DIY Graffiti Beach Towels

Summer is just about here, which means we'll be (hopefully) hitting the beach, pool, sprinkler...um, watering hose...When that time comes, let your towel show your colorful enthusiasm! I used the Tulip One-Step Tie Dye Kit to draw on white towels and check out the effect! I call them my Rainbow Graffiti Beach Towels! Here's a video I made with the complete instructions!

LINK

Supplies:

Tulip One-Step Tie Dye Kit, five-pack

White cotton towels

Plastic tablecover

Grids to place under the towel so the dye doesn't spread underneath

Directions:

1. Wash the towels in the machine. Take them out while they are damp.

2. Set up the tablecover and place the grids on top.

3. Place the towel on top and smooth out any wrinkles.

4. Mix the dyes according to package directions.

5. If you want, sketch out your design first,or just free style. Draw on the towel using the filled bottles.

6. Let set for six hours, cover with plastic.

7. Wash in cold water. Tumble dry.

8. Enjoy your summer!

What would you doodle on yours???

 

The Ultimate Craft Hoarder Quiz

A little pile of ribbon here, a few shelves of fabric there, twenty boxes of scrapbook paper stacked in your garage...have you ever wondered...
"Am I a craft hoarder?"  

If you have to ask yourself that little question, chances are you may be. Let's find out together! We've assembled a quiz to help you find out exactly where you rank!

It's time to get our your paper and pencil so you can jot down your answers!

The Ultimate Craft Hoarder Quiz

1. You redeem more coupons for crafting than you do for grocery shopping.
a. All the time, I never miss my chance to get 40% off.
b. Only during peak crafting season.
c. Craft coupons? What craft coupons?

2. You have dozens of bottles of paints that are solidified, what do you do with them?
a. Save them! I'll add a bit of water and bring them back to life.
b. Look for any that are salvadgable, toss the rest.
c. Drive them to the nearest landfill for proper disposal.

3. The dozens of clear bins you bought on sale to organize your supplies are currently:
a. Still in shopping bags in the garage.
b. In use, but not in any kind of order.
c. Filled, filed, color coded and labeled.

4. The state of your crafting space:
a. Just fine, I have a path to walk through and a 3'x3' work area that is cleared.
b. Messy, but I project clean every month.
c. It's ready 24/7/365 for a magazine photo shoot.

5. The time you held a crafty yard sale, this happened:
a. You made $5, shut down the operation, and went shopping at other yard sales.
b. Changed your mind on selling that box of random cardstock, just as someone said they wanted it.
c. You sold everything, and donated the money to a local charity.

6. Your family has given you the ultimatum - "Your 500-piece glitter collection or us."
a. You kiss them goodbye and tell them it's been nice.
b. You compromise and rent a storage shed to hold the glitter
c. You dump the glitter and tell them they are all the sparkle you need in your life!

7. When your daughter asks for some sparkly yarn for a school project, you immediately:
a. Run to your craft room and hide said yarn so she can't get her hands on it.
b. Cut off a few feet and tell her to use it wisely.
c. Give her the key to your secret expensive yarn stash to do with as she pleases.

8. Your local hardware store is having a blowout sale on mason jars.
a. You push away other shoppers and buy so many cases you have to get another cart.
b. Grab a couple cases, they will come in handy at your cousin's wedding next year.
c. Think about it, then pass on by cause you don't have a project in mind for them.

9. At the end of a crafty girls' night, you:
a. Stay to the end to take home everyone's leftover paper, glitter, flower pedals, sequin, fabric scraps and cardboard coffee sleeves. Yes, you even pick them out of the trash bin.
b. Clean up your area and choose a few select items to add to your collection.
c. Ask everyone to gather unused supplies so you can donate them to your child's classroom.

10. Your friends stop by unannounced & want to see your craft room. You invite them in and...
a. Build makeshift furniture from piles of fabric, stacks of craft magazines and boxes of rubber stamps.
b. Ask them to make a project from supplies you will select for them.
c. Present them with a pretty grab bag of brand-new supplies that you had already prepared for moments like this.

Now let's tally up your points!  Give yourself the following:
3 points for each a. 
2 points for each b. 
1 point for each c. 

The Results

If you got 25-30 points you are...The Ultimate Craft Hoarder!

Congrats! You are a legit craft hoarder. Be careful, because your family is likely planning an intervention at this very moment. Maybe it's time to think about renting a portable dumpster to

get a clean start?

If you got 16-24 points you are The Creative Mess!

You are a borderline hoarder, but you are aware of that. You know how to have fun, get messy, but still keep a grip on reality (and your glue gun).

If you got 10-15 points you are Little Miss Crafty Organizer!

Well, aren't you the crafty saint of all things organized and pristine? We suggest you knock over a jar of glitter just so your friends don't hate you.

Tell us below what your score was! We want to hear how you did!

Tie-Dye Hawaiian Halter Top

Today concludes my 3 part series on tie-dye hula gear for summer. We made a hula skirt, onesie with lei and today I’ll show you on to transform an old tank top into a tye-die halter.

SUPPLIES

Tank Top

Tulip One-Step Tie-Dye Kit

Sewing Machine

Elastic

Scissors


This whole look was inspired by a post on Make It and Love It where the blogger made a fringed ombre skirt out of 3 different colored red shirts. This skirt inspired me to make a hula skirt for my daughter. Putting her in a plain T-shirt seemed like a shame so I tie-dyed another tank top and my sewing Goddess of a mother transformed it into a tank top.

