- 1). Stick masking tape around the outside of the frame. This protects the frame from the dye or paint and prevents staining on the wood which could transfer onto the next silk painting. For each silk painting, use fresh masking tape.
- 2). Dampen the silk and pin it to the frame with thumb tacks. Pin one side first, placing the thumb tacks quite close together, then pin the opposite side, stretching it quite tightly. Pin the remaining sides in the same way, then allow the silk to dry. A hairdryer can be used to speed up the process. When the silk is dry, it will be tight on the frame, like a drum.
- 3). Stick the paper pattern to the back of the silk with masking tape. Trace the image onto the silk then go around the traced image with outliner or gutta. Look at the back of the silk and make sure all the lines meet with no gaps, and that the outliner has penetrated the silk. Allow the outliner to dry.
- 4). Paint the image, being careful not to let the paint seep over the top of the outliner. Silk paint goes a long way, so only put a little on the brush at a time. Allow the painting to dry completely before removing it from the frame.
- 5). Fix (make permanent) the paint. The method for fixing depends on the type of silk paint used, but normally falls into one of three categories; heat fix paint can me made permanent by running a medium hot iron over it for a few minutes. Some dyes require a liquid, chemical fixer to be painted over the finished silk painting, or a steam fix dye needs to be steamed to fix it.
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