Folk art reminds us of just how creative and colorful we can be as part of the American melting pot. Pay tribute to an Eastern European background with these DIY designs for your dining room.
Give ceramic serving pieces a lively look with sweet floral motifs. Working on surfaces that have been cleaned with rubbing alcohol, draw flowers with highly pigmented, dishwasher-safe paint pens made for ceramics.
When creating a set of dinnerware, make sure the motifs and chosen colors repeat from plate to plate. Trace the stencil or freehand the design with a pencil. And don’t fret: Imperfections are what make folk art charming. Here’s how we created our folk-art design dishware.
What You’ll Need
- White ceramic plates and service pieces
- Black fine-tip permanent marker (we suggest Painted By Me or Pebeo Porcelaine)
- Markers (formulated for painting on ceramic surfaces)
- Contact paper for stencils
- Sharp scissors or craft knife
- Rubbing alcohol
- Q-tips
- Oven
Wash ceramics to remove tags, fingerprints and smudges. Dry.
Look for design inspiration in online clip art. We drew a freehand floral decoration in black and added color and detail, but use a stencil made from contact paper if you want a uniform design. Trace a small flower on the contact paper and cut out. Peel the backing paper off and place your stencil on the rim of the plate; run your fingernail around the edges of the stencil for a good seal.
Outline the stencil with a black marker. When dry (a minute or two), remove the stencil and move it to the opposite side of the plate rim. Continue to place the stencil around the rim until you have your motif equally spaced according to your design.
Add details inside your floral motifs with black marker and designs around the flowers to fill in. When you’re satisfied, remove the paint marker cap and press down lightly on the tip to start the flow of paint (it will come out quickly, so be prepared). If you make a mistake, dip a Q-tip into the alcohol, carefully wipe away your error and start again. Fill in all the designs and details with various colors and let dry completely.
When your ceramics are decorated, place them in a single layer in a cool oven, close the door and turn the oven on to 375°F. When the oven has heated up completely, start the timer for 40 minutes. After that time, turn off the oven and allow the items to cool completely inside before removing them from the oven.
Exuberant designs filled with flowers and ornamentation call to mind the folk art of Eastern Europe.
Seems appropriate given this weekend is a local Houby Festival. The regional Czech and Slovac celebration of the mushroom!
Enjoy 🙂
© Caruth Studio