Dying Fabric with Paint – Leah Noell Design Co

This is the BEST my dyed by painting fabric has ever come out! I tried a new method with y’all on my Tuesday night lives and I think we may have found the golden method of painting fabric!!

I love the style of this sofa but it had stains. Painting it is a great way to cover them up!

*This post contains affiliate links. You don’t pay any more from ordering from these links but I earn a small commission so I can continue to bring you more fun projects! They also allow me to show you exactly what I use so you know what I’m referring to! *

Material List:

Dixie Belle Chalk Mineral Paint
Spray Mister
Fabric Softner
Easy Peasy Spray Wax
Gold Gilding Wax

What’s the method?? Here it is!

The mix:

1/3 paint

1/3 water

1/3 Fabric Softener

**Portions are not exactly 1/3….mix to a cake batter consistency

This is the paint I used and recommend for fabric painting: https://bit.ly/2XDLvaJ

Step 1:

Mist

your fabric

with water to open the pours of the fabric. Then paint your fabric with your mix.

Let it dry completely. I usually let it sit overnight with a fan on it.

Step 2:

Then you’re going to sand your fabric to soften and break the paint down so it acts more like a dye. I usually use about a 120 grit but I change it up for different fabrics. You’ll know if it’s not the right sandpaper grit for what you’re doing.

Step 3:

Repeat Step 1 and Step 2 again. Depending on the piece I don’t always sand the back or certain parts to keep them a bit more vibrant. I always sand the seat part that people will sit on to soften. I sanded the entire sofa here.

Step 4:

Spray it with Easy Peasy Spray wax from Dixie Belle Paint Company to protect and soften.

I used the colors Mermaid

Tail & Cobalt Blue for this sofa. I accented the buttons in gold gilding wax and the legs in gold gilding wax & Cactus

chameleon wax.

You can find all the products I used for this fabric flip here.

A Few Notes

I have to say that the fabric was a factor. This is like a tweed style of fabric and it took the paint really well. I’ve heard to stay away from velvet fabric.

In my experience I have never had paint rub off on clothes. Even if you’re wet. I painted my patio cushions right before this and my kids sit on it with wet swimsuits

and it hasn’t come off on them!

Unlike most pieces I talk about, fabric isn’t like wood. You can’t just paint over it as easily so I recommend starting with a small chair or cushion to see if you like the feel!

I hope this inspires you to try fabric painting! It’s really a fun thing to do and a great way to update your stained sofas! This piece sold in my stories this week and is headed to California!!