Stenciled Snowflake T-shirts!

We had a wicked nor'easter blow through the East Coast last week, and though the snow pile-up lasted less than twenty-four hours, it sure put me in the mood for winter. So with the holidays upon us, I decided to make some wintery-themed T-shirts for the two young cousins (note: these tees can be made in adult sizes, too)--a little something to wear inside when it's too cold outside! And a nice alternative to the ubiquitous holiday sweater, don't you think?

Materials:
-White T-shirt(s) in appropriate size(s)
-Tulip fabric spray paint (Light Blue)
-White printer paper
-Paper scissors
-Warm iron and press cloth
-Tulip Soft Fabric Paint (Gold Glitter, optional)
-Tulip Sponge Brush (optional)










Make it:
1. Fold one of the sheets of paper on a diagonal to "square" it. Use scissors to cut off the excess strip of paper.

2. Bring the lower left corner up to fold the triangle in half again.

3. And again!

4. Use your scissors to start cutting notches along the folded edges: zigzags, circles, crescents, curls, diamonds, and so on! Don't forget to cut the open edges in an arc, so that the snowflake will be somewhat round in appearance when you unfold.

5. Unfold!

6. Repeat to make many snowflakes (no two will be alike)!


7. Lay the T-shirt flat on your work surface. Arrange the snowflakes onto the front, and press them with a warm iron to keep them relatively flat. (Note: The weight of the spray paint will actually help them stay flat, too.)


8. Lightly spray blue paint over the entire T-shirt (I masked the inside back neckband with paper scraps).


9. Carefully peel off the snowflakes and set them aside. Let the T-shirt dry.


10. Reuse the snowflakes to make T-shirt number two!


Optional: Use the foam brush and glitter paint to add sparkly highlights to the snowflakes.

Let dry, then try on the shirt (or gift it to its recipient!), and curl up by the fire, knowing these snowflakes will never melt.