Okay, so, I wanted to jazz up my golf wardrobe, right? And I’m a bit of a science nerd, too. So I thought, what’s better than mashing up the periodic table with booze? Nothing, that’s what. So I went on this mission to create a “periodic table of booze” golf shirt.
First off, I started brainstorming all the drinks I could think of. I mean, you got your classics like Beer (Be), Wine (Wi), Vodka (Vo), and Tequila (Te). Then you get into the a bit more obscure, but still well known ones, like, say, Sake (Sa) or Absinthe (Ab). It was a fun trip down memory lane, remembering all those college parties and fancy cocktail nights.
Next, I tried to figure out how to organize them on the shirt. I played around with grouping them by type, like, all the spirits together, all the wines together, all the beers together etc. But it looked kinda boring. Plus, some drinks blur the lines, like, where do you put a wine cooler or a hard seltzer? It’s a mess. Then, I got the great idea of just doing it by color.
I spent hours, not gonna lie, just browsing through pictures of drinks. I had to make sure the colors matched up, and also that I was not mixing up, for example, a light beer with a white wine. Let me tell you, there are a lot of shades of amber and brown in the booze world!
After that, it was a matter of designing the actual “elements.” I wanted them to look legit, like the real periodic table. So, I made these little boxes, you know, with the drink’s abbreviation in the middle, like “Wi” for Wine. Then, above it, I put a number, just like the atomic number, but, you know, for fun, I just did it in order of when I thought of each drink. And below the abbreviation, I wrote out the full name of the drink.
- Finding the Right Shirt: I looked everywhere for a plain golf shirt that was good quality but wouldn’t break the bank. I ended up finding a decent one at a local sports store. White, classic style, you know.
- Printing Trials: I tried a few different printing methods. Iron-on transfers were a total disaster – they looked cheap and peeled off after one wash. Screen printing was better, but still not quite what I wanted.
- Digital Printing: Finally, I found this local shop that did digital printing on fabric. They printed my design directly onto the shirt. It looked amazing! The colors were vibrant, and it felt like part of the fabric, not just stuck on top.
The final result was awesome, if I do say so myself. I’ve worn it to a couple of golf outings, and it’s been a huge hit. People love it! They’re always coming up to me, asking about the different “elements,” and we end up chatting about our favorite drinks. It’s a great conversation starter.
This whole project was way more work than I thought, but it was totally worth it. I learned a lot about different types of printing and also just made a shirt that reflects two of my favorite things! If you’re looking for a unique, fun project, I highly recommend giving something like this a try.
But a word of warning – make sure you’ve got the time. And maybe stock up on some of those drinks for “research” purposes, you know? You gotta stay hydrated while you work!
