It is amazing the clothing and accessories you can find at thrift stores, consignment shops and even the in the back of your own closet. Plain velvet or suede or most fabric items can be turned into shimmering holiday fashions, with just a little paint and a stencil. Yep, these beauties are stenciled!
You can watch the AM Northwest Video Demo right here, just click on the play arrow!
Or, go to the AM Northwest TV station's website and watch it there, at:
~Clothing and accessories such as skirts, vests, blazers, shoes, belts, hats and fabric covered headbands (Suede is best, velvet is good or other smooth fabric. The pearlescent paints pop on black but can be used on all colors)
~Mini to extra large translucent plastic stencils (*The Crafter's Warehouse)
~Lumiere metallic and pearlescent paints in jars or a fine tip bottle set of various colors (**Jacquard Products)
~Small, Medium and Large quality stencil brushes with flat head and nylon bristles (mine are Loew-Cornell)
~Sticky tape style lint brush with handle
~Spray adhesive (I used Elmer's in a spray can)
~Masking tape and clear Scotch tape
~Shirt painting board or large corrugated piece of cardboard to fit clothing
~Waxed paper or large plastic bag to cover board if not a treated shirt board
~Palette (can be a plastic washable type or even a heavy paper plate
~Liquid dishwashing (type for washing dishes by hand)or handsoap
~Several plastic grocery bags
~Bristle scrub brush with a wood handle type (NOT a dish scrubber) AND paper towels
*All the fantastic 6" square and 12" square designer stencils used for the sample and demo projects are on:
**Lumiere metallic, pearlecent, halo and *hi-lite (*best on dark fabrics) color paints can be used on natural and synthetic fabrics (as well as leather, paper and wood) and can be found at the:
TIP 1: I recommend starting with a nice flat surface of a smaller accessory like a suede belt. They are usually very inexpensive and the easiest to stencil on. Skirts are nice and flat as well and can cost very little! Suede is my personal favorite surface, velvet is gorgeous but a bit harder to stencil on, as the fibers move a little. Very thin fabrics are NOT recommended.
TIP 2: Use a fair amount of paint. Enough to bring out a nice solid color, but not too much that it seeps under the stencil openings and globs. Velvet will need more paint then suede or other smooth fabircs.
TIP 3: When stenciling the designs, make sure to hold down the stencil close to where you are working, especially on curved surfaces! Check often to make sure the stencil does not shift.
*TIP 4: Promptly clean your stencils after each time you finish using them, by placing them on a FLAT piece of disposable plastic and gently scrubing them with liquid soap, and a soft bristled brush with warm water. The sooner the better. Clean the backside also as paint will accumulate inside the cut areas and the adhesive can build up as well.
Instructions
Stenciling Basics
1. Brush fabric well with lint brush. Plan your design position and choose your stencil. Stuff shoes or hats with plastic bags firmly. Do a test on a hidden part of your fabric to make sure the adhesive does not leave any residue.
2. Masking an area to keep it unpainted: One use for tape is to mask off areas of a project to protect them from any paint. Other uses for tape are to mask off areas that are plastic on shoes (such as on these heals) and portions of a stencil design you do not want to use.
3. Using the appropriate tape for the fabric, secure about a 3" long piece of tape around the four straight edges of the stencil for skirts or vests, or to stencil just the tips of shoes (as shown with red taped areas) and to hold a stencil in place if the spray adhesive lifts! Spray the back (less shiny) side of the stencil with adhesive. Wait 10 seconds then secure it to your fabric. Pour or squeeze a small puddle of paint onto your palette, dip just about 1/8" of the tip of the stencil brush into the paint, dab it onto a stack of paper towels and begin pouncing up and down over the cut out areas. Notice the slightly angled straight top edge on the finished shoe (right photo), as this was masked off with Scotch tape and pressed down through the openings of the stencil.
4. Two Techniques: When stenciling, you can stop the paint application before you reach the stencil's cut out edge as in the sunburst pattern on this dress (left) and on the green holiday card (bottom right). You can also use more then one color in an area if it is large enough. This way you can add shadows or highlights in the center or along the edges of an opening as seen on the silver tree on the red holiday card.
5. Allow the paint to set for about 2-3 minutes, then carefully and slowly pull of the tape and the stencil. You don't want to bend portions of the stencil! Leave plastic in shoes and hats until dry (overnight to be safe).
6. *After paint has dired, washable fabrics need to be heat set (or "fixed") for the paint to become permanent. Accessories that will NOT be washed do not need heat seetting, such as belts, shoes, purses or headbands. Ironing is the best method. Use a dry iron and iron on the reverse side on the appropriate setting for the fabric. You can also use a clothes dryer on the hottest temperature the fabric can take, for about 35 to 45 minutes.
