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Welcome to Handmade Holidays with Benzie Design + Therm O Web! We're sharing autumn-inspired creative tutorials all week, along with the chance to win $25 gift cards from Benzie and Therm O Web. Find the details at the end of this Spooky Portrait Pillow tutorial designed by guest contributor Kasia Wisniewski.
I’m decidedly not your girl for big-time scares and gore, but I absolutely cannot get enough of light spookiness. Fog rolling past a glowing full moon? Check. The ruins of an abandoned Jazz Age pool? Check. Long, dark hallways lined with portraits (eyes following you, optional)? Check. I was so excited to partner with Thermoweb + Benzie for this lightly spooky, elegant, and playful tutorial that will help give your living room a makeover fit for a haunted manor. This mostly no-sew tutorial will help you transform a digital image into a googly-eyed framed portrait ready to be applied to a throw pillow, using an awesome selection of Thermoweb products combined with Benzie’s best-in-class felt. I loved trying out new techniques and processes on this pattern and I hope you will too!
Skill Level: Intermediate
Time: 1-2 hours, plus drying time
Additional Supplies:
Inkjet Transfer Sheets for Light Fabrics
Deco Foil Transfer Foils - Shades of Gold
Deco Foil Liquid Adhesive
Fabric Stiffener Spray
High-res Digital Image (Classic Painting, B&W photography, anything Halloween)
14 x 14" Pillow Case
Parchment Paper
Glitter Dust Spray - optional
Googly Eyes - optional
Directions:
1. Click on highlighted links below to download and print the following:
Main Frame Pattern - Print on regular letter-sized paper, then tape together. Pattern has a 1/4” overlap between pages.
Frame Detail Pieces - Print Details 1 and Details 2 pattern pages onto iron-on adhesive following manufacturer instructions.
Portrait - Choose a high-res image that appeals to you, such as an old family photo. Size image to print at 8 x 10” and mirror the image. Print onto transfer sheet following manufacturer instructions.
Portrait in example is Bronzino’s Portrait of a Young Man with a Book. Many museums have online Open Access collections that offer free, high-res downloads of public domain works. Open Access at the Met is a favorite and was my source for this project.
2. To transfer portrait to fabric, cut a 9 x 11" piece of white fabric. Iron to remove wrinkles and place transfer sheet with printed side down onto fabric. Using hard, even pressure, heat the entire back surface of the transfer paper, checking the edge periodically to see if transfer has released onto the fabric. Be patient! The length of time required will depend on your iron, ironing surface and fabric. Once the image has transferred, carefully remove backing paper and allow to cool.
3. For the Main Frame, cut a piece of Acorn felt large enough to fit the pattern plus a bit - at least 18 x 18”. Place felt on a piece of scrap material and spray with fabric stiffener until damp. Do not saturate. Cover damp felt with a sheet of parchment paper and iron on medium until dry and stiffened. Allow to cool.
4. Trace Main Frame pattern onto stiffened felt and cut. I like to use a rotary cutter for the inside of the frame. Cut four ½ x 12" strips of Gold metallic felt and four ¼” x 12" strips of leftover stiffened Acorn felt.
5. Cut away any large areas of unprinted adhesive from Frame Detail Pieces. Place printed pattern, adhesive down, onto a piece of Nutmeg felt and adhere with an iron on medium heat.
Using detail scissors, cut along printed lines on adhesive. Keep paper backing on until ready to adhere.
6. Hot glue felt strips to the Main Frame first. Use this Reference Chart for layout. Miter or carefully overlap the ends of each strip. Cut away any excess.
7. With borders attached, remove paper backing from prepared Detail Pieces. Following the Reference Chart, arrange details with adhesive side down on the frame, one corner at a time. Following manufacturer instructions, iron onto frame. Repeat for all corners/detail areas.
8. Hot glue all four edges of Portrait to backside of frame.
9. Apply Deco Foil Liquid Adhesive wherever you want to add foil details. The part I have been waiting for! Try to apply the adhesive as evenly as possible and allow to dry completely.
Adhesive will be transparent, shiny and slightly tacky when it’s ready to be foiled. Areas that are still white-ish blue are not ready. If you try to foil over those, the adhesive will come up onto the foil and not the other way around.
10. Cut foil sheets into strips or squares approximately sized for your designs. Place over adhesive, shiny side UP, and press down firmly. A bone folder can be useful here to lightly burnish the foil. Gently peel foil back. Foil will stick to the adhesive design areas and lift away easily everywhere else.
11. Repeat with all adhesive areas. Don’t worry about perfection - a distressed look will add to the haunted manor vibe. Add additional scraps of gold metallic felt as accents, if desired.
12. Add spooky touches! When October rolls around, I can’t help but start adding googly eyes to everything. You can also experiment with embroidered or painted details like spiderwebs or a dusting of glitter spray.
13. Using a needle and thread and a running stitch, stitch along indicated line to attach the finished frame to pillowcase. I prefer to complete this step with the pillow inserted so I can see how the frame is laying and adjust the tension and stitch placement as necessary. Once it’s secure, give it a light fluff and fini!
I hope you’re ready to turn your settee into the haunted Louvre!
May I be so bold as to suggest a zipper pouch variation (pictured) or a seasonal facelift for an old tote? Or perhaps Halloween trees are a thing. At least, they should be. I love the idea of a bunch of teeny versions of these gracing a gnarled old branch.
So many options and, I promise, you’ll be planning your second before you even finish the first!
Thanks to Kasia for designing and writing this tutorial! You can see more of her work on Instagram @theadventuredept and on her website.
Follow Benzie Design and Therm O Web on Instagram and comment on the post promoting this tutorial to win a $25 digital gift card to benziedesign.com. The giveaway comment period will end at 11:59pm PDT on Friday, September 27th. All winners will be announced on the Therm O Web Instagram page on Monday, September 30th. Good luck!
