I have been a bit stuck on new DIY ideas lately. Mostly this has to do with summer coming to an end and the kids getting stir crazy and me not being able to think with all the craziness. Momma needs some quite time to get creative and inspired. Needless to say I am ready for school to start on Monday!

Despite the never ending whining and needing of things (food, toys, boredom cures), I was able to do a bit of watercolor experimenting this past week and came up with two fun new tutorials using a new found watercolor technique for fabric! One I will be sharing with you today (super fun watercolor polka dot napkins) and the other will be on the blog next week.

Aren’t these watercolor polka dot napkins pretty? And really so simple if you use my super special secret method. I love the blurry watercolor dots and that gold trim is the perfect finishing touch. Follow along below for the details.

The Supplies:

• White cloth napkins (I use ones from World Market $10 for 6 of them, but here is an Amazon option)
• Multi Surface Acrylic craft paint (I used hot pink, turquoise, navy, green apple, and peach colors)
• Gold faux leather trim (I got this trim from Joann Fabric and Craft Stores and cut it in half)
• Washable Fabric Glue
• Paint brush and cup of water

Begin by squeezing a small amount of paint on a disposable plate. Now for the secret that makes the watercolor process possible. Wet your napkin. That’s right, go run it under the faucet and get it soaking wet, then ring out the excess water so that it is completely damp but not dripping wet. By wetting the fabric, the paint will disperse through the material giving it the watercolor look.

Now lay out your napkin on a surface you don’t mind getting covered in paint, dip your paint brush in the bowl of water and mix with a bit of paint. Dip your paint brush in the water one more time and then simply tap your paint brush on your finger over the napkin to “splatter paint” the napkin. When the wet paint hits the wet napkin the dots of paint will spread and turn into watercolor dots.

Once you have splattered all your different color paints onto your napkin, set it outside in the sun to dry (or you can just set it aside, but the sun dries it pretty quick) and repeat with your other napkins. Once they are all made and dried, iron out any wrinkles, then you use the fabric glue to adhere your gold trim to the edge of the napkin. This is completely optional, but I love the gold addition. Let the fabric glue dry overnight and you are ready to use your new napkins. The multi surface paint is completely washable once it has dried on the fabric, so feel free to wash these napkins with a regular load of laundry, but if you added the gold trim you will want to lay them flat to dry (otherwise trim free napkins can be dried in the dryer too!).

Is it just me, or do these remind you of Lisa Frank at all? I think it’s just the colors I chose, but I love the way they turned out. Now that you have the technique, play around with different colors of paint and napkins. I bet pink napkins with black dots would be fun too, don’t you?