Fabric Spray Paint Test-Part 2

Hi everyone! A while ago, I wrote a post about testing how Tulip Color Works fabric paint works. This week, I wanted to talk more about how the paint worked when using a stencil.

After my previous test and discovering the paint’s colors didn’t blend together like I planned, I wanted to see if I could use the paints with a stencil. I had an idea to use the paints with a stencil on a future project, but I would need to make the stencil myself. Since I couldn’t buy a stencil, I wanted to know what I could use to make the stencil that wouldn’t allow the paint to bleed under the stencil.

I never tried to use a self made stencil before, but for my future project I needed to make sure I can make the stencil myself. For the fabric spray paint tests, I wanted to make the stencil out of something I can buy easily at the store or I already own in my house. I originally wanted to use freezer paper, wax paper, and blue paint tape for my tests…

For my stencil, I wanted the stencil to be stuck to the fabric, like tape would. I wanted the stencil to stick to the fabric because I wanted the edges of the stencil to make a crisp, clean edge.

I knew from talking to quilters and watching quilt shows that butcher paper can be ironed onto fabric with the plastic side down. I thought that wax paper would do the same, but after ironing it, the wax melted onto the iron. After cleaning my iron and feeling very embarrassed, I decided to use my backup plan, masking tape, in the test.

The fabric swatches I used for my tests is cotton muslin. It was scrap fabric from something I was working on. The pieces were so small I couldn’t use them in my project, but too big to throw away. So, this was the perfect use for them.

When I put the freezer paper, masking tape, and blue paint tape on the fabric swatches, I applied them in different patterns so I’d know which one is which.

Here is the freezer paper…

Masking tape…

And the blue fabric paint…

After spraying the fabric with paint, I let the fabric dry before I pealed the tape and freezer paper off.

Before I peeled the tape and paper off, I could see the masking tape pealed off a bit before I painted it…

After looking at the photos I took before I painted the fabric, I could see I didn’t do a good job sticking the tape onto the fabric. So, the paint was able to leak under that part of the tape. If I use masking tape as a stencil or to mask out a portion of fabric I do not want to be painted in the future, I will need to make sure the tape is stuck down better.

Once I pulled off the freezer paper and tape, the fabric swatches looked like this…

I liked the way all the fabric swatches turned out, but between the tape and freezer paper, I like the way the freezer paper turned out. The edge of the lines are crisper and cleaner than the tape. Even though I liked the freezer paper more than the tape, the tape’s lines turned out very clean as well. Just not as clean as the freezer paper.

As for if I’ll use the tape or the freezer paper for a stencil, I don’t think the tape will work well, but the freezer paper will. I can draw the design on the paper, cut it out, iron it to the fabric, and then once I’m done painting I can take the paper off and then reuse it a few more times. Also, since the freezer paper comes on a roll, I can cover more of the fabric and protect it from over spray from the paint. Both the blue and masking tape, on the other hand, can only be used as strips, can be cut into small shapes, cannot protect the fabric from over spray, and can only be used once before it looses it’s stick. I still need to do a few more tests before I’m sure that the freezer paper is the one I want to eventually use, but I believe it’s what I’m going to make my stencil out of.

That’s all for now! Thank you for reading!