patch, to cover or to fix a hole. That’s why we decided to include darning in this list.
An excellent tutorial on how to do darning for scratched denim was made by Self Edge New York an awesome shop that repairs jeans in a professional way.
Best Way to Attach Patches: Mix 2 Techniques
If you are unsure about whether to sew the patch or iron it on, then the best could be to do it both ways.
You could fix the patch in place by iron it on, and then secure it by sewing it to your jacket, t-shirt or uniform.
That way you will be totally sure the patch won’t fall down at the washing machine for instance.
How to Attach Patches to Anything – by Patch Type
As you can imagine, there are certain differences in the way you attach a patch to denim or leather and when working with special patches like beaded or PVC patches.
1. How to Sew on Patches On Denim
Sewing a patch is essentially the same regardless on the type of fabric you be using.
Nevertheless, some fabric will require a stronger or thicker needle. This is the case of denim jackets, a good example is shown by Anastasia in her video “How to Sew a Patch Onto Anything”
2. How to Sew patches on Leather
Before sewing on leather the HedgeTV’s host recommends to apply a leather care gel on the surface. The video have a weird surprise (gross joke) at minute 2:27.
A more professional tutorial about the matter says you need:
- an 18 gauge needle
- wide stitches (1/8 inch) for reducing the risk of tearing
- upholstery thread (strong and water proof)
- and a spray adhesive (instead of pins) to fix the patches to the vest before sewing.
3. How to attach Beaded Patches?
For a comprehensive tutorial about the beaded applique technique, take a look at these 4 Methods of attaching beads by Manie Martinez.
Otherwise, if what you want is to know how to attach them to the cloth, it is better for you to go directly to How to sew a beaded applique. In the mentioned video Anita Rivers will guide you all the way through the step by step process.
She uses a 2 ½ needle and a thread that matches the color of the surface beaded applique support.
4. How to attach PVC Patches?
There are different ways of attaching PVC Patches to your items:
Sew them on: Per your request, PVC patches come with a sewing channel that makes it easier to do the job regardless on the tool you count with, whether sewn manually or using a machine.
- With Hook and Loop Backing: The PVC patch will come with both Hook and Loop hook & loop sides, the hook side sewn to the back of the patch.
- With Adhesive: We can add a 3M adhesive back to your patch, but due to the sleek nature of the material, it can come off if not peeled carefully. Therefore is preferred you glue them using your own glue.
(The only attaching method that cannot be used with PVC is iron-on, because the PVC material doesn’t allow the heat to reach and activate the iron-on film.)
Advice per Type of Item
While the above techniques can be used for any application, there are tricks and advice that vary from one type of garment to another.
1. How to Attach Patches to Jackets
For hand sewing denim jackets see this video where Anastasia (remember?) will go through the entire process from threading the needle to the final cut.
Battle jacket customisation guide is a video on how to attach iron-on patches on a leather or semi-leather Battle-Jacket.
Do you love metal music? Wanna learn the Dark Side of attaching patches to a battle jacket using a sewing machine? Let’s borrow your grandmother’s preferred toy and watch this video!
Sewing Patches Onto Pockets & Sleeves can be a little tricky, but not anymore because the old good Tripp again (remember from the PatchStop ?) will clear any doubt regarding the topic.
The video will show you how to attach a couple of American flag patches onto the leather jacket sleeves and pockets using a regular sewing machine.
2. How to Sew On a Patch to an Uniform
How to sew a patch is a video tutorial about how to sew a round patch to the sleeve of the US marine corps uniform.
Sewing patches can be expensive, at least according to this video where Nathan Polichnia says it costs 3 dollars per patch.
It doesn’t seems a high amount until you multiply it per the number of patches a US Navy officer have to place and replace over his entire life.
In order to save money he recommends to buy a sewing machine and to learn how to do it yourself.
While Nathan is using a white dress blues jacket, Andrew Hardy teach how to hand sew navy chevrons to a blue one.
3. How to Attach a Patch to a Shirt
An outstanding video for this specific matter is the one called “How to sew on a patch (by hand). In this video produced by EMBROSOFT, they sew a UK flag on a white t-shirt sleeve.
Warning, the video is made without any voice over or life narration but with subtitles and a nice video edition which, along with the soft funny music, makes it entertaining.
4. How to Attach a Patch to a Hat
Sewing an embroidered patch on a hat with a sewing machine can be kind of tricky. Luckely, this video has a lot of cool tips.
In this tutorial Vincent Bryan shows how to do it manually and in this other one the same host teach how to attach patches to hats using heat-seal backing (iron-on).
For a more professional way use an special heat press. This machine is shown in the video How To Apply Patches to Hats Using a Heat Press. You will achieve the same outcome without warping or bending your hats.
5. How to Put Patches On shoes
Hand sewing patches on shoes was a pain in the ass until this dude made this awesome video about the topic unveiling the unknown hacks of this beautiful art.
In another video, the same host shows how to attach a patch to a shoe by using shoe cement.
After applying heat with an iron, the patch sticks to the sneakers just as an iron-on patch will do.
Nonetheless, the easiest way of solving this problem is by buying self-adhesive mini-patches.
Summarizing…
So, we talked about the different ways to sew a patch.
Later over, we explained some tricks on how to deal with different types of fabric materials, like denim and leather.
Additionally we gave you some tips about how to deal with PVC patches as well.
Afterwards, we showed you a bunch of tutorial options for attaching patches to different type of garments.
We hope you have find useful this long list of the best videos on how to attaching patches. We will be updating this article in the case that some other techniques, methods or materials appear.
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