SNOWDROP STAMP
When the first green shoots of snowdrops appear above the ground in early January, it’s a simple but heartening sign of the coming spring that can really lift the spirits. In folklore and the language of flowers, snowdrops represent hope and new life, and this tote bag, printed using homemade stamps, is a perfect celebration of that late winter flower.
YOU WILL NEED
IMAGE OF A SNOWDROP
SHEET OF PAPER
TRACING PAPER
BIRO OR PENCIL
A SHEET OF CRAFT FOAM
SCISSORS
GLUE (I USED UHU)
THIN SCRAPS OF WOOD (I USED WOODEN TRIM AND OFFCUTS OF NARROW SKIRTING BOARD, AROUND 5MM THICK AND AT LEAST 12CM X 6CM)
AN IRON
PLAIN CANVAS TOTE BAG (AVAILABLE FROM HOBBYCRAFT.CO.UK)
A4 PIECE OF CARDBOARD
FABRIC PAINT (I USED BLACK)
GLAZED TILE OR OLD PLATE
SMALL PAINT ROLLER
1 Find an image of a snowdrop (silhouettes are the easiest to work with) and copy it onto a piece of paper or draw your own. Increase the size, if needed, so that the snowdrop flower is around 8cm high with the stem and leaves in proportion.
2 Trace the snowdrop flower design onto the sheet of craft foam and redraw it slightly so the petals are separate from the base of the flower.
3 Use this flower as a guide to draw a snowdrop bud by replacing the petals with a leaf-like shape cut off at the base.
4 Draw one or two narrow slender leaves onto the craft foam. Snowdrop leaves are the shape of a sword blade – long, thin and pointed.
5 Cut out the stylised simplified snowdrops – the flower, bud and leaves – and stick the individual pieces onto scraps of wood, ensuring the wood is a little larger than each shape.
6 Iron your tote bag and place the cardboard inside.
7 Squeeze out a blob of fabric paint onto the glazed tile or old plate and distribute it evenly with the roller.
8 Carefully place one of the stamps down on the rolled-out paint several times to load it with colour.
9 Press the stamp onto the bag and repeat with the other stamps to make a pattern. Create one contained design or repeat it across the base of the bag. Alternatively, make a smaller stamp to achieve an all-over repeat.
10 Allow to dry and fix the ink according to the fabric paint instructions if needed.
Emma Mitchell is the author of three books, a naturalist, designer-maker, craft teacher and illustrator whose work has featured on BBC Countryfile, Radio 4 and in The Guardian. She has taught workshops at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Cambridge University Botanic Gardens and Highgrove, and is passionate about the benefits of nature and craft to mental health. Find out more on Emma’s website silverpebble.net and Instagram page @silverpebble2.