The amazing and ever creative Gabrielle from Design Mom is sharing a wonderful tutorial on potato printing. (Don’t say I told you– but today is Gabrielle’s birthday, please visit her and wish her a very Happy Birthday!

Gabrielle writes…

My kids love using this age-old technique to customize t-shirts, tote bags, bandannas… whatever they
can get their hands on.

Here’s how we make potato prints:

1) Use a good-sized baking potato. Scrub it to remove any dirt (your don’t want dirt mixing with your paint). Slice it in half through the fattest part of the middle.
2) With a pencil or pen, draw a simple shape on the cut end of the potato half. Think hearts, stars, initials. We’ve also done smiley faces, skulls and even a simple bird. Because the cut end is wet-ish, the pencil/pen won’t work that well. Don’t worry, you’re just making a basic guideline.
3) Use an exacto knife to cut away the parts of the potato that fall outside the shape. Cut in about 1/4″ deep. The shape will become a raised surface.
4) Make a puddle of fabric paint on a paper plate. Press the shape into the paint, or use a sponge brush to apply fabric paint to the shape. Then press the inked shape onto the fabric.  Repeat as many times as you’d like. Want to change paint colors? Just rinse the potato in running water and pat dry.
5) After the paint is dry, follow the paint directions and set the stamped area with a hot iron.
Other notes:
-Fabric paint typically works best on natural fibers.
-Experiment first on a spare scrap of fabric so you can see what kind of paint coverage you prefer on the potato stamp.
-Some fabric paints don’t show up well on dark colors, so you might want to stick with lighter colors to print on.
Yay for potato printing!

For inspiration and loads of beautiful pictures and creative ideas visit Design Mom.


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  3. I was thinking of doing this for a birthday party activity. I am just wondering if I will have enough time to iron the shirts before the kids go home? As I don’t think most parents will want to use their irons on paint.
    Thanks!

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