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Friday, April 27, 2012

Crafty Gear 411: What Is Lutradur?


Today's Crafty Gear 411 is about a truly crafty material: Lutradur®.  A unique cross between fabric and paper. It is a 100% polyester, spun bond, non-woven, translucent web. It can be used for crafting, sewing, quilting, scrapbooking, wall art - just about everything you can dream up!


It's ideal for crafters of all sorts because it:
  • Can be cut, but does not fray
  • Works well as an overlay when put over paper as shown above
  • Looks delicate and filters light, but also has incredible strength
  • Works well with a wide range of glues & paints to add infinite colors or embellishments  
  • Can be heat set to 400 degrees or melted/singed for antiquing effects
  • Can be used like paper and run through an ink-jet printer to add graphics, photos or text and even be written on with pen or marker.  

I used my Cuttlebug & dies to cut a lovely butterfly shape and then overlapped pink and purple paint to make an ombre feel.


I die cut some scalloped shapes and then painted them with a sponge brush on freezer paper.  It was easy to peel them off when dry.  I used metallic fabric paint, opaque acrylics and glazes to get different shades and effects.


This is a close-up of the metallic:

By using liquid fabric softener to "paint them on" they give a sponge-painted look on the wall (or any other hard surface), but without the permanence.  Simply peel off and use again, somewhere else, without any damage:

I've also used iridescent glitter fabric paint on some shapes I handcut for my Rainbow Showers quilt and machine stitched them on for some added embellishment to my fabric appliques:

And by taping a piece to a sheet of cardstock, I was able to run it through my printer to make some dreamy-looking text & ghostly photos.  By coating the surface with gesso or a setting medium first (and drying before printing, obviously), the inks can look even brighter and no issues with smudges.  I just did it as-is just so you'd have an idea of the effect:

There are endless ways to use it, so it's a very practical medium, no matter what types of crafting you like to do.  Would you like to win a yard of Lutradur to play with, as well as several other useful crafty materials?  

Enter my Pellon Crafty Goods Giveaway HERE for a chance to win over $50's worth of crafting supplies! 


4 comments:

  1. This looks fantastic. Also wanted to let you know I've been following your blog now for a while and I absolutely LOVE IT!!
    Thanks for all the ideas and inspiration.

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    Replies
    1. Elizabeth, you are so sweet! I'm so glad you enjoy the same things I do:)

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  2. I've never heard of it... I'd love to win some!

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  3. I've been wanting to try this stuff for a while now! It looks so cool! I especially want to try running it through the printer for some vintage photos!

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Getting your comments brightens my day. I'd love if you left one:)