Heat Setting
Acrylic paint is pigment suspended by acrylic resin polymers in a pva binder (Elmer's glue), glycerin to control drying time and ammonia water. As the glycerin and water evaporate, pigment bonds with the substrate (fabric) while the suspended polymer solids come closer together until they touch and combine to form a waterproof film over the pigment. It remains soft and flexible with or without heat setting. Heat setting isn't necessary. Versatex Fixer isn't necessary to cure paint either. I personally prefer the heat setting method because baking the pigment makes it more vibrant.
Pigment alone will stain fabric. When you're color washing, you're essentially staining or dyeing with a brush. The same is done with hot bath dyeing. So, think of heat setting as "dry heat dyeing". Heat setting does two things: it forces the cotton fibers open and it melts the acrylic resin permanently bonding the pigment and resin with the fabric.
Aunt Martha's Embroidery Paint (the kind that comes in tubes with a ball point tip) is oil based with a rubbery texture. Mineral spirits or a solvent based fabric medium is necessary to thin this type of paint to make it soft. This type of paint is intended for coloring over embroidery patterns instead of using a needle and thread. It was never intended as a fabric paint.
When painting on fabric, you want the fibers to absorb the paint. You don't want the paint simply glued to the surface.
Before washing
I experimented with paint and mediums on a scrap piece of fabric and then, washed it. This is what I learned. The straight paint isn't stiff. The one with fabric medium is stiffer than the paint. The pouring medium is just a little more stiff than the straight paint or fabric medium, but it leaves a vibrant color and a slight sheen. The airbrush medium is a little less stiff than the fabric medium. It has the lowest viscosity of all the mediums and has the same effect as water, but the color is more vibrant. Retarder and water leave the softest hand and color. Washing slightly dulled the paint because it wasn't heat set.
Fabric Medium
Fabric medium can be used as a soft sealant after heat setting to make wet media more washable. The only time I recommend using fabric medium with paint is for tole painting. The fabric is painted with a heavy coat of fabric medium first to allow the paint to glide smoothly across the fabric before being absorbed into the fibers.
Pouring Medium Varnish
Pouring medium works as a shimmery varnish. Only a thin coat is needed and it dries very fast. It isn't stiff at all; it remains pliable. Do not heat set pouring medium. It will stick to the iron.
Hair dryer
Newspaper to cover work area
Roll plastic or acrylic sheet to place under fabric
Acrylic or textile paint
Blue gel glue to prevent bleeding
Scotch tape for perfectly straight lines
Retarder Medium (for blending paint)
Airbrush Medium or water (for watercolor)
Pouring Medium (for linework or glaze)
Fabric Medium (for tole painting or sealing dry media)
Solvent (for blending wax or oil media)
Mixing palette
Mixing spatula
White taklon brushes (for the wet brush method)
Flat Acrylic brushes (2, 4, 6, 3/4" wash)
Round Script 00 Brush
Stencil brushes (1/8", 1/4", 1/2")
Cotton swabs
Eyeliner smudge sponge
Sulky Iron-On Transfer Pen
Transparency sheets for image transfer
Calligraphy markers
Water brush pens
Pigment ink
Needle Tip Bottle
Airbrush
Choice of dry media
Bowl of water with detergent
Bowl of acetone
Bowl of clean water
Paper towel
Embroidery hoop
Clothes iron
100% Cotton FabricWash fabric with textile detergent, rinse and blow dry to remove sizing before painting.
Faux Screen Print Method
The faux screen print method looks like a screen printed image. The paint is not diluted for this method. It is used straight from the bottle. Typically, up to four colors are used and they are not blended. Different methods can be incorporated to achieve this effect. For painting on this dark fabric, I printed the image onto mixed media paper and cut out the sections and letters with a craft knife. I then, traced around the paper with a white heat erasable pen. For light fabric, use an image transfer for precision. I used tape and a disposable eyeliner brush to get straight, clean lines.
Wet Canvas Method
Also known as the wet-on-wet technique, it's used to create large backgrounds or scapes. Spray the fabric with water. The wetter the fabric, the lighter the color will be. Dilute paint with water also. Apply color with a wash brush in the general area where you want it and spread it with your fingers. This above photo is the sky part of a landscape panel. The upper left portion resembles clouds. This occurred naturally by blending.
Retarder Method
The retarder method requires retarder medium or glycerin which slows drying time. The paint doesn't move; it simply allows layers of paint to blend. Mix diluted glycerin into the paint. Dampen the brush with clear water. Blot excess water on a paper towel. Load the brush with paint until it's saturated, but not dripping. Fill an area with the midtone. Add shadow and highlight colors. Blend those two colors into the midtone. You can use a stencil brush, your finger, or a sculpting tool for blending. For a continuous ombré look, dip the tip of the brush in water and lightly go over the area. Dry the brush and go over it again.
Realism is achieved by utilizing highlight and shadow, and by blending one color into another. These rifles were painted directly onto fabric with only the outline and wood grain transferred.
