DIY mudcloth tote

i love traditional african mudcloth, the designs are so pretty and i've wanted to incorporate them into my home for a while. i've been stalking the fabrics on etsy and when our new sofa arrives i think some cushions will be the perfect addition!

in the meantime i decided to try my hand at making a mudcloth inspired design- it was a really fun process that didn't take long at all.

for my first try i decided to stamp a design onto a cotton tote bag, this one is nice and big.. perfect for shopping trips! read on and i'll show you how easy it is to make your own version!

materials:

tote bag

self adhesive foam sheets

black fabric paint

sponge brush

craft knife and ruler

1. draw a mudcloth inspired pattern onto the tote in pencil, this will be your guide when stamping!

2. grab your foam sheets and cut out the shapes you need, in my case narrow rectangles and triangles. (cut out a duplicate of each and stick them together to create one thicker foam stamp.)

3. use the foam brush to apply the paint onto the stamp and press onto the fabric following your pattern. mudcloth looks very handmade so you don't want perfect stamping, it's alright for some areas to vary and for the paint not to be 100% even!

you could absolutely try this DIY using fabric pens! most mudcloth designs are on black fabric so white fabric pens would work well..

i'm pretty pleased with how it turned out, i think this might be the beginning of a mudcloth love affair..

back soon

caroline x