Ann chose this technique for the Facebook Postcard Fabric Art’s February Challenge. I saw Margarita Korioth demonstrating this on Quilting Arts TV a year or so ago, and thought this was such a neat technique. I made a couple of cheescloth word skins back then, but was happy to revisit this technique this month. It’s so easy!
To get started you need to write words on the shiny side of a piece of freezer paper. I’m using a Sharpie to do this.
Here I have covered the piece of freezer paper with words.
Next, paint over those words with matte medium. I’m using Golden Fluid Matte Medium, but you can use any matte medium.
Place a piece of cheesecloth over the wet freezer paper.
Smooth it down, and then add more matte medium. Be sure that the cheesecloth is in contact with the freezer paper. The first time I did this several months ago the words didn’t transfer because I had not used enough matte medium. So be generous.
Let it dry. This will take several hours. I let it dry overnight. Then pull the cheesecloth off the freezer paper. Pretty neat, huh?
And you end up with this cheesecloth word skin.
Now that i have this skin, what do I do with it? It’s kind of a funny texture, but it sews down fine. It can be added to any kind of fabric project. I made this 9 x 9 art quilt for the Facebook Postcard Fabric Art group.
I kind of went wild and spent a lot of time on the background of this piece instead of really focusing on the skin! The ribbon trim came from my good friend Barbara who gave it to me a couple weeks ago. She was cleaning out stuff and thought I might like it. It’s what we used to use on jeans way back in the 60s! As for the background, I’ll tell you more about it in the next blog post.
So what else could I do with these skins. They really can go on any piece, in a journal or on a card. I did find that in order to really see what I had written I needed to place it on top of white fabric. I tried other fabric and I couldn’t see the words. Fun technique. Let me know if you try it.
Meanwhile, if you’d like to join the Feb/March Challenge, you can by just commenting or linking up your post on yesterday’s post here. I’m real excited about getting some of the projects I listed yesterday and more done in the next eight weeks.
Want some inspiration? Check out Off The Wall Friday Linky Party.
Have a great week!
This technique is new to me and I can see a lot of possibilities, including drawing instead of writing words.
Sherrie, Yes! Also, you can just paint the skins and cut them out into shapes to add color and texture to a piece.
I could see using them in mixed-media projects. Hmmmm,,,,
Ooooh! It’s such a delight to see what you’ve done each month in our PFA Challenges, Lynda! Your “skins” tutorial is excellent. Will say more over in our Facebook group. Toodles till then! xo
Luann, Yes. And if you have nice handwriting they would look so much better!!
Ann, Thank you so much for your kind words! Great challenge this month.
Wow Lynda…….thanks for the tutorial ! You have inspired me to give this a try.
Thanks so much for sharing,
LuAnn in Oregon
I love the idea of this technique and can’t wait to try it! Thanks for sharing!
Angela, So glad you liked this. Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
Neat ideas ….. I have crappy writing but I can think of other possibilities where this would work…. like the idea of stitching stencil patterns….. very cool.
Janey, Yes, my writing is so crappy. I could just draw or trace anything on the freezer paper and that would work. Glad you like the stitching of stencil patterns. Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
I wonder if stamping text would work. I’m thinking of using Ranger Archival Ink Pads in Black.
Darlene, That’s a great idea! I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. You wouldn’t have to limit it to words. Great idea. Thanks!
Thank you for sharing this! I want to try tracing a letter my grandmother wrote a long time ago. Hope it works!
Lori, What a great idea!! Good luck!
Lynda, thank you for sharing this beautiful technique. I am curious about how the cheesecloth holds up if placed in the washing machine. I was thinking of making a quilt for each of my grand babies with a handwritten note. Many Blessings to you.
Laurel, I would not use this technique if you are planning on washing it. Instead for your grandbabies (what a great idea!) , just write on a piece of paper, scan in to computer and then print on fabric. If you aren’t familiar with that process, here is a blog post about printing photos on fabric but it would be the same for your writing. https://lyndaheines.blog/2020/02/07/printing-photos-on-fabric/ Good luck! If you have any questions about this process, email me at lsheines@gmail.com
Fantastic idea, my next fun experiment to to try
Danielle, Great! Have fun!
Thank You I saw some writing patches in a quilts and thought it was cool but had know idea how they did. Now I do wii, try soon😍
Linda, Great! It’s fun to work with. Glad you’re going to try it.
Hi this idea is wonderful….would it work on cotton perhaps…Bx
Brenda, You could write on cotton, but you won’t get the same effect as you do with cheesecloth.
I can’t wait to try this! Any chance this would stand up to being washed?
Tamara, I really wouldn’t wash it. I really doubt it would stand up. It’s fun. Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
Thank you for sharing this
Judy, Glad you liked it. Thanks for dropping by and commenting.
Why does it have to be cheesecloth? Would a sheer fabric work, do you think? A very lightweight silk or linen? I would assume that the cheescloth wouldn’t survive the washing process, but a sheer silk or linen might?
Phyllis, I don’t know, but guess it could be sheer fabric. It would have to be real sheer. As far as washing, these are not meant to be washed. I doubt washing the linen or silk would do it any good but I’ve never tried it.