The Tulip One-Step Tie-Dye kit is super easy to use. The package comes with dye, rubber bands, gloves and a handy dandy guide to how to bind your shirt to achieve different patterns. I used old (adult sized) tank tops to create the halter and skirt. I went with a twisty multi-colored look. Once the tank had been dyed, washed and dried I set my mother to work on making a halter top.

Cut a your tie-dyed tank top apart just under the arm holes.

Next, cut the back from the front where they are joined at the shoulders.

Finally, cut the back away where it is joined to the front under the arm holes.

This will be the halter top. Use left over arm and neck binding for the neck and back ties. Trim them close to the finished edge. Fold what is left of the shoulder around a length of the salvaged binding. Do this for each side. Do the same for the back straps.

Finish the bottom of the halter with a binding made from long, two inch strips of the left over tank top. For a better fit, run thin elastic inside the binding. Tie straps around back and neck.

I suddenly feel compelled to make the cupcake liner leis on the cover of the latest issue of Kids Crafts 1-2-3 to finish off the complete outfit.

DIY Screen Printed Canvas

 Small canvases are very inexpensive at the craft stores.  With just a little effort, they can pack a big design punch!  This time around I've used some graphic Ikat style fabric, which we stretched and stapled around the original canvas.  Then I created a pretty permission free graphic (you'll find it below) that I burned on a screen using the Tulip Screen-It.  This was so easy to do and if you follow the video instructions on the ILTC website, you'll have a stunning screen you can use up to 75 more times! Simply fabulous!

You will need:

12"x12" blank canvas

Black Tulip Soft Fabric Paint

Aleene's Repositionable Tacky Spray

Tulip Screen It

Painter's Tape

Staple Gun and Staples

 1.) Print your image in black ink.  Set yourself up in a light free room with the ScreenIt and a small lamp with the yellow bulb provided in the machine.  Turn off over head light and turn on yellow bulb.  You'll need to spray the platform, place the screen on the platform.  Use squeegee to remove any air bubbles.  Spray your image, place image down on screen, use squeegee to remove any air bubbles.  Place cover on top, turn machine on and burn screen for 8 minutes.  8 minutes later, turn top of machine 180 degrees, turn back on and burn screen for an additional 8 minutes.  2.)  Soak screen in a tub of cool water for 10 minutes.  Gently rub the emulsion off of the burned areas with your fingers while screen is submerged.  Remove from water and use a soft sponge to remove remaining emulsion from the burned areas, you can do this on your printing platform.  3.) Set the screen on a towel to dry.  4.) Cut fabric to fit around edges of canvas.

5.) This is a two person job, really, but you can do it alone if you work slowly and methodically.  Stretch fabric tight and staple, start with the center and work out to sides, three staples per side is good.  To get the sides done, you will need to cut a little square off of one side of the folded fabric, then tuck, fold and staple.  6.) Tape the screen flat to the front of your canvas with painter's tape. Make sure there are no bubbles, you don't want the paint to spread outside of the printed areas. 7.) Place canvas on Screen-It platform.  Squirt out a thick line of paint and squeegee it across the screen.  8.) Remove tape and screen and let your canvas dry.

 Here is the image I used, just right click and save to your computer.  Print to fit 8.5x11 in jet black ink.

It's so much fun to screen print, you may find it just a little addicting.  I'm thinking about using my screen on some t-shirts and maybe even some pillows for our outdoor porch.  Have you ever screen printed?  What would you like to create with the Tulip Screen-it?

Get more great DIY tutorials on iLovetoCreate.com and find more DIY Fashion and Style at DIYDoyenne.com!

Cheers,

Madge

20 Creative & Crafty Quotes to Share

Having been a graphic designer and super font and illustration nerd for the past few years, I have an affinity for typography and words.  So in my new position as Social Media Specialist at iLoveToCreate, I have a LOT of fun creating catchy quote art to post on our social media sites (I realize I have the best job on earth, since I get to create quote art ON THE JOB).  I thought I would share them here for you to see, pin, and even print out if you want!  Most of these come from my own personal experience and passion for crafting, so they come from the heart. Some are my own quotes and puns, while others are photos or doodles I've created mixed with quotes from great artists.  I hope you like them!

Do you have a favorite?  I think mine is "I was crafty when crafty wasn't cool."

Tie-Dye Hawaiian Onesie

Summer is here and it is time to start sporting your hula skirts and/or Hawaiian shirts. Last week I showed you how I tie-dyed Tallulah's hula skirt, this week I wanna show you what I whipped up for Baxter. Boys can get into the spirit of the luau too, just you wait and see.

SUPPLIES

Onesie

Tulip One-Step Tie-Die Kit

Floral fabric

Scissors

Fabric Fusion Peel and Stick Tape

If your onesie is brand new you will need to wash it first.

The Tulip One-Step Tie-Die Kit comes with oodles of rubber bands and an easy to follow diagram about how to bind your onesie to get your desired pattern. I went for the twist into a shell shape.

Once your onesie is bound with rubber bands it is time to apply the dye. I went with a rainbow effect adding a different color to each section of the 'pie'. Allow to sit overnight. The next morning wash according to package directions.

I wanted to add a lei to the onesie to tie my Hawaiian theme together. Like any red blooded mother, I love it when my kids match. I chose a floral cotton fabric.

The next step is to cut out enough flowers to make a lei. Using Fabric Fusion tape attach your flowers to the onesie in the shape of a necklace.

All that was left to do was slap this new outfit on my cutie pie of a son. I think he looks ready for the luau. What about you?

As always thanks to my crafty mama Fredda Perkins for all her help!