Tole Method
Fabric versus paper
This method requires the use of fabric medium. Because of the porous nature of fabric, you need to brush it with water first and then, apply fabric medium in the area you intend to paint. Do not prime the fabric with diluted paint as you would on canvas because the brush strokes are unpredictable. Load the brush with fabric medium before loading it with paint. The brush should be loaded for the stroke you intend to make. Most decorative brush strokes are double or triple loaded. Make the strokes the same as you would on paper. I personally find this method more difficult than the retarder method.
If you want to learn decorative brush strokes, The Brushstroke Handbook by Maureen McNaughton is the best.
Dry Brush Method
Do not wet the brush with water. Dip only the tip of the brush into the paint. Hold the brush straight perpendicular with the fabric. Start where you want the color to be dark and drag the brush to fade the color. Pouncing with a brush or cotton swab creates texture.
Diluted Acrylic Method
I prefer to use this method for painted appliqué.
Traditional Watercolor Method
I tried four different media for this method: traditional watercolor, watercolor pencil, inktense pencil, and water soluble crayon. All of them are very fugitive on fabric. If you seal the edges, you won't be able to paint around them where bleeding becomes the basis for shadow. Inktense has an outliner pencil, but it doesn't work on fabric. If you intend to use watercolor, you must accept its fugitive nature and learn to use it to your advantage.
Airbrush Method
Marker Method
I tried the Artist Loft brand of watercolor markers by Michael's. There's a real learning curve to using them on fabric. Fabric absorbs the ink and it dries quickly. Saturating the fabric with ink will not bleed or blend at all. A heavy line made with the tip will not bleed either. Light strokes made with the broad part will bleed and blend if you apply a generous amount of water before it dries. The colors bleed true and they have to be built up in layers. They work as expected on paper. The one major drawback to these markers is the pens aren't labeled according to color. Work on small areas at a time and blow dry frequently. Seal on both sides.
The above photo is half of a child's illustration that I colored. I started with the daffodil. By the time I got to the pond, I had it figured out.
Washable markers are dye and water based. They are blendable with rubbing alcohol, but do not bleed true to color. This gives an interesting effect, however. Use a cotton swab for large areas and a precision swab for small areas. Place an absorbent towel under your fabric to control bleeding. Work on small areas at a time and blow dry frequently. Seal on both sides. The above photo is the other half of the child's illustration. The background is chalk. The body of the rabbit is two shades of chalk blended together with a stencil brush. Everything else is washable marker.
I had more fun working with the washable markers, but the watercolor markers were easier to control once I got the hang of it.
Handwriting Method
Plan out the placement, size, and font on a blank piece of paper or print from your computer. Spray the paper lightly with tack adhesive. Stick the paper to a light table. Place the fabric on the paper while smoothing it with your hands. Test ink flow on a scrap piece of fabric. Trace over the lettering on the fabric with a marker. Heat setting and varnishing isn't necessary.
Dry Media Method
Dry media is colored pencil, oil pastel, chalk, and charcoal pencil. Colored pencil and oil pastel are blended with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol. Use a silicone sculpting tool to soften lines. Chalk blends with either a wet brush or a stencil brush. Charcoal pencil requires a stencil brush as a blender. Chalk and charcoal do not require heat setting. Brush washable Elmer's glue outside of the area to be painted. Allow to dry. Color fabric the same as you would paper and blend. I'm using oil pastels in the following video.
Dip a brush in Fabric Medium. Brush sparingly from the edges to the center. Allow to dry thoroughly. Soak in hot water with textile detergent and rub gently to remove the glue and rinse. Gently squeeze the water out; do not wring or wad up the fabric. Blow dry and you're done. The above photo is colored pencil over an inkjet transfer.
This is another colored pencil with chalk as the background and table, and water soluble graphite for the shadow on the table. There was no image transfer for this one.
This is oil pastel.
I scrubbed all of my test pieces with a vegetable brush and the paint didn't budge. It can be used in a quilt and laundered. Fabric medium brushed over dry media is just a little less stiff than silk screen printing.
Encaustic Method with Crayons
The encaustic method of coloring fabric is an old technique that came into use shortly after wax crayons were invented at the turn of the 20th century. There are five different techniques. The encaustic method doesn't require varnishing.
The first technique is the oldest and simplest. Trace an image onto fabric and color it in with crayons. Lay a sheet of plain newspaper or brown paper bag on the fabric. Heat with an iron and remove the paper while warm. Most of the wax will be removed and the pigment will be heat set into the fabric.
The second technique involves melting crayons in a muffin tin set in an electric skillet. The hot colored wax is brushed onto the fabric with natural bristle brushes. Excess wax is removed with hot paper.
The third technique involves heating the fabric with an iron and melting the tip of the crayon onto the hot fabric. The hot wax is spread with a paper towel and rubbed into the fabric creating a watercolor effect. More colors may be added to give a blended look. Excess generally isn't removed because it is spread thinly, but this is still an option. This is a popular technique for coloring fusible appliqués.
The fourth technique involves the use of an Icarus board or heat lamp under a glass sheet to melt the wax into the fabric and blend it with a sculpting tool while it is hot. Excess wax may be absorbed by paper while the fabric is hot.
The fifth technique involves melting crayons into the fabric with a hair dryer. This method creates an abstract watercolor effect that may be well suited for backgrounds.
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