You CAN Decoupage Napkins onto Fabric

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I know ….. because I tried it.

I do quite a bit of decoupage and my favorite technique is the iron on method. My thought was if you can iron on wood, it would make even more sense to iron on fabric. I was right!

I had quite a few little cotton bags from Amazon I’ve been using to make little pillows for my tiered tray displays. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VL9RQZC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_imm_t1_TSEKH7F0D3ZVXGWB8TNB

I have been stenciling on bags and stuffing them with poly fill, but I have so many beautiful napkins, I wanted to try to use napkins. So ….. I did.

The first thing I did was cut a piece of cardboard to fit inside the bag so I didn’t get the gel medium I used on the other side of the bag. I could paint the top of the bag white as this will make the napkin really stand out, but this cotton bag is so light, it should work fine as is.
I use Omni Gel (I purchased this on Amazon but I have seen it in craft stores) as I love how easy it is to apply. You can, however use Mod Podge to decoupage, among other mediums. I’ve even used water-based polyurethane sealer!
I daubed the Omni Gel on with a makeup sponge. I ended up using more than what I have on the plate.
I covered the whole front of the bag, even over the drawstring. Later, I almost regretted that as it kind of glued the napkin to the drawstring, but a little pushing worked it loose and it was fine.
I immediately removed the cardboard so it wasn’t glued in. I think a piece of heavy vinyl or plastic might even be a better choice. And then I used a hair dryer to quickly dry it.
I have collected so many beautiful napkins it was hard to choose, but I chose the one with hummingbirds because of the pretty spring colors.
Napkins are usually 2 or 3 ply. This one is 3 ply. You need to pick at the layers on a corner to peel all the layers off until you are left with the printed transparent layer.
I then cut the napkin to fit the top of the bag and cut a piece of parchment paper to place over the napkin when ironing. The parchment paper is crucial!!! Do not forget to use it or you will have napkin stuck on your iron.
I put the piece of cardboard (not shown) back inside. This gave it a nice solid base and kept the two sides of the bag separated. I then started ironing with the small crafting iron I purchased on Amazon but any craft store carries them. I would lift up the parchment paper every so often to make sure the napkin was sealed onto the bag. You can use a regular iron, but this one is very handy for getting into small spaces. Note to self: do not move the little stand after iron heats up so you can take a picture. The wire gets really hot and seared my finger nicely. Ouch!
I then stuffed the bag with poly fill (you can get this at any craft store or even use the fill from an old pillow). I pulled the drawstring tight and tied a knot to hold it.
My tiered tray pillow is now completed and on display.

8 thoughts on “You CAN Decoupage Napkins onto Fabric”

    • I’m sorry. I thought the step by step photos showed that. As soon as I applied the Omni gel, I laid the napkin down and used wadded up plastic wrap to smooth it out. Be sure to just use the top layer of the napkin that has the design. You need to remove all the other layers.

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