DIY: Potato Stamped Cloth Wrapping

Potato stamping is a simple way to create a handmade print. I decided to use this technique to make cloth wrapping for presents.

SUPPLIES

• Potato
• Knife/peeler and cutting board
• Screen printing paint
• Paint tray (or can use a washed plastic lid)
• Brayer (optional)
• Square cloth (Should be made of a lighter material. Make your own or use a cloth napkin or handkerchief.)
• Iron and ironing board

DIRECTIONS

— 1 —

Wash the potato to remove any excess dirt.

— 2 —

With the knife, cut the potato in half.

— 3 —

With the knife, cut the desired design from the potato.

Tip: make some sketches beforehand and select something that’s simple and doable to cut out with a knife. Also consider if you want to stamp your design in an orderly pattern or randomly before you start stamping.

— 4 —

Iron the square cloth so it’s wrinkle free.

— 5 —

Protect your work surface with paper (e.g. newspaper or opened paper bags).

— 6 —

Put screen printing paint onto the paint tray. (And follow any specific directions your screen printing paint may have for its usage.)

— 7 —

Apply screen printing paint to the cut potato. (I used a brayer because it allowed me to roll paint onto my potato fairly evenly.) Stamp potato design onto the cloth. Repeat as needed to complete your design.

Note: I mixed my red and yellow screen printing paint to create different shades of oranges as I stamped. I washed my potato after I was finished with one color and gently wiped it down with a paper towel. I then applied another color to the potato and stamped with it; I repeated this process as needed.

— 8 —

Let paint dry.

— 9 —

Follow the directions of your screen printing paint (e.g. applying heat to set ink). Stamped Cloth Wrapping complete. Wrap present.

For this design, I used a peeler to carve out a circle from the middle of the potato.

Note: I stamped my pattern over the entire surface area of the both of my cloths. I didn’t consider beforehand how much extra work that meant for heat setting the paint. If you don’t want to spend as much time heat setting the paint, consider selecting certain areas to stamp your design (e.g. the corners, a band down the middle or a border around the square).

Go here for suggestions of how to wrap a gift with cloth wrapping.