Journal
Custom Color Velcro to the Rescue!
In last week’s post, I told you about my adventure with an Urban Computer Satchel. One of the my “standard” detours on a project like this is to paint up some Custom Color Velcro.
Before you shake your head at me and think “Seriously,” answer me this. Don’t you hate being limited to White, Beige or Black Velcro? How often does that truly match your project?
[Tweet “You don’t have to put up with White, Black or Beige – paint your own Custom Color Velcro.”]
When I got to the back of the bag, my dilemma was clear. That bright, WHITE Velcro was not what I had in mind. So… off on another detour!
This is not my first go-round with Velcro. It actually takes color pretty well. (At least if you are using my beloved Paintstiks.)
I opened my box of matte colors, and found a couple of colors that were close to the color of the strapping. In this case, Turquoise mixed with Teal Blue made for an excellent match.
Using a short-bristle brush, I worked the Paintstik color into both sides of the Velcro. It’s a bit tricky on the “hook” side, but with a bit of patience, it works just fine. I wasn’t worried about making the color perfectly even. I just wanted the Velcro to blend with the strapping on my bag.
Ah, that looked much better. That Custom Color Velcro looks soooo much better than white!
At this point, I Should Have Allowed The Paint To Dry Overnight. But… that would require patience, right? (Have you figured out that I am not the most patient person in the world?)
I wiped the Velcro pieces with a piece of scrap fabric to remove any excess paint, and then stitched them to the bag and strap without incident. If this had been a lighter color background, I probably would have been more patient. (At this point in the game, paint smudges would have made me a very unhappy sewist.)
Custom Color Velcro may seem like one detail too many when you’re making a bag, but it’s the little things that make a difference. If I had left the Velcro “white,” that little detail would have distracted me every time I used the bag. Was it worth the 20 minute detour? Yes, yes, yes!
[Tweet “Custom Color Velcro may seem like one detail too many, but it’s the little things that make a difference.”]
Resources
If you are looking for Paintstiks and brushes, click over to the Products I Use page for links to several independent fabric art stores.
The Urban Computer Satchel pattern is from Among Brenda’s Quilts.
And if you don’t want to sew, you can purchase one of Brenda’s beautiful Designer Bags that is very similar to this pattern.
Your Turn
Have you ever painted Velcro to match your project? What kind of paint do you use? Leave a comment below. I love it when you share your fabric art tricks!
No but u now have opened that possibility. Shelly I luv the bag and Brenda should also be very happy with it.
Thanks, Etta. I’m truly happy with my bag (now that it is finished!), and it has been great fun to try out a new pattern.
I have tea stained Velcro and it came out exactly the color I needed for my project. I also have used food coloring in a pinch.
Wow! It never occurred to me to use food coloring, tea or coffee to change the color of velcro. What next???
I never thought of doing this. Thank you for opening my mind. This really was a V-8 moment.
You’re so welcome, Susan. All knocks upside the head are free here at Cedar Canyon. ?
Do you need to heat it or wait 24 hrs? Is it washable? Any instances of it running?
Good questions, Kat. We can’t really heat-set Velcro without melting it, so that is not a good plan. It’s best to let it dry overnight before stitching it into your project. (But that does not stop me from plunging ahead…)
See my reply to Jan for info on color permanence. I generally use this technique for projects that will not see the laundry. I honestly have no idea if washing would cause the color to run. If you are painting velcro for a garment, a test would be a very good idea.
love the idea, and thank you… I do have a question. I have some pieces that I have used the paint sticks on and would like to dye the back ground… what would happen if I did a Procion dye process after using paint sticks.. I know it probably would have been better done before, but you guessed it was not thinking… hummm. I lack patience also.
Hi Vivian, I’m really not sure if the dyes will have any effect on the Paintstik colors are not. I have not painted fabric before dying it. This is definitely a good experiment. I hope you will send me a note about your results. I’d love to know how it turns out.
Great idea! My question would be, how can we make sure that the “colored” Velcro won’t bleed onto the fabrics we are using for doll clothes or onto our dolls?
Are you planning to wash the doll clothes, Jan? I don’t think we can ever guarantee that color won’t migrate.
To test this, I took a piece of white fabric and rubbed hard on the turquoise velcro on my bag. A small amount of paint rubbed off on the cloth. (I painted the velcro several weeks ago.) That’s not to say that it would bleed if the bag gets wet, but I really don’t know.
Now that you have opened the door to custom color velcro, I now know that I can custom color the strap. I have had to make do with a color that wasn’t exactly what I wanted. Next time I’ll just get white and paint it the color I want.
Hey Terry, I would do a test on that painted strapping. Paint can rub off of a fabric if it is in a heavy wear-and-tear portion of a garment or a bag. I’ve had jeans, shirts, and other pieces of clothing that leave color stains on other fabrics. The same might happen if you paint a bag strap. It’s one thing to paint in a little-used area, but another to paint a strap that will get lots of wear. So… check it out…
You continue to amaze me Shelly!
You’re welcome, Brenda!
Two wondering/wandering thoughts:
1) Would it be easier to color the Velcro that is the “fuzzy” kind, it has the same, not the hook and loop type. I use it almost exclusively these days as it’s softer and easier to keep track of one strip instead of two.
2) Being an old hippie, I’ve dyed tie-dyed fabric since I was a teenager with KoolAid. Wonder if it would work on Velcro??
Thanks for the incentive to try fix some glaringly white sticky situations. Am buying ONLY white from now on!
I don’t know about the new Velcro, Marlene. You’ll have to give it a try and let me know. 🙂
Jan C. commented that she has colored Velcro with tea and food coloring… KoolAid must might work!
I’m glad you enjoyed the tip!