With fabric paint you can revamp your plain old t-shirts into some cool and funky-looking ones. Read on…
How many times it has happened to you that you had to discard your favorite clothes, just because they got faded? Well, if you don’t wish to get rid of your old fabrics then one of the ways to make your faded old clothes look great is to paint them. You can paint stuff on your plain t-shirts which you are bored of, or try out some cool tie and dye patterns to make your clothes look funky and absolutely new. Here is info on fabric paints that will help you understand these paints and how to use them.
Fabric Painting Tips
These paints come in various types. Hence, it is important that you select the right type of paint. Whenever you are buying fabric paint, read the label properly to see what kinds of clothes it is suitable for. Cotton tends to absorb paint easily, while for silk special type of paint is required. Also, synthetic or semi-synthetic tend to resist this paint, so it is a bit difficult to paint on these materials.
Hence, it is advised to paint on cotton if you are doing it for the first time. As cotton being a natural fiber tends to absorb the paint easily, also there is a huge range of paints that you can use to paint on cotton. In the beginning, experiment with an old cotton t-shirt and acrylic paint. If you wish to create some interesting design, you can use glow in the dark paint.
Next, comes selecting the form of fabric paint. Simplest to use are paint pens and spray paints. The pens can be used to draw freehand drawing of your choice. If you want to create a particular pattern then pens are your best choice. You can also draw a freehand outline and then fill in it. For this, use colors of your choice and dip the brush in the paint bottle, and then fill the inside of the outlines. One of the quickest and easiest way of painting is using spray paint. This is quick and even children can do this.
For spray painting you will need stencils. Just place the piece of clothing you wish to paint flat on the floor, then place stencil on it, and spray paint evenly. Make sure you cover the whole stencil to get the best results. You can buy the stencils at a stationery store or even find them at a supermarket.
With fabric paints you can also try out various batik art designs. This process is similar to tie and dye. For this one needs to make a double boiler to melt clear paraffin wax, then paint over the design with wax, and let the wax penetrate the fabric completely. The wax will prevent the dye from entering the fabric, once the wax cools off, crumple the fabric to create cracks. Then dip the fabric in dyes or inks and then wash it with cool water. This way one needs to alternate between creating wax patterns and dye patterns to get the batik effect.
Sometimes, you might want to remove the paint from unwanted places. To remove the paint from skin, wash the area with a mild soap several times. To get it off from cloth, you will need to use acetone once the paint has dried.