Promote the fine art of festive dish-drying by monoprinting your own dishcloth. Monoprinting is a simple technique that anyone can do at home. You and your little Warhol simply paint your designs onto a piece of plastic, press on a bright white tea towel and voilà!
It’s a charming Christmas gift keepsake for aunties, uncles, grandparents, friends—or just for yourself. Follow our simple tutorial below to get started.
Ask your little artist to think about who they’re making their tea towel for, and what kind of pattern they might like.
(Remember, whatever you paint will be printed in reverse. So if you’re including words, you may need to help with backwards writing.)
Paint a cheery picture onto the plastic sheet. (If you want to make a tiled design, go right up to the edges.) You can also scrape some paint away with a dry brush to make more intricate patterns.
Carefully lay the tea towel onto the print, and be extra careful not to let it slide around—otherwise you’ll blur your masterpiece.
Put a piece of fabric over the top. With firm-ish pressure, use the wooden spoon to rub little circles over the print. If you want multiple images or a tiled effect, repeat the process to fill your towel.
One for the grownups. When the print is complete, place a sheet of baking paper over the image and iron it on a medium-cool setting. Now it’s machine washable!
Ta-da! A Christmas dishcloth of distinction. And don’t forget, you can use this technique on any fabric: t-shirts, handkerchiefs, curtains. Okay, not curtains.
We’re Wonderbly. When we’re not facilitating festive fabrics, we make beautiful personalised children’s books. A perfect Christmas gift or stocking filler, even if we do say so ourselves.
