Lasso The Moon

Freezer Paper Portrait Tutorial (of sorts)

A couple weeks ago I went down to Texas, mostly to see my new baby niece, but also to celebrate my dad's 50th birthday.  in keeping with my New Year's Resolution this year, I had to give him something more than a card, so I decided that the freezer paper portraits I made of my kids would be just the thing.  Here's what Emma's looked like last time I showed you:

I thought the green was a little overpowering, so I planned on retro-fitting a background design around Emma's head.

I mapped out the flowers and random dots that I wanted to use.  I was trying to give it a screen-printed look with overlapping graphic images.  I drew these directly onto the freezer paper, plastic side down.

After I cut out the shapes with my swivel knife (fiskars makes a great one!) I ironed the stencils directly onto the canvas.  This can be a little tricky, since the heat makes the paint want to come up.  Just be careful and use a cloth between the canvas and the iron.

Then, paint inside the stencil design.  The ironing made a really good seal, so there isn't much seeping.  I tried to keep the yellow paint from overlapping the black.  It's supposed to be a background, remember?

Ta Da!  Next came the flowers.  I let them overlap the dots for a layered feel, but not the black of the portrait.

Cutting out those flowers was tedious, but worth it for the effect.  You have to cut out each image separately, since the stencils can only be used once.  They tear when you remove them from the ironed surface.
 
Ethan's was a little easier (relatively) since I was able to do the background first.

Start by painting your canvas a solid color.  Then plot out your background shapes.  It helps to know approximately where the portrait will be, so your background isn't crowding or lacking anywhere.

I love peeling off that freezer paper!  Next comes the portrait.  I printed out the stark black and white image, then traced it onto the freezer paper by taping both to a sunny window.  Then I filled in all of the stencil portions with black sharpie so there would be no confusion during cutting.  The black goes, and the white stays.

Then cut and cut and cut.  Ouch.  Hand cramp.  There are only two "white islands on this stencil.  They are the reflections in Ethan's eyes.  When I cut these out, I had to save the white dots and iron them on before painting.

The reward for all of that cutting is almost instant.  Carefully iron the stencil down, and paint.

I think the painted stencil looks cool, above.  It even looks like Ethan to me. 
And the reveal!

My dad liked them.  Donnie was annoyed that I gave them away.  I guess I'll be making a couple more.  Maybe for Christmas.

Happy birthday, Dad!

Gocco-torial

I know this tutorial is long over-due, but we have been so busy, and spending time blogging seemed almost decadent to me.  But I've found a few minutes, as well as batteries for the camera.  Enjoy!

The Print Gocco looks like this.

It is basically a tiny version of screen-printer.  The printable image is just under 4x6, so it is perfect for cards, which I'll be demonstrating here.

The first step doesn't actually include the gocco at all.  I planned the design of the card, and drew it first in pencil, full scale.  Then  I traced over the design with the carbon pen that was included in the kit.  The carbon heats up the image enough to burn the image onto the screen.

Then comes the exciting part...  Slide the blank screen into the gocco.  Then position the artwork on the pad.  You can check your placement through the window in the top.

Next, load two flashbulbs into the housing.  These are one-time only use bulbs, so I always get really nervous right here.

Then, you snap the housing into the top.  Press down with both hands until you hear the bulbs pop, and you see a flash of light.  Hold it down for about 5-10 seconds after that to fully utilize the heat from the bulbs.  Then, when you open the gocco, pull out the burned screen.  You should be able to see where the image has burned through, like a stencil.

And that's how you burn the screen.  The next process is printing, and I'll show you how that's done in my next post.

Initial Tee Tutorial

Make this with me:

First, choose the letter style that you want on your shirt.  I printed mine from the computer at about 6 inches tall.  It fit really well on the little shirts.  The font I used was called curls.  I think it's pretty standard.  Print the letter (or freedhand) and cut it out:

Then, pick your fabric.  Make sure it looks good with your tshirt.

Next, iron on a paper-backed fusible webbing to the WRONG side of the fabric.  Make sure that you read the manufacturer's instructions for this, because they are all different.  With mine, you do NOT use steam for this step.

Next, take the paper template that you made and lay it UPSIDE-DOWN on the paper backing.  Trace around it with a pencil--directly onto the paper backing. 

Using very sharp scissors, cut the letter out.  Then carefully peel the backing of of the fabric:

Then, position your letter on the shirt, exactly where you want it to stay, and carefully iron it on.  The product I use requires that I DO use steam for this step, but all products are different I have found.
This is also a good time to add any other shapes that you would like on your shirt.  I added a small heart:

Next, turn your shirt inside-out and attach a tear-away stabilizer  right behind the applique.  You can attach it using pins, or I used a temporary spray adhesive that I had left over from a quilt project.

Now you are ready to sew.  Set your sewing machine stitch to a wide, close zig-zag in a coordinating color thread.  If your tension is even a little bit off, make sure that the bobbin thread is the same color.  Stitch all the way around the letter.  Don't forget to backstitch at the beginning and end of a line of stitching!

Turn the tshirt inside out again, and CAREFULLY tear away the stabilizer.   Try to get it out of the small places, too.

To cut down on itchiness and make a more professional look, iron on a fusible knit interfacing to the inside of the shirt.  This will also help secure your stitches.  And that's it!  You now have your own initial tee!  You can now wear it, or add even more embellishment, like I did below, with the ribbon and button.

I can't wait to give these to the little flower girls!

Have fun making your own!  Or you might want to skip all that and just order them here!