Friday, October 26, 2007

Handpainted Chi Omega Owl Purse


Here is an idea for a sorority handcrafted gift: a simple purse embellished with your sorority mascot painted with acrylics. This example is a small denim GAP purse with a Chi Omega owl happily sitting on a branch.

HINTS FOR PAINTING ON FABRIC:

Use acrylic paints to paint on fabric. They feel stiff when they dry, but if the fabric is not in direct contact with skin, then the stiffness doesn't matter much.

If you ever paint a tee shirt, be sure to wash it first to remove the sizing that new clothing contains. This assures that the paint will adhere to the fabric better. The paint dries to the touch very quickly, but wait a few hours so that it is thoroughly dry. Then set your iron on the wool setting and preheat it. Place a piece of paper on top of your painted design and iron the design for about 10-20 seconds. The paper will pick any paint residue rather than dirtying your iron. The heat will set the paint so that it will not wash out.

Painted clothing should be turned inside out when you wash it. Machine washing on gentle is usually fine for painted designs. A gentle wash and a delicate tumble dry (low heat) will give you painted design a long life.

Do you think you could do it? What else would you like to have directions for? Leave a me a message

2 comments:

Possibilities, Etc. said...

I was just looking for a cute something for a needlepoint ornament for a friend (Chi Omega) whose best friend's daughter just pledged - I design, and was looking for a whimsical owl for her. (plagiarism) In painting on textiles - be sure to use the little bottle acrlyic paints - they are not as stiff, and don't flake off with washing. I used to paint t-shirts when going through that phase. Can also do tennis shoes to match. heeheehee

Julie said...

I forgot to mention that acrylic paint extender, used sparingly, is very helpful when you need to thin the paint a little bit. Thinning with water often makes the paint bleed out of the design and can easily ruin a painting project.
I use the 2 ounce bottles of paint almost exclusively (various brands) and have good results. Thanks for your tip, Possibilities,etc.

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