Tuesday Tutorial #2

Now that we all have our supplies for the floorcloth let's get started. I will be using a piece of linoleum today, but will explain how to use the cloth too.

This front side of your linoleum will be face toward the ground. Isn't mine pretty??? For those using cloth there are two ways to do this. You can either sew a hem all the way around first OR you can use glue later to glue your hem. I will explain this in a minute. Also if you are using fabric make sure there are no fold marks or wrinkles in your fabric as they won't come out while you paint. If you plan on using glue for the hem make sure you add 3 inches all the way around to allow for the glued hem. So if you are doing a 12" X 12" finished size cut the fabric 15" X 15" to start.



This is the backside of the linoleum. As you can see I am doing a another long one for my step landing upstairs. You can use any size. The roller on the right is what I like to use to put the background color on with, but you can certainly paint with a brush depending on the size you make. This works on either vinyl or cloth. I had a hump in my vinyl so I sat it in the sun to soften it and made it a little flatter. You will need a space that is flat to paint on. I think I saw Heather and Ann who work on a table in their dining or kitchen. I will be later on to finish it.



On the with fun part. If using vinyl just start painting on your base coat. You could prime if you wanted first its up to you. I don't I just put about 4 coats of the base color on. I am lucky as I just bought this entire gallon of paint from a yard sale for $2.00. I like to go to LOWES and find there area with messed up paint colors and buy that because it is discounted. I can always make it work. Now if using fabric you have a couple extra steps. Lay your fabric back side up... if prehemmed the side with the salvage edge face up. If not hemmed pick a side. You will need to paint one coat of paint on your back side. Make sure it covers well. Let that dry. After dry if already hemmed flip it over. If not hemmed we have one more step. After dry we will now need to take our ruler and measure 3" in from each side. This is where you will need to fold it. I miter my corners meaning I fold in the corner to form a triangle shade so that when the sides are folded together they meet perfectly. If needed I will take a pic of one of my older ones and post it. Just leave me a comment and I will do so OR email me. Now you can use white glue, but you will need to thin it a little using a brush put it on. This will get frustrating, but as you go along put heavy stuff on top of the glued seam to keep it in place. I have used modge podge with a foam brush and found it works really nice with many heavy objects. You will need to let this dry before moving on. Once dry flip it over and paint your 4 coats of your base color. DO NOT paint on your deck or porch if it looks like mine if using fabric. You will get the space marks in your paint. LOL. YES I did that!!!!!



Ok all 4 coats are on. The fabric should be somewhat stiff at this point.



This is what I do with my roller and brushes in between coats so I'm not constantly rinsing them. Just throw it in a Walmart or plastic bag of some sort twist the bag around it so no air gets in to dry it out. Also works with walls too!!!!



Everyone ready to move on??? All 4 coats are on and you are ready for your border if you choose. I normally measure in two inches all the way around and draw a light pencil line all the way around for my guide. I love using my quilter ruler as I call it because I can gauge where I am.




Now I have used blue painters tape to mark my line. Just put it right up next to the line to the inside of your line towards the middle. Now if using cloth you will not get a good stick job and may end up with paint running under the tape. Otherwise, just free hand painting the border on. I like to use my foam brushes because I can get a good straight line with them, but it is up to you. I do at least two coats depending on the coverage. Let that dry.



All right all caught up? I have decided to free hand my design. If using a stencil decide on your placement. Now sometimes you can eye ball where you want it or like me I get out a tape measure/ruler and measure. You can do this two ways when using a stencil and I have done both and sometimes I screw up both ways. Lay your stencil on the cloth and tape it down with your painters tape. Now if you can stencil well use your Apple Barrel or Delta or whatever you use to stencil you design. Be very careful because I have gotten the paint to run under my stencil then you have a bleed mark to fix later. IF you want use a pencil and lightly trace your design onto it then you will need to freehand fill it in with your paint. Again two coats if you don't get good coverage with the first coat. It is up to you. I have decided on a geometric design. Now I'll be honest there are a lot of math calculations in mine and if you need I can help you figure it out if you have something in mind you'd like to try. So now I am off to work drawing my design with pencil.



Now I am ready to paint. I use 2 coats of every color I use.



All done!!!! I decided to use green in the lines. At this point I normally go back and touch up any areas of bleeding or painting outside the lines to fix them. Now I do like to outline my designs sometimes, which I did do here. I use a cheater. I use a paint pen found at most craft stores to to the outlining. I shake way to much to paint a straight line. You can buy either a thin tip or medium tip whatever you choose. Then I use my ruler to help keep the line straight. You will only need to do one coat of the line. No I wasn't using my pins for anything with this project that you see on the table. LOL.



All right ladies we will stop here for today. That should get you started. We will finish next week. Now remember I will help you with anything you need just leave a comment or email me. This means if you don't have a screen name and you still read my blog please email me if you have questions. Have fun!!!!!