Tutorial Review: Flour Paste Batik

I really like batik and the effect it gives, but don’t have the spare change to buy a proper set up to do batik traditionally, which is why as soon as I saw this tutorial I had to try it out straight away!

Tutorial: Flour Paste Batik
Level: Easy
Time taken: Probably only an hour worth of actual work, but there’s a lot of waiting time as well, this isn’t an instant gratification project! Give yourself a full weekend to allow for drying times.
License: N/A
Materials Used: Fabric dyes, spray bottles, frame, flour, water, cotton fabric (I used cheap homespun from Lincraft at $4pm).

Changes Made

• I didn’t have any cornflour to hand and so used plain old self raising, I didn’t notice any problems arise from this.
• For the dye I used “Designline Soft Fabric Paint” that I bought from my local Riot for $10 a bottle, one bottle of red and one of yellow meant that I could also get an orange layer in there. I watered it down about half and half and then put it in a spray bottle from a dollar store. Using paint as opposed to dye made it a little “crunchier” than I would have liked, but after a couple of washes it seems to have softened up.

Tips

• I thought it would be a fabulous idea to pin my fabric to the frame of an old pinboard. What I didn’t think about was the cardboard on the back. The fabric obviously became wet with the dye and firmly attached itself to the cardboard and ripped it off when I took it off. It’s come out with a couple of washes so it’s not the end of the world, just not the smartest idea on my part! What would be awesome for this is this Stretcher Frame from Ikea, it’s 50×50 so would give you a decent size of fabric, and at only $5 it’s not going to blow your budget.
• I used a squeezy ketchup bottle, and my lines aren’t as fine as I would like, right after I finished my husband asked me why I didn’t just use a ziplock bag, the same way I ice cookies - snip off a corner and pack it in and squeeze. Duh. Using this method would give you far greater control of the line size - to make it wider just snip the corner higher up, and once you’re done you can just chuck the bag away so there’s no messy clean up. It doesn’t look terrible with the squeezy bottle, I would have just liked a finer line on the finished product.

I LOVE this project, waxless batik FTW! Particularly for children (assuming you have fairly patient kids who don’t mind a bit of waiting in between stages!), it’s an excellent way to introduce children to the art and concept behind batik without having the risk of hot elements and melted wax around. Plus, it’s cheap! My favourite crafts are ones that I can do with what I have laying around the house. I could see this as a great way to make some personalised artwork for your home, or design your own fabric for cushion covers. Why pay $20pm for batik quilting fabrics when you can make your own?