Happy almost-Christmas, Partners in Craft! There isn’t much time left for crafting (or blogging for that matter), so today’s post will be short and sweet! This project can be simple or more complicated, depending on how much time you wish to spend. It is also entirely customizable, which makes it great for gifting OR making for yourself during your holiday vacation. Let me introduce our third “nifty gifty,” the stamped tote bag!
First of all, let me refer you to our stamped dish towel tutorial (found here). Most of the supplies and procedures for today’s project are the same. The only real difference is that this time we stamp on a tote bag, like this bag from Joann craft store. I buy mine in a multipack and make several at a time. I usually do not wash the bags before painting, since they often wrinkle badly. You can see from the picture that I like the Tulip brand “soft” fabric paints because the paint stays relatively soft and flexible on the fabric.
The simplest bag I created utilized one large stamp and one basic ombre color scheme. (If you don’t have a stamp, see the dish towel tutorial for an easy way to make your own!) I first mixed the blue, green, and white paints to create a teal color. I stamped the first row of starfish in this color. Next, I added white paint to lighten the shade and stamped another row. My final row utilized an even lighter shade, creating the ombre effect.
I love an easy peasy technique! However, also tried a more complicated design using multiple stamps, various paint colors, and fabric pen detailing. I would keep this one, were it not destined to be gifted…
Another fun idea, for when time allows, is mixing your techniques. This next bag was dip dyed and thoroughly dried before being painted with shell stamps! So many possibilities with this nifty gifty! Now I just need to make one for me! 😉
