Baby Onesie Tutorial

So many projects in the works right now!  Which is one reason there have been few blog posts.  Everything seems to be "almost done", but not done enough to blog about. So yesterday I set my sights on something smaller that could be accomplished in one afternoon.

For a couple of years now, I have been making these little animal print onesies to give as gifts at baby showers and to new mom's and babies.  I have a friend who recently gave birth to twins and thought I would document the onesie making process for a fun blog post!

This is one of my favorite crafty projects to do because it is fairly simple and cost effective.  First, you will need a pack of baby onesies.  These were around $10.00 for five.  You will also need an assortment of fabric paints and paint brushes.  I find that you can really get away with two paint brushes.  You want one that is larger and can be used for filling in larger areas and a very, very fine one is needed for painting outlines.  It may also be nice to have a fairly stiff bristle brush with a flat bottom (think stencil brush) for making eyes.  I do them freehand, but they can be a real pain.  I have many colors of fabric paint but you could totally get away with just having the basics and then blending for additional colors. You also need a pencil and black Sharpie.

The first step is to sketch out some animals in pencil.  I promise that you will have MANY, MANY, MANY that look pretty sad before you stumble upon a winner.  I find that it helps to look at a real picture of the animal.  Instead of concentrating on details, squint your eyes and think about big shapes and characteristics.  I promise this is possible!

Once you have a pencil drawing, trace it with a black marker.  Next, I cut around the drawing and tape it to a small piece of cardboard.  I actually save the cardboard inserts from 4x6 and 3x5 picture frames.  They are the perfect size and a great way to reuse!

Now, unbutton the onesie at the bottom and slip the cardboard inside.  You want to have a cardboard barrier so the paint doesn't soak through to the back side.  Taping the picture to it allows you to see a rough outline of what you are painting!

Now, start painting!  I squirt a small amount of paint onto a plastic plate.  This allows me to blend colors easily.  It also washes up no problem!

For this particular print, I simply worried about getting major colors down first and figured I would come back and paint details later.  For prints with many colors I tend to paint details as I go.  

Now, the most frustrating part of this is when you are almost finished and drop your paint brush on the onesie.   This has happened to me many times, most of which made me want to cry!  However, it is not always a lost cause.  For example...

Now, with a little creative thinking I was able hide the mistake and created an image that I liked even better than the original! 

Once you are finished and happy with what you have painted, let the onesies dry for several hours or overnight.  You will want to set the paint with heat.  I put a clean, thin dish towel over the painted part and iron on top.  Be careful if you have outlined with a thick application of paint (straight from the bottle) as it can stick a bit.  Before giving as a gift, I throw them in the wash for a full cycle so they are nice and clean.  

With the addition of a couple handmade gift tags and a gift bag it makes a unique and fun new baby gift!

Here are my finished products!

  

The possibilities are really endless (I currently have drawings for birds, an owl, an ostrich, a duck, a sheep, an elephant, two different giraffes, a turkey, a squirrel, a bumble bee, and a cow)!  

If you decide to give this a try, I would love to see the outcome!

Linking up with: 

The CSI Project

Serenity Now