How to paint on clothes ?
Do you want to paint on fabric, textiles, or other clothing? Are you wondering which paint works best for textiles?
Follow our comprehensive guide to ensure you use the right products and achieve the best results.
Tools you need to paint on fabric
When personalizing and painting on fabrics, take precautions to avoid staining your personal belongings. Wear an apron or overalls to protect yourself from paint stains.
Which paint for fabric and textile ?
When painting on clothing made of fabric or textiles, it’s crucial to use a flexible paint that is water-resistant and washing machine-safe.
While there are many fabric paints available, many require heat-setting to ensure they are permanent.
Always take care to protect your clothing while painting to avoid accidental stains. Prepare adequately before starting your project.
Use a rigid support
Place your jacket, shirt, or bag on a rigid surface like wood or cardboard to make painting easier and to prevent the paint from bleeding through the textile fibers.
If you’re using a stencil, stick it securely using a hairdryer and a stiff card. For detailed designs, consider using transfer film, which simplifies the application of intricate stencils.
Apply the paint on fabric
Now it’s time to customize your jacket, jeans, or cap with fabric paint. With SneakArts standard paints, there’s no need to heat-set the textile with an iron. The paint is highly durable and water-resistant once dry.
Prepare the fabric
When using a fabric paint, there is no need to prepare or clean the surface unlike leather. Indeed, on textile, the standard paint immediately sets to the material, whether it is jeans, fabric or canvas.
For better results, always apply a white undercoat using the primer for textile, to avoid the risk of smudging, but also to have better colors.
Apply the paint
It's now time to apply the paint on your textile or fabric, using the standard paint that works both on textile and leather.
Apply 2 to 3 coats to have a homogeneous result. Let the paint dry between each coat using a hair dryer.
Protect your art on textile
Apply a varnish on textile
While the paint is highly durable and resistant to washing, applying a varnish can enhance the final look, preserve color vibrancy, and provide extra protection.
Use a clean brush to apply the varnish. For a natural look, opt for matte varnish. Apply 2 or 3 thin coats, allowing each to dry completely before adding the next.
Advice for washing
There you go, your creation is finished, you now know how to make a custom on a jacket, cap, tote bag, and what paint to use on the textile.
To preserve the colors for as long as possible, we recommend washing in cold water (30°C) or hand washing.
While the paint can withstand temperatures up to 60–90°C, gentler washing methods will extend the lifespan of your design.
Share this content
