One of the kits I have been lucky to try, for the Design Team of
http://www.graphtecgb.co.uk/shop/default.asp?category=20111026112735_GRAPHTEC the main suppliers of cameos in uk., is the fabric ink kit.
At first I was a little apprehensive as I have never done anything like this and thought I would really mess it up. How wrong was I...it was the most fun Id had for ages...
Well as with any kit, the first thing to do is unpack., and heres what the kit contains..
It also had a sponge applicator which for some reason when I took this photo I left in the box...
after watching the video which came with the kit, I felt ready to face this challenge...
I went to the local store and bought a cheap nighty and a cotton bag, both of which I wouldnt mind if I ruined them...I figured practise pieces can go in the bin if need be, but I didnt credit how easy it was to do!!
So having my items to Ink up, I then had to choose some designs.....now that took longer than anything else!! I just couldnt make up my mind for the nighty!! The bag was pretty easy as I had seen some words in the silhouette store and decided they were appropriate!!
I used one of the downloads that came with the kit, some words and eventually chose an Owl for the nighty..Now I was ready to begin...
I cut the template material on the cameo, on the same settings I would for vinyl, blade 2, speed 8 thickness 9...Then weeded out the bits I didnt need..
I then used the low tack transfer paper that was in the kit...
I gave it a good rub over to make sure the vinyl would all lift, the scraper that was included was very sturdy and had just enough flexability in it and is so much better than the old credit card I usually use!
I did remember that I needed something to block the Ink from going onto the back of my creation and found the most useful tool....hehe...
in this instance a pizza box...but it was just the right size for the bag and also slipped nicely into the nighty! and so it began...
I lined up my template to where i wanted it to be and again rubbed the transfer paper until the vinyl was stuck to the bag and then I removed the transfer paper. If you have done any vinyl then you will know exactly how to do this..
I then got the paint and squeezed a little into the palette, and used the sponge applicator, but found very quickly that with my arms limited use i couldnt control this very well, as will be evident when you look at the owl later and see his little tail! The sponge as it came was so big that i could barely hold it in my hand, so out came the scissors and I chopped off a bit of the sponge and found that to be the best method for me., because the sponge is a natural sponge you can get a little texture with it too..bonus!!
a dabble motion worked very well with the cotton bag, but i had to be a little more careful with the nighty because the material was a little stretchy. The paint was quite thick, so wasnt as messy as I had thought it might be. It went on really well, but I did wish I had more colours, so if you do buy the kit consider buying one or 2 more colours too.
I left them to dry for an hour then removed the templates and left them again to dry overnight. The next day I gave them an Iron with a hot iron to set the fabric ink you need to do this with anything likely to need a wash.
Hope this post gives you the inspiration to try this yourself and have fun...
It opens up another gift idea for the christmas stockings!!
Thank you for looking
Love debby xx
