Posted by
Heather Cameron
Wednesday, October 3, 2012 3:27 PM EDT
My daughter had a professional day home from Kindergarten, so I needed a craft project to keep the day occupied. (I can only play “Princess in Peril” for so many hours before I want to run away screaming!) So, I came up with these fun and fairly easy DIY Halloween silk screens.
Materials
- Wax paper.
- A roll of plain, flat shelf liner paper (the kind where you peel off the backing).
- Exacto knife.
- Scissors.
- Marker.
- An inexpensive picture frame (I have one from IKEA), with the glass and paper pieces removed.
- Tape.
- One sheer curtain or piece of fabric (I also sourced mine at IKEA).
- Fabric paint — colour(s) of choice up to you.
- Finally, something to use for swiping the paint over the cutout. I used my Sears card — I knew it would be useful some day!
DIY
STEP 1: Cut it
Draw or trace fun shapes on your wax paper. Place the traced wax paper over a cut out square of shelf liner paper, and cut out the shape(s) with the exacto knife. Note: You are cutting through the wax paper and the liner paper.
Remove the cutout, and give it a trim or clean up with the knife or scissors. Cut out all the shapes you like, leaving a wide area or square of liner paper to protect the shirt or fabric.
STEP 2: Frame it
Cut out a piece of the sheer curtain or fabric so that it can be taped onto your picture frame. Use masking tape to keep the sheer in place and pull it as tight as you can. It should be very taught.
Remove the backing of the shelf liner and stick it to your fabric or shirt. Press it down firmly, to get out any bubbles. Place your frame over top of the liner paper.
STEP 3: Paint it
Squirt a line of paint on either side and use your swiper of choice (I really did use my Sears card) to firmly drag the paint across one way, then back the other way. Remove the frame, carefully. Pull off the liner even more carefully... and you have a fun silk screen!
We did a few T-shirts and some napkins.
What’s really fun is to let your kids draw things that you can cut out and silk screen onto shirts for them. Then they can wear their own art and be deservedly proud. Just be careful what you print...
…because, sometimes, life can imitate art!
