Fabric Stenciling Ideas

Painting fabric is a fast, easy, and economical way to embellish clothing and accessories.



This dress was on a 50% clearance rack for $1. (I actually bought a couple of them!)



Adding a stenciled flower using the freezer paper method with a hand painted center was an easy way to embellish the otherwise forgettable plain seersucker dress. I also added a grosgrain ribbon sash. The supplies we used in our fabric painting projects are: temporary spray adhesive (with doilies), freezer paper, iron and ironing board, acrylic paint with textile medium added (you could just buy fabric paint), cutting tools (exacto knife or cutting machine), shapes to trace.




I made fabric spray paint using an old squirt bottle, acrylic paint, textile medium, and water. It needs to be a very thin consistency so it sprays evenly (like a mist ). I have purchased fabric spray paint at the craft store and I like my version better.

Here we've used a waxed paper doily as a stencil. It works well to use temporary spray adhesive on the back of the doily to keep it in place. I used an old worn out small chisel paintbrush so I could get the paint in the tiny holes.
It turned out a little less crisp on knit fabric, but I still like the effect.

This was made using a freezer paper stencil we cut out with a cutting machine (you could use an exacto knife) and a sponge brush.



We made the pink circle area using our fabric spray paint and circle stencil cut out of freezer paper. After that dried, we added the flower using a freezer paper
stencil done with watered down paint and a sponge brush. A silver sharpie was used to add dimension.


This star is also a freezer paper stencil that I completely coated in paint, let dry, then added dots using a silver sharpie.


We're working on a few more ideas and doing a blog swap with The Girl Creative on Wednesday so check back for details!

Erin & Heather

A few handmade gifts

My grandma loves birds, so I appliqued this store-bought (had to make some short cuts in this handmade holiday) tote with a wintry cardinal scene.  I just printed a children's coloring page to use as a stencil for the bird.  Then I just cut out the branch and slapped some "snow" on it.  I'm going to put the kleenex cover I made inside with a cross I got for her at a craft show.  I didn't get it for Christmas but I forgot about it until now.

Then, I made this plate for Holden with a few others I can't show you yet...Here's how they'll look on Thursday night.

 

I (very roughly) followed the tutorial at Just Something I Made.  Though I didn't follow the steps exactly, I dd get the idea and the supply list there.   I used a few plates I got at St. Vincent de Paul in Spring Arbor and a few I got at Wal-Mart.  The Wal-Mart plates didn't have a good lip on them, so they'll turn out a bit different.  I'll show them to you later this week (after I've gifted them)!

Though my progress is a bit slow with a toddler running around, I'm getting there.  I'll show you more as I get things finished!

Hope to "see" you soon!

-Heather

PS - I'm linking this to DIY Day at A Soft Place to Land. (technically Tuesday, but I posted late last night and am modifiying on Tuesday.  That counts right?)

Cookie & Craft Exchange: Holiday Traditions

Every year, the married women in my Dad's family get together around Christmas for a Christmas Craft & Cookie Exchange. It's a fun little party where everyone brings one craft they made and a half dozen cookies for each person in attendance. Some of us are craftier than others, but it is just as much fun to laugh at each other and some of the crazy things we've come up with. My Aunt Debbie brought a papier mache Santa that used a light bulb as a base, and had a bit of a club foot. The Santa is passed around between my aunts and uncles, with each of them trying to avoid the odd shaped, googly eyed decoration! But, we laugh and recall the failed crafts of years before. One year my cousin Alicia made a cork wreath and her dogs ate it.  She had to come up with another craft VERY quickly! 

Nw that I think about it – we talk about the crazy, not-so-attractive crafts WAY more than we ever reminisce about the pretty, more displayable crafts! As much as that is true, given my love of crafting, I just can't help but try to come up with something that everyone will love. We draw numbers when we get to the party, so you never know who will get your craft. For some reason, in the 5 years I've been married, my Grandma has gotten my craft and vice versa for 2 or 3 of the years.

Anyway, our party was this past Sunday and I procrastinated more than usual. I had a general idea. I wanted to make a white velvet kanzashi, but I wasn't sure whether to make it an ornament, or really what to do with it. I had an old velvet coat that I loved, but wasn't very practical (being white) and was kind of a pain as it had to be ironed every time it was worn. The lining was a little too small, so without ironing, it bunched up at the bottom and just looked funny. I decided I wanted to use the velvet rather than wear the coat this year. I made the kazashi flower, and I decided (Sunday morning) to add it to a scarflette made from what had been a sleeve of the same coat. It's attached with a pin back so that you can wash the scarflette or use the flower as a separate brooch.  Here's my mom displaying the result:

My mom really didn't want to be my model, but luckily she's pretty accommodating where my brother and I are concerned. You just gotta love her! Besides, I got half my crafty genes from her, so she should've been prepared for the inevitable modeling job, right?

For my cookie this year, I made Cracker Cookies. I got the recipe from my mother-in-law and this will be a cookie I make again and again. They were SO EASY and SO FAST! Here's the recipe:

1 sleeve club or saltine crackers

2 sticks butter

1 cup brown sugar

12 oz. chocolate chips

nuts

Line a 15" x 10" pan with aluminum foil and lay out the crackers, covering the bottom. Melt the butter. Mix in brown sugar. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and pour over crackers. Bake crackers at 400˚ for 5 to 7 minutes. Spread chocolate chips over crackers. While they are melting, spread them out so they'll cover evenly. Sprinkle with nuts. Let cool for 15 minutes and then refrigerate until cooled. Cut or break into pieces.

These taste like toffee and are Oh-S0-Delicious! I don't know how easy or hard toffee is, but these take hardly any time at all. I loved them. I did take out 2 tablespoons for the 2 sticks of butter without any taste or consistency change. My mother-in-law was going to try taking out 3 tablespoons. I'll let you know if it worked out…

I should've taken pictures of all the crafts my family did, as I really have a lot of crafty relatives – but I didn't think of that until after the party was over. Sorry! I'll do that next year, for sure! Hope you enjoy your crafty holiday traditions, and since my Grandma got my craft again, I hope she stays warm and flowery this winter!

-Heather

PS-I'm linking this post to A Soft Place To Land's DIY Day and Get Your Craft On at Today's Creative Blog.

Glittered Gift Tags and other things made from scrap materials

I had some leftover burlap from the $.86 piece I purchased to make my candy cane vase. I didn't want to throw it away so I decided to make a few gift tags. I cut two pieces of burlap a little bigger than the paper tags . I glued one tag inside the burlap for stability. I also glued one of the back.

I used a stamp set I had with owls and birds and just stamped the design I wanted onto the burlap. I purchased a glitter glue pen from Martha Stewart Crafts and went over the area I stamped with the glue pen. Sprinkle some glitter on and you have a glitter design! If you want to use some embroidery thread to stitch around the edge, that's fine, too! Poke a hole through the burlap with a screw driver or pointed object and thread a ribbon through.


I also made another glittery monogrammed button star ornament. These buttons are available in our etsy shop.

The glue writing pen is the key to getting the glitter in the right spot.

Here is a cupcake embellishment or ornament. I cut out an embroidery design I made on my machine and glued pink felt to the back. I'm just learning how to do applique!

I linked this post to The Shabby Chic Cottage! Thanks again!