Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Fun Pirate Matryoshka Tutorial

When I’m not working on painting I spend a lot of time searching the Internet for fun, creative, do-it-yourself tutorials.  One of my all time favorite sites to visit is Lil Blue Boo.  I have been wanting to try this tutorial by Ashley at Lil Blue Boo for so long and I think that maybe the stars are aligned because I finally have the opportunity to sit down and try this! 

I love all the creative energy at Lil Blue Boo and I am so inspired every time I visit this blog.  Ashley offers an array of fabulous and fun tutorials, and I hope that someday I might try all of them.  Her clothing line is adorable and timeless, and she even offers clothes for dolls, too!  I don’t sew - I don’t even have a sewing machine.   But I am now motivated to purchase one so I can get on the bandwagon with upcycling clothing.  In the meantime, I’m happy to try tutorials for clothing that don’t require a sewing machine, and I found the perfect one here

Ashley’s Pirate Matroyshka doll transfer is just too cute!  I thought making t-shirts would be a fun stocking stuffer for my nephew and niece (and, of course, a onesie stocking stuffer for my baby girl!).  Everyone agrees that homemade gifts are the best!  They’re the most meaningful and have so much sentimental value.

I followed this tutorial exactly as it is written.  I even purchased the Dharma Trading Company’s Super Soft Transfer Paper, as recommended by Ashley.   The t-shirts I used are 100% cotton from Walmart.  I have a Canon printer and I followed the setting recommendation from Dharma Trading Co for using their Soft Transfer Paper.  I thought I would try a darker shirt just to see how it would turn out and I do NOT recommend it…lighter is better!  This tutorial is very well written, fun and easy to follow.  

Now, I mentioned earlier that I wanted to make t-shirts for my nephew AND niece.  As those of you with children surely know, you can’t get away with doing something for one and not the other.  Both kids think pirates are really cool but I wanted the t-shirts to be super special and unique for each kiddo…so I altered Ashley’s image to create a girl Pirate Matroyshka.  And here she is…

I photographed my progress with this tutorial...



Girl Pirate Matryoshka printed on Dharma Trading Co transfer paper and cut out for my niece's t-shirt (and my daughter's onesie)



Placing the image 

Placing the image on the onesie

Pirate Matryoshka for my nephew



I ironed the shirts before ironing on the image

Ironed on image - it turned out perfectly!  I love it!

Close-up

My attempt to try the image on a darker shirt - I would highly recommend using light or white t-shirts with this transfer paper!

Cute stocking stuffer!

What a fun tutorial!?!  You should try it!

Won’t my niece and nephew just love their new shirts?  The perfect gift for little pirate fans!  Thank you Lil Blue Boo!!!  


Saturday, October 23, 2010

A work in progress

I'm working hard to get this site up and running!