It's Always Autumn

creative tutorials for everyday life

  • Holidays
  • Holidays
    • back to school
    • birthdays
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • Halloween
    • July 4th
    • Mother’s Day/Father’s Day
    • teacher appreciation
    • Thanksgiving
    • Valentine’s
  • Crafts
  • Crafts
    • crafts + DIY
    • handmade gifts
    • photo crafts
    • kid crafts + activities
  • Recipes
  • Recipes
    • bread
    • dessert
    • main dish
    • side dish
  • Sewing
  • Sewing
    • free sewing patterns
    • sewing for women
    • sewing for kids
    • how to sew
    • gifts
  • Photography
  • Photography
    • beginning photography tips
    • posing tips
    • photo editing tips
  • Tips
  • Tips
    • parenting tips
    • travel tips
    • books I love
  • FAQ

holidays Valentine's
January 16, 2013

ombre heart tee {freezer paper stencil}

ombre heart t-shirt

Today’s project is a very simple freezer paper stencil shirt – just a heart with the word “love” in the middle. I kept the design simple because I wanted to see if by mixing colors of fabric paint I could get an ombre effect on the heart. I mixed up five different shades of red and pink using red and white fabric paint, then painted the heart light on top moving to dark on the bottom. Quick, easy, and cute.

A close up of a red heart with word love on it

I also mixed in a little bit of sparkle paint to give the shirt a tiny bit of shimmer.

Mixing up five shades of a color is easy – it’s like art time back in elementary school. The only thing you should remember is that a little bit of a dark color, like red, goes a LONG way when mixed with white, so use just the tiniest drop of red in your lightest shade or you’ll end up adding tons of white to lighten it up.

A close up paint on a plate in different shades of red and pink

I used a toothpick to mix up my shades – I used to just use whatever foam paintbrush I was going to paint with, but so much of the paint gets stuck in the brush I found a toothpick was simpler.

I cut a heart out of freezer paper and then ironed the outside of the heart onto my shirt, shiny side down. Then I cut “love” our of freezer paper as well (font: Lobster 2) and ironed the letters into the middle of the shirt.

To get a seamless look in between my five different shades I started by filling in the top of the heart with the lightest color. Then, for each darker color, I tapped my brush about an inch below where the last color ended, then tapped the brush up from there to blend the darker color into the lighter one above it.

painting red and pink ombre on heart stencil

Note: As you can see in my photo above I used “Puffy Paint” fabric paint and it did turn out a little stiff. It’s still perfectly wearable, but it’s not as soft as I’d like. I know there is one brand of fabric paint that’s labeled “soft” but I couldn’t find it in town anywhere. Next time I’m at Hobby Lobby I’ll be looking for it. Anyone had success using a “soft” fabric paint? ***ETA: I now use fabric medium (affiliate link) mixed with acrylic craft paints and it works great!***

ombre heart t-shirt made with freezer paper stencil

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Print

Home » holidays » Valentine's » ombre heart tee {freezer paper stencil}


8 Comments

free email series

NO FAIL CRAFTS + RECIPES

Get my favorite EASY craft and recipe ideas straight to your inbox!

« easy triple layer fudge {for Valentine’s day}
Easy DIY Green Eggs and Ham costumes for Dr. Suess day »

Comments

  1. Amber says

    February 14, 2013 at 12:02 am

    I searched high and low for a fabric paint that wasn’t so stiff. I started with regular fabric paint… next! I tried acrylic paint with fabric medium… nope! Then I tried tulip soft fabric paint… better, but still to stiff! I’m a sensitive girl. Lol. Then I finally found it! The holy grail of softness. Plaid simply screen. *sigh* It’s actually a screen print ink, but I apply it with sponges. It goes on beautifully with NO stiffness. I got it at Hobby Lobby in the same aisle as the other fabric paint. It cost 2.99 for a 2oz bottle. It so happy with how well it works that I’m thinking of buying quality screen print ink. It will be cheaper in the long run. Hope this helps! Love the T-shirt! Happy Valentine’s Day!

    Reply
  2. Mandy @ Sugar Bee Crafts says

    January 23, 2013 at 12:01 am

    Thanks for linking to Take-A-Look Tuesday over at Sugar Bee Crafts – you were featured today!
    –Mandy, http://www.SugarBeeCrafts.com

    Reply
  3. Eva Scott says

    January 22, 2013 at 12:01 am

    Adorable! I love freezer paper stenciling and do it often. I’m always surprised by how many people have never heard of it or never tried it! Really cute!

    Reply
  4. Carissa says

    January 22, 2013 at 12:01 am

    adorable! you always come up with the cutest ideas!

    Reply
  5. autumn says

    January 21, 2013 at 12:01 am

    I’ll definitely look for that – I have tons of acrylic paints so that would be a great option – thanks!

    Reply
  6. Amber says

    January 21, 2013 at 12:01 am

    There is a fabric paint medium you can buy to mix with acrylic paints. I like do this cause it’s a lot cheaper. Once washed it is fairly soft

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 11 Ways to Make Your Own Heart Shirt for Valentine’s Day – Buzkids says:
    March 7, 2018 at 4:58 am

    […] your own ombre heart shirts with freezer paper stenciling (on It’s Always Autumn). You could make this super simple by […]

    Reply
  2. 11 Ways to Make Your Own Heart Shirt for Valentine's Day says:
    February 12, 2018 at 6:21 am

    […] your own ombre heart shirts with freezer paper stenciling (on It’s Always Autumn). You could make this super simple by […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Hey, glad you’re here!

I'm Autumn, a mom of five who loves ice cream, Masterpiece Theatre, and clothes that hide the fact that I eat so much ice cream. When I was 18 I got a job at a craft store and told everyone (regularly) how much I hated crafts. Well, things change! Read More…

Find me here

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

free email series

NO FAIL CRAFTS + RECIPES

Get my favorite craft + recipe ideas straight to your inbox!

Popular Posts

101 fun activities that kids can do at home list on a colorful striped background

101 Fun + Easy Activities kids can do AT HOME

50 easy crafts and activities kids can do indoors! Perfect for cold or rainy days.

50 best indoor activities for kids: easy crafts + games

Gorgeous art projects for kids! Easy art that turns out amazing.

20 easy art projects for kids that turn out AMAZING!

Collage of different paper flowers tutorials

How to make GORGEOUS paper flowers

Various flavors of baked mini donuts made from cake mixes

How to make mini donuts! {baked cake mix donuts recipe}

Blog policy

All posts and pictures are copyrighted by Autumn Baldwin and blog content may not be reposted elsewhere. However, linking back to my content is just fine. You may use one photo as long as you link directly back to the specific post. Thank you!

Please view our Privacy Policy here.

Also, please note that this blog is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Copyright © 2021 · Divine theme by Restored 316192.168.1.1 router login

Copyright © 2021 · Divine Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in