If you are like me then you frequently like to change around the look of your house. Sometimes this means re-arranging furniture, sometimes this means buying a new lamp. But sometimes none of those options are working out so great.
In comes this awesome pin that I think I might try, granted seeing as it is on Pinstrosity that means something went wrong, so maybe I should experiment at Marquette's house first ;) Just kidding Marquette, unless you're up for it, than let's do it!
Girls craft day anyone?!
Here is this fun project we got from Lillie, that I had actually never seen before! I love seeing new pins! I'm a Pinterest-a-holic, so this is a big deal folks!
The Original
http://www.brassyapple.com/2010/06/fabric-wall-artcreate-your-own.html
This is actually fabric, ironed on the wall if Iron On Transfer Paper! Genius!!! It's cheap, I already have everything I would need for this in my craft room right now, and according to the original it is safe to take on and off of your walls with not backlash whatsoever. Whew! That was a lot of excitement in one sentence haha!
So Lillie has a little closet that she has turned into a reading nook ( awesome right?!) that she thought would be fun to embellish with some wall decor. Check it out:
The Pinstrosity
Doesn't look too bad right?! Well upon further inspection we see that it did some real damage to her closet wall.
RIP iron :(
(Anyone have any awesome iron cleaning pins they can share with Lillie, and the rest of us for that matter?!)
So needless to say, this didn't go as seamless as she was anticipating. So what happened here?
I have some theories:
1.The iron was too hot.
2. The paint was cheap.
3. She ironed the fabric too long.
In all the searches my brain could think to do I couldn't find anyone else having this problem. This is not to say that Lillie isn't alone in this, but maybe they aren't brave enough to send this to Pinstrosity. Go Lillie! You are now our honorary Pinstrosity Sister ;)
So with the first thing I think may have happened, sometimes I turn the iron on way before I need to iron something thinking that it will be a while before it heats up. Now this is only true with my grandma's old iron, not the new fancy ones. The new fancy ones, which I now have, are fast! So if she turned on the iron before she cut out her letters, that might have been too hot for her wall and fabric. If you didn't know this before you CAN burn fabric onto an iron. And while we are talking about burning things on irons, may I suggest not ironing felt. Personal experience, don't ask. Ok go ahead and ask but it is a REALLY lame story and I feel totally stupid lol.
The paint is cheap. I feel like this is a lame reason that this may have gone wrong. And I am not saying cheap paint is a bad thing to use, because sometimes you REALLY need to paint something but you are a poor college student and Wal-Mart paint sounds about as good as it's gonna get. With that being said it may have been the paint. I know some paints scratch off and get dingy and don't work as well as others and maybe this is one of those times, but Lillie didn't specify her paint type so I really can't say.
The third one kind of goes with the first, but it may very well have been the reason. If you iron the fabric too long it may have started to burn or melt and caused the paint to get too hot as well. This may have caused the paint to then get nasty and then transfer onto the iron, and then the letters and all sorts of bad stuff.
I need to reiterate that you need Iron On Transfer Paper to make this work, that is how it sticks and easily peels off the walls. With that being said I would suggest trying this out on a small corner behind some furniture before you put up a life sized fabric picture of dogs playing cards, just to be on the safe side. We don't want that do picture getting ruined now do we!
I would also like to add that the original blogger had no trouble getting the fabric on and off. This does work, and in poking around I found several other blogs, and magazines that have used this technique successfully, so it can be done. When in doubt, try it out, in a dark corner, with fabric you hate.
Has anyone else had luck with this? Good or bad? Let us know, we love your feedback!
Happy Wednesday Pinstrosipeeps!
Wow- I think I might call that iron dead. I have successfully cleaned irons by ironing over (USED!!) dryer sheets with the steam on, but paint might be too much.
ReplyDeleteAs for the pin- a press cloth probably would have helped A LOT!
