Kids Corner : Sponge Painting !
Guest Artists : Ava Silvia , Age 15 , Alma Johansson , Age 15 , Kylie Silvia , Age 20 SPECIAL THANK YOU TO BESSON FAMILY VINEYARDS FOR HOSTING
Flower pounding has been around for centuries . I decided to try it out and was amazed at the beautiful results . I combined flower pounding with stenciling on cotton tote bags because I felt the words would give the tote bags a visual focus . These bags make great gifts for any occasion .
This project is great for kids to adult . Younger children will need supervision of course .
The surprise of both picking up the stencil and the flowers after they are pounded is so much fun and challenges the mind to visualize what colors to select , and determining placement , creating pattern , and making artistic decisions .
Tips for Flower Pounding : Have pieces of clean wood to place under the fabric , or in our case , inside the tote bag to prevent the dye from going to the back . All flowers do not transfer , so test first . Pansies and Geraniums are great ! Cut off the stems .
STEP # 1 : Ava & Kylie tap acrylic paint into stencil that has been taped to tote bag . There is a piece of wood inside bag so paint does not go to other side .
place flower face down on the fabric and hold the parchment paper down on flower to hammer . Parchment paper allows you to see where your flower is on the fabric .
The satisfaction of seeing a flower transfer to your fabric is so rewarding and surprising . You can use any cotton garment , table runner , napkins , T-Shirts … use your imagination .
SUPPLIES :
Cover for Table : Scissors : water & containers to wash out brushes
Supplies for Stenciling
Plastic Stencils -Dollar Store Stencil Brushes -Dollar Store Blue Painters Tape Paper Plates Acrylic Paint
Supplies or Pounding Flowers
Hammers : Parchment Paper : Pieces of Wood to Pound On : 100 % Cotton Fabric - We used Tote Bags A test cloth to try out pounding flowers Flowers ( Flowers that Transfer Best to Fabric are Daisies , Geranium Petals and Leaves , Pansies , Petunias , Lantana , Rose Petals , Vincas Marigolds , Iris Flowers
Step # 2 : Ava lifts off stencil to reveal lettering . Kylie has placed a flower under test fabric which is on a piece of wood , placed parchment paper over flower and is ready to hammer flower .
72 SUMMER 2024 gmhTODAY Magazine : Go . Make history ... gmhtoday . com