Craft Idea: Stencil TShirts

Embellishing clothing is an easy way to get more life out of your clothing and show your personality. There are many ways to embellish and here is the info you need to paint a stencil onto a shirt.

Here are the supplies you will need:

• Freezer paper
• Paint
• Sponges
• Craft knife
• Stencils
• Cardboard piece
• Iron
• TShirts

First, find a stencil you like. There are many sites with free stencils available and if you have the knowledge, you can also change a picture into a stencil using a program like Photoshop.

Once your stencil is printed to the size you want to use, transfer it to the paper side (not the slick side) of the freezer paper. You can trace the image onto the freezer paper using a light box or taping them both to a window. Use a large enough piece of freezer paper that you have a border around your stencil when it is cut out.

Then you will need to cut the stencil from the freezer paper. I have a craft knife that has a small blade that swivels – perfect for cutting the stencils!

If you are unsure of doing this project, pick an easy stencil so you won’t have a problem cutting it out.

Next put your piece of cardboard into the tshirt – this is so the paint doesn’t soak onto the backside of the shirt. Turn your iron onto a low setting and position the stencil where you would like it to go. Put the freezer paper slick side down and iron into place.

Finally use a sponge (or stiff paint brush) to put paint onto the shirt. The freezer paper will help keep the paint where it should be, but if you put too much on you run the risk of it possibly going under the edges.

If you do a light covering of paint and want to do a second coat, let the first dry for a few minutes and then paint the second coat on. Once it is completely dry remove the stencil (be careful not to tear it if you want to use it again!) and throw the shirt in the dryer to set it.

I have used regular paint (not fabric paint) and my shirts turn out fine. They don’t bleed or get onto other clothes in the wash and have lasted over a year.

If you have a stain on a shirt you don’t want to get rid of, try painting over it first.

Here are two shirts I did – one for each of my kids!

Tsoniki Crazy Bull is the host of the Crafter Cast – a podcast for crafters and craftypeneurs – a new show is posted every Wednesday.

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