Lil' Frogger, Silhouette Fabric Paintin' on a Onesie

Remember that old Atarti game, Frogger?  The one where the frog has to move across traffic and jump logs and such to get to the lily pad on the other side?

Yeah. Memmmoories. ;) Well, in memory of that, hop on over to our website and get some individual fabric paints (which you can mix to create your own colors, especially with the base colors) or the Silhouette Fabric Paint Starters Kit and let the fun begin as you make all sorts of great stuff.  For instance, this cute lil' Frogger onesie that I made for a friend's hoppin' new baby. :)

To make this, I bought the lil' onesie for only $2.50 at Wal Mart (love cheap onesies), and then got to work on my design. First, I found the title and frogger image online, then I used Silhouette Studio to trace, detach and then form a cut-away image for my design.
Added the border and "lil", and then sent it through for the cut, first using the "cut screen" to be sure that all the correct areas would be cut.  I was also sure to leave a little bit of extra space around my image and the border of my stencil sheet so that I would have some free work space as I painted over my image. Oh, and I used stencil vinyl which is great because both it and the transfer tape that comes with it are see-through.

Displays in red what lines will actually be cut.

Just a note: The great thing about Silhouette's Stencil Vinyl, is that is comes with transfer tape sheets included with the roll.  AKA, when I cut out a piece of my vinyl, I can cut the transfer sheet right along with it, thus they are just the same size. Works nicely. I hadn't realized that until I opened my roll, and was happily surprised. :)

Stencil Vinyl includes transfer tape with the roll

Once you have your image cut, use your hook to weed out the pieces of the image that normally you'd be "keeping", meaning, the pieces or areas that you want to have filled in with the fabric paint, to create your stencil.

Use your hook to weed out the image, creating your stencil

Once they are removed, apply the transfer tape to the top of the image, sticky side down, and use your scraper tool to apply the tape to the top of the vinyl.  Be sure to rub it extra carefully across any small pieces, such as the center pieces of letters (like with the 'O' or 'R') to be sure that they also adhere to the tape. Once it is adhered, carefully pull the vinyl and transfer tape away from the vinyl backing, and then position on the fabric. Again, use your silhouette scraper tool to rub and press the vinyl to your fabric. 

Hint: With my small inner pieces (eyes and mouth, inner portion of the 'O' and 'R') I had to be extra careful when pulling off the transfer tape once the vinyl was secured to the fabric.  Here, it is useful to use your spatula tool to sort of help pull and press them down onto the fabric as you pull away the tape. At least, it has proved a very effective tool for me in this way with all of my small and intricate vinyl designs in the past (and with this one).

Next, using a sponge or paintbrush, apply the fabric paint to your stencil.  If you have more than one layer to your fabric, i.e. you are making a shirt, or have another layer behind where you are applying the paint, be sure to place some cardboard or thick paper behind your fabric so that the paint doesn't bleed through to the back of your shirt, etc.  Apply the paint as thick or as light as you want it to appear when dried. I only needed one coat for this, though I made sure it covered the image well.

After you have applied the paint, leave the stencil on until the paint is completely dry.  For me, this took about two hours.  Then carefully peal away your vinyl stencil to reveal the adorable image below!

Isn't it great how crisp and clear the use of the vinyl as a stencil makes your image come out?  I love it! Now, to seal the ink in, place a small piece of fabric (in my case, an old pillow case) over your image, and iron over the inked image on the correct setting for your fabric.  

And that's it.  The end.  Cute new lil' frogger onesie for my friends' new lil' frogger to be!  Ironing on the ink helps set it so that it's washable, and now you have yourself some more fun at your crafty fingertips (or webbed ones? hehe). 

So cute, I want to go jump logs or something. ;) But really.  This is great for making your own screen print shirts, pillow cases, designs on canvas shoes....whatever.  Show me what you do. I'd love to see some inspiration!