CountingToTen

Blogger/Writer at CountingToTen.com
Lifestyle Blog.
Sharing how we’re loving life and living it to the fullest!
Three boys, one dog, one chinchilla…Sometimes, you just have to STOP…and Count To Ten.

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Do you remember how we started off with Eli’s bedroom?  Let me refresh your memory:

Yes…that’s it.

Eli wants us to make his bedroom a western themed bedroom.  Cowboys, guns, bulls, horses…the whole shebang!  GOSH…but, where to begin (other than the odvious…CLEAN YOUR ROOM)

Well…we’ve been cleaning and organizing….and decided to GET OUR CRAFT ON~!  Time to make curtains.

 

 

I totally LOVE how they turned out!  Would you like to learn how to make these?

Let’s go:

Supplies Needed:

Drop Cloth (got mine at Big Lots)

Stencils–western themed (got mine at Jo Ann’s)

Paint (acrylic and fabric)

Brush (you can use a foam brush or round stencil brush)

scissors

 

STEP 1–Pull out your drop cloth.  Mine was 8 ft x 12 ft.  (mine was about $15 at Big Lots).

STEP 2–Let’s make sure you have paint.  I used acrylic and fabric paint (in browns).

STEP 3–Here’s what my stencils.  Pull them out and start looking at the shapes and making a plan.

STEP 4–Time to cut your drop cloth.  I cut it down the middle so that I have TWO 6ft x 8 ft pieces.

 

STEP 5–Cutting the drop cloth.  I simply laid my cloth out along my LONG table.

STEP 6–And cut!  Do you see how I kept it folded…so the actual cutting length was only about a foot.

STEP 7–Preparing your paint.  Use a paper plate or carry out container.  Pour in a good amount of acrylic paint.

STEP 8–NOW…add about 1/4 of the first amount in Fabric paint.  You could use ALL fabric paint…but, really…how often are you going to pull these curtains down and wash them? (ok…if you’re a better housewife than I am…go ahead and add more fabric paint)

 

STEP 9–Let’s start stenciling our images!  I used the foam brush (although, I did buy the round stenciling brush..I just didn’t need to use it).

STEP 10–While you’re stenciling make SURE to keep dabbing the paint brush in the paint and only making UP and DOWN motions.  Do NOT try to paint side to side or you will get paint under the stencil.  This is what your image will look like before you lift the stencil up from the fabric.

STEP 11–LOOK AT THAT BULL!  He’s just perfect.

 

All you do now is keep moving the stencil around on the cloth and painting away!  AND…as you can see  from the picture…even the kids can do it (unless you’re a perfectionist…then, let them help with the clean up!)

**TIP–if you ARE a perfectionist…(keep reading) do you see this picture of the bull?  All the paint is on the other side, this is the image from the back…but, can you see the small amounts of paint that got on the back side?  WELL…After I was finished stenciling a few from each page, I washed the stencil and let it dry while I grabbed another one (I didn’t want that extra paint leaving trails along my dropcloth).  If you are NOT a perfectionist…you will not even notice a few extra spots on your fabric.

Let’s just sit back and marvel at our work:

and here are a few more UP ClOse pics of the stencil images.

 

 

I have to admit.  When I had this idea in my head…that’s all it was…an IDEA.  I had NO idea how great they would turn out!  I bought a cheap rod and hooks from Big Lots when I snagged the drop cloth.  If you notice…where I cut the drop cloth in half, I did NOT hem the seam.  It isn’t going to fray…and I like the “unfinished” look of it.  From start to finish…it only took me about 2 hours to complete this project!

The possibilities of using drop cloths as curtains are ENDLESS!  You don’t just have to use them for boys rooms…and you can do EVEN more than just stenciling on them!  Good luck with your project…time to get your craft on!

 

I’m linking up with:

Making the World Cuter
Keeping it Simple
Sumos Sweet Stuff
Between Naps on the Porch
Trendy Tree House
The Girl Creative
Lowercase Letters
Cottage Instincts
The DIY Show Off
Skip To My Lou
Mad In Crafts
Miss Crafty Pants
Polly Want a Crafter
I Heart Naptime

 

and here are some by Days of the week…

Wednesday Parties
Thursday Parties