Hey, guys: Designs can be manly

Kathy Cano-Murillo
Special for the Republic
Oct. 6, 2007 12:00 AM

Every so often someone will ask me, "Do you ever do boy crafts?"

Eek! I'm so addicted to glitter, bright colors and bejeweled trim that honestly, masculine projects are a challenge.

Not today.

I bought my 16-year-old son a new set of sheets and wanted to personalize it for him. I thought of a cool company - Stencil 1 (www.stencil1.com), and its specialty is hip stencils - I found at last year's Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn. No geese in bonnets or ivy vines here. I'm talking boomboxes, monkey heads, turntables, muscle cars and old-school banana-seat bicycles.

The stencils come in large and small sizes, perfect for walls or smaller projects. When using them, you can go with the traditional stencil pouncing method and fabric paint, or you can try fabric spray paint.

Using hip stencils on sheets creates a fun graffiti-style look that proves crafting can be cool even for boys.

However, if you want a cleaner, classier look, check out the craft store for other stencils.

My only quandary for these guy-friendly bedsheets was whether to add black fabric glitter. It took all my might, but (sigh) I decided against it.

I don't think my son would have appreciated the sparkles.

Stenciled Graffiti Bedsheets
Supplies

Sheet set

Plastic gloves

Assorted stencils

Stencil brush

Bottled fabric paint

Directions

Working in a garage, or someplace roomy, line the bottom of your work surface with plastic. Lay the sheet face up on the plastic. Put on the gloves.

Set the stencils where you want the images to be. Hold down the stencil with your hand and lightly dab stencil brush in paint, dab on paper towel and then pounce up and down on top of fabric, covering entire stencil area.

Remove stencil and continue on the remainder of the sheet. Repeat process for the edge of the pillowcases. Let dry. Wash as usual.

Fabric paint dries soft, but you can choose whether to just decorate the top sheet, or the bottom sheet as well. I went with just the top sheet.

Spray fabric paint works, too, but the previously mentioned method leaves much cleaner lines.

Variations: For more personalization, use foam letters, stamps and fabric paints, or draw your own designs using permanent fabric markers.


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* All content/photos copyright, Kathy Cano Murillo, 2006. Photos property and courtesy of Arizona Republic and AzCentral.com. For more artsy goodness, check out CraftyChica.com *

Labels: home decor, inside