A friend was recently planning her wedding. She wanted to print her invitations on handkerchiefs for a unique effect and wondered if I had any DIY ideas. Here’s what I came up with:
First, I printed out my test invitation in reverse on an ink jet transparency.
Next, I painted Liquitex Matte Medium (craft stores in the paint aisle) onto muslin with a sponge brush. I had to work fast since it seemed like it would dry fast. I only painted the muslin in the areas where printing would be. Why waste the good stuff? I placed the transparency onto the muslin, ink side down and used the bottom of a Sharpie to emboss. I pressed hard but could also see which areas I had done since I was working under bright lights. The air bubbles disappeared in the areas I rubbed.
I peeled off the transparency to reveal a less than perfect transfer. As I could see from the transparency, some of the design did not transfer. In the bottom left corner, I laid the transparency back down and rubbed some more. This transferred more of the ink but also caused it to bleed. Not sure if the muslin was too wet or too dry. I’m guessing too wet since I started painting the medium on the left side of each line. 
This resulted in a piece of muslin that had some sheen to it wherever the medium was painted on. It dried a bit shiny (and stiffer) in most places. Probably would go with a silk-screener for the wedding but I still like this technique and hope to find a really cool use for it. Perhaps on an already-made fabric album cover or a ready-made tote bag. Anything that wouldn’t lay flat for a silk-screen machine! I want to try it with a photograph, too!
Stay tuned for more fun ideas to try and click on over to my website WendyAmato.com for even more inspiration!
