July Inspiration Starter

Inspiration for a HOT July Day!!

Whether you’re looking for something to do on hot sunny days, hoping to find a new craft for kids or want to preserve those languishing linens, Cyanotype prints are an easy solution. Recently I wanted to capture some leaves for use in an art quilt project and remembered I still had pretreated fabric from previous projects. The process is so simple and one that I remember doing as a 4-H camp participant many years ago. (Note: you can treat your own fabric starting with chemicals and white or colored fabric base. It’s messy!!) Pretreated fabric is available by the yard or by the piece and even comes in colors as seen in the photo of the black and white piece. Whatever object you place on the sheet of fabric is not harmed or changed in any way making it a very nice way to preserve the needlework of the past. You just need a sunny day and about 10 minutes of time once you have collected and arranged the objects on the fabric. I arranged some preserved leaves along with some pasta shapes and let it sit on a flat surface in the sun for about 10 minutes and then rinse to reveal the finished piece. Easy, simple enough for children and then the creativity begins. Cut them up into pieces, rearrange, frame them or incorporate into a pillow or small wall hanging.