Surface Design Tips: How to Make a Padded Surface for Fabric Stamping – Quilting Daily

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Whenever a new batch of commercial fabric samples arrives in our offices, everyone gathers around to ooh, aah, and dream about how they would use this or that pattern to make a quilt, bag, accessory, or baby item. I’m always first in line to see what’s new, hungrily eyeing every stack of new fat quarters as if I’ve never seen one before. And like I didn’t have a bunch already sitting in my studio waiting for some attention.

Hand-dyed fabric by Marcia Derse.

But I’m an equal-opportunity fabric monger: I drool just as much over hand surface-designed fabrics. I gobble up every new technique and have even tried some fabric stamping, ice dyeing, resist dyeing, and fabric painting. I love it.

So I can honestly say I stood open-mouthed at the beautiful stamped and hand-dyed fabrics created by Marcia Derse when they came in for photographing last summer for the October/November 2012 issue of Quilting Arts Magazine. Fabric stamping is one of the ways you can make your own unique textiles for very little money, especially if you make your own stamps. In her article, Marcia showed many ways to dye fabric using water-based resist dyeing techniques.

Like Quilting Arts Editor Vivika Hansen DeNegre, I was particularly attracted to Marcia’s tips on how to make your own stamps and how to make a padded surface for printing. Marcia uses the stamps to apply the resist in patterns on the fabric before over-dyeing.

marcia derse with hand dyed fabrics
Marcia Derse and her hand-dyed fabrics.

A padded surface, Marcia explains, allows for the tools to push the designs into the fibers of the fabric. She makes her padded surface with leftover plywood and studio scraps.

How to make a padded printing surface

1. Cover a piece of plywood that is slightly larger than the fabric you will print with 2-4 layers of batting. (For example, if you mostly print fat quarters, a 30″-square board will work well.)

2. Cover the batting with sturdy fabric like cotton duck and staple the fabric to the back of the board.

Note: You can use this padded surface for Thermofax® screen printing and monoprinting, as well as for fabric stamping.

To print with a stamp, place the fabric on your padded work surface and apply the resist. After the fabric has been printed, dry it flat on a layer of newspapers (if you hang the fabric to dry, the resist could run). Allow the resist to dry overnight or until it is not tacky.

Marcia has many tips and techniques for fabric painting, printing and dyeing in her Quilting Arts October/November 2012 article and in her guest spot on Quilting Arts TV Episode 1007 (Paint and Dye). Anyone who loves fabric (and really, who doesn’t?) and surface design will appreciate and learn from her tutorials.

P.S. Do you prefer commercial fabrics or hand-dyes? A combination? Leave your comment below.

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