Adventures with Freezer Paper

I found a new project to try. Hard to believe, I'm sure. :)

I've read on some blogs about doing some thing with designs on clothing and freezer paper, but never paid much attention. Then, on Friday, Abby and I received our latest edition of Disney's Family Fun magazine, whose cover art was a "Homemade Glitter Tee." Hel.lo. Very cool.

So, here is how it works...

First find a stencil (design) you want to use for your project. The Family Fun site is supposed to have the ones from the magazine up, but they haven't updated for their latest edition yet (grrrr). I googled until I found something I liked. The sample below is a bird.

For supplies, you need Freezer Paper (I had to go to two stores before I found it), fabric paint of your choice (I got mine at Jo-Anns-glittery, of course), a craft knife, and whatever you plan on decorating. I decided to practice on a bunch of Lily's plain white onesies that she just sleeps in. Makes for fun practice, because there are lots of them and she never wears them out (and if she did, they'd be undershirts).

With your craft knife, cut out a stencil of your shape. I taped the printer paper to the freezer paper to cut, and then peeled it off. Then, position it on your garment and press (don't rub) it with a warm iron. I used a medium heat with no steam (worked fine, but that was a total guess).

Then, paint away. The Freezer Paper held awesome, so don't be nervous. Blotting works best, I think.

Let it dry, and do another coat if necessary. Some of my colors needed it, some didn't.

(Can you tell it got addictive? I even played around with a heart on the butt. I bet it turns out cute.)

Very carefully.... peel off the Freezer Paper. I was impatient and didn't wait as long as I probably should have, but they still turned out awesome. I'm going to wash them before I put them on Lil, as the paint feels a little stiff. I'm hoping it will soften up a bit. But, it's all an experiment, so we shall see. How fun! Next on our list is an owl shirt for Abby, but we have to wait on the template from the magazine because that is what she wants.

Seriously, this was so easy.

...and turned out so cute.