My guess is that the heat was too direct. Did she use a layer of fabric between the iron and the wall/iron-on-paper? That seems to be an essential step anytime you use the iron-on-paper, even when attaching it to other fabric. You need that layer to protect the iron and the surface!
ReplyDeleteI've never tried ironing anything onto a wall, but I am with denisemichelle - always use a tea-towel or something between the iron and iron-on paper or interfacing.
DeleteTo clean the iron, try heating it up and ironing wadded up waxed paper. It was a trick someone taught me as a teen. I know it works for the burnt goo from fusible interfacing. Also you can buy sole plate cleaner. You just have to be a bit committed to looking for it.
ReplyDeleteI would say that using something between wall and iron (like a tea towel) may help. That's how you put on iron on patches and such. As long as it's not too thick, it shouldn't hinder the heat transfer.
ReplyDeleteAs far as cleaning the iron, try to iron it off onto something you can throw away, like a cheapy towel or torn up tee shirt. That's always worked for me, but it's always been melted fabric, not paint.
It seems to me that maybe it should of been on a wall with flat paint....just sayin !
ReplyDeleteI clean my iron with a Magic Eraser.
ReplyDeleteIt could be entirely possible that even PUTTING THE IRON ON THE PAINT was what caused it. Latex paint does soften when heated. The original pin had enough fabric that you could iron it on the wall without ever putting the iron directly onto the paint. For smaller stuff, I would recommend you put a thin piece of fabric (like a sheet) between the iron and the fabric/wall just to be safe.
ReplyDeleteMaybe put a sheet of parchment paper between the iron and the fabric/wall. While it may not keep things from overheating, at least it will keep the paint from sticking to the iron!
ReplyDeletePerhaps using a thin fabric between the iron and the wall/transfers? You know, so the heat isn't direct?
ReplyDeleteThe easiest way to to attache fabric to walls is with liquid starch. Brush it on the back of the fabric, put it on the wall, brush more over it. Wipe up any drips. And then wipe the wall around it after it dries.
ReplyDeletePeels off later - cleanly with no problem. Just wipe the wall down again.
I learned this trick from my mom - because my dad was in the Air Force for 28 years - and we moved LOTS!!! I use it still!!!
Good Tip!
DeleteIf you use the liquid starch, you dont need heat to set it at all.
DeleteI have an accent wall in my house that is ALL fabric. I have taken it off a few times to wash the fabric and it goes back up without a problem to the fabric or wall. It does work; just keep trying
ReplyDeletePerhaps another way to protect the wall would be to put a thin towel or t-shirt or something between the iron on fabric and the iron. That way if paint does start to come off it at least won't come off onto your iron.
ReplyDeleteThank you all! I didn't think about putting anything inbetween, but the iron is OKAY! I'm actually 16 and it was my moms iron (yikes right) but I managed to get everything off and working correctly before she got home! She has yet to notice the wall though ;D but Thank you for all your tips! I'll be sure to incorporate them into my next pin-tempts!
ReplyDeleteTurn the iron on and then rub a plain white candle on it until all the stains are gone, then iron a rag or something else disposable to clean off the wax. It's an old grandma trick and it works.
ReplyDeleteIf it was new paint, then it needs time to cure before you do anything to it, usually 3 weeks or so.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read this post title, I actually thought it was going to be about Monopoly retiring the iron game piece. :)
ReplyDeleteMe too :)
Deleteha! You beat me to it! I thought so too!
DeleteAnd how could they get rid of the iron? That was my favourite piece. I always won with it.
I ruined my iron recently by ironing something I shouldn't have (um, we won't go into that) and I used a Mr. Clean eraser to get the crud off. Worked like a charm. Just be sure the iron is cool or else you'll have a whole 'nother mess.
ReplyDeleteWas the iron's steam setting on and/or was there water in the reservoir (sometimes the "off" setting doesn't work)? That could also exacerbate any problems with the paint.
ReplyDelete