White silk makes a luxurious painter's surface.
Paintings on silk have an ethereal look, like a cross between a watercolor and batik. Though it may seem like an advanced technique -- and some silk painting methods are advanced -- you can learn to paint on silk at home using materials found at most craft stores. The silk itself is called habotai, or china silk, and can be found for affordable prices at some fabric shops and online. For the best results, use white silk for painting.
Instructions
1. Hand wash your silk in hot tap water with a detergent made for washing delicates. Rinse, air dry and iron.
2. Assemble the wooden stretcher.
3. Cut a piece of silk that's a couple of inches smaller than the stretcher on all sides.
4. Tack one corner of the silk onto one corner of the stretcher. Pull the silk taut to the other corner, and tack it in place. Repeat with the other two corners, until the silk is mounted and is very flat and tight on the stretcher.
5. Apply a coat of no-flow primer on the silk, and allow it to dry completely.
6. Mix or shake the silk paint. The paint will be thin, closer to an ink or dye. Dip a natural brush into the paint, and wipe off the excess.
7. Paint the silk, allowing the colors to bleed into each other slightly -- that's part of the effect.
8. Allow the finished painting to dry, then remove it from the stretcher. Heat set the color with an iron as directed.
