Textile stamp on fabric - what kinds of inks will work?

May 14, 2018 11:54 AM

My birthday gift to myself was some beautiful textile stamps. Blick sells fabric ink, but can I use fabric paint, latex paint, India ink, etc? I especially want to print on tshirts, but I have my eye on the director chair covers, as well. Cost and permanence are factors.

Additional advice on fabric printing is welcome. This is for personal use.

posted by theora55 to Media & Arts (5 answers total)

Best answer: I've never stamped like this on fabric before, but I've done LOTS of t-shirt stenciling with Jacquard brand fabric paint. It's VERY good. Easy to use and once it's been heat set, it's not going anywhere, ever. I have decade old t-shirts with Jacquard stenciling on them that have been washed tons of times and they still look great.
posted by phunniemee at 12:14 PM on May 14, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: Latex paint will not work well on its own (the fabric will be stiff and the paint will crack and peel off), but you can buy fabric medium and mix it with latex paint to make it fabric-friendly! This will also work with acrylic paint.
posted by assenav at 2:45 PM on May 14, 2018 [2 favorites]

Best answer: If you want to stamp on a garment that will be washed, there are two good options:

The more straightforward one is to get some fabric safe stamp pads like Colorbox crafters ink: https://www.rubberstamps.net/colorbox-crafters-ink.aspx These have lots of colors and are fairly expensive, but you don't need a lot of extra equipment and don't have to mix your own colors.

The less straightforward way is to get the Speedball fabric paint (or another brand): https://www.dickblick.com/products/speedball-fabric-and-paper-block-printing-ink/
You'll need to mix your own colors and get a brayer (roller) and a surface to put your paint on.

Either type will have to be heat set but then will be permanent.
posted by vunder at 3:26 PM on May 14, 2018

Best answer: I love Speedball's fabric block printing inks, which are a little different than Speedball's fabric and paper inks (confusing, I know). They wash up with water and don't need to be heat set, although you do need to wait about a week before washing the item. I started using these about a year ago and have been very happy with the saturation and longevity after a number of washes. Like vunder said, you do need a brayer for this method, but that will help a little ink go a long way.

No matter what you go with, I highly recommend doing a test run on an old dishtowel or pillowcase or something before you start printing on something you care about. Have fun! It's very satisfying to transform plain fabric this way.
posted by Tuba Toothpaste at 3:42 PM on May 14, 2018 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: Have ordered the speedball in from Blick. I have old tshirts and sheets to practice on.
posted by theora55 at 7:53 AM on May 16, 2018