3 DIY Ways to Dress Up Plain Textiles You Already Have in Your House

By Brittni • posted on 02/14/2024

DIY Nameplate Napkins

After a little experimenting this week, I am completely convinced that I can transform nearly anything in my house that involves fabric, using just two supplies. Yep, two!

So what are those two supplies, you may ask? Pastel dye sticks and fabric pens. That’s all you need.

In partnership with Pentel of America, I’ve transformed 3 fabric household items (cloth napkins, a decorative pillow case, and a lampshade) using Pentel Arts Fabric Fun Pastel Dye Sticks and a special Gel Roller for Fabric…

3 Ways to Dress up Plain Household Textiles in Just a Few Minutes

All three project ideas are super easy and (bonus) won’t take long to make.

Want to give ’em a try? Here’s what you’ll need…

Pentel Supplies for DIY

1. DIY Nameplate Napkins

Give plain napkins a mini makeover with this easy nameplate design that is as simple as writing on a piece of paper. Only it’s fabric! If you need any hand lettering tips before you get started, check out this post.

The gel roller for fabric pen works exactly as a normal pen and smoothly writes directly onto fabrics without any trouble. If you’re hoping to create intricate designs and/or fine lines, use this pen. Bonus! It’s instantly smear proof  and waterproof. So you can use the napkins right away and toss them in the wash when they get dirty.

DIY Nameplate Napkins

DIY Nameplate Napkins

A Tray Full of Macarons

DIY Nameplate Napkins

DIY Nameplate Napkins with Waterproof Ink

2. DIY Doodle Pillow

This one is so fun and easy. I used the Fabric Fun dye sticks to create a doodle color field pattern all over a blank pillow case that I had left over from this project.

The doodles ended up creating a kind of swirling pattern. And I just did loop after loop after loop…like a lowercase cursive ‘l’. Over and over and over again. The dye is permanent, once heat set with an iron, so you won’t have to worry about it rubbing off on the couch, etc.

DIY Doodle Pillow

DIY Doodle Pillow

DIY Doodle Pillow

3. DIY Easy Patterned Lampshade

This last DIY is probably my favorite. Here’s the story… We had an old lampshade sitting in the garage, that I’d been meaning to toss or donate. It had some stains on it and was looking a little worse for wear. So needless to say, it had all but been abandoned at that point.

Instead of throwing it away though, I gave it a little makeover and now it’s one of my favorite things. Strange how that works out sometimes, huh?

All I did was use the Fabric Fun dye sticks to draw an easy curved pattern (basically an upside down ‘U’), all the way around the shade. Once the design is complete, I used an iron to heat set it, just like the pillow. Be sure that your lampshade is cotton. This will help ensure that it sets properly.

DIY Easy Patterned Lampshade

DIY Easy Patterned Lampshade

DIY Easy Patterned Lampshade

Creative Direction, Production and Styling // Brittni Mehlhoff
Photography // Kimberly Murray

Think youll give any of these DIY ideas a try? Which one is your favorite?

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This post is in partnership with Pentel of America. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this site possible. To more posts like this, visit the dip dyed hand lettered DIY stationery that I created last month.

20 comments | Click here to reply

HI from cold and miserable uk !
So weird I just bought fabric pens on Sunday , with no idea with what to do with them , now I know , thanks to you , love your designs , thanks for sharing them x

Paula

[…] Paper & Stitch has three great DIYs to add some sparkle to just about any dull household textile. Take a look at how she transforms cloth napkins, a pillowcase and a lampshade with just two of our products, Pentel Arts Fabric Fun Crayons and Gel Rollers for Fabric. We promise you’ll have fun and have all of your guests talking about it. Read blog here. […]

Pentel Blog » Decorate House Textiles with 3 DIYs from Paper & Stitch

Bummer! I just went to the Pentel website and the gel roller pens for fabric have been discontinued. Man I’m bummed now.

Renee

Thank you!

Brittni

Such a great DIY!

x

www.etsy.com/shop/paperblooming

Paperblooming

Thanks Molly and Orphane.

Brittni

I love this it’s such a great idea! I can’t wait to try it!

Orphane

These are ll so chic! Awesome job Brittany!

Molly | TLP

🙂 Thanks Britt!

Brittni

you are so clever!

Brittany

Haha. Aw, thanks Lex.

Brittni

I don’t know which one I want to do first!!! The instagram of the pillow lured me in and now I’m all like, “THAT LAMPSHADE.”

You’re so great!

Lexy | Proper

Haha. Right there with you. When I discovered these, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. So much fabric to draw on. 🙂

Brittni

You had me at Fabric Gel Pens. Brava!

Maritza

Wowza. I had no idea these existed either. Thanks so much for this!

http://www.haphazardlyher.com

Beth

Aw, thanks Chels. Happy birthday!!!!

Brittni

Love that lampshade, B!

Chelsea Foy

Thanks Megs and Arnella.

Brittni

These are so cute! Great idea!

http://arnellavanilla.com/category/home/

arnella kajtezovic

Wow! I never knew that these existed! will definitely be buying some of those gel rollers for fabric! I love the name napkins they look amazing!

Megs
www.the-whiterabbit.com

Megs | White Rabbit
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