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Ever had the urge to wrap your body in photographs? Yes? Well, today, all of your dreams can come true!

Follow this guide to learn how to turn your photos into wearable photo fabric — that’s right fabric.

Use our Photo Fabric Dye Kit and the power of the sun to permanently print images onto most fabrics. This process is quick, easy, and works like magic.

You’ll be draped in photos in no time.

Make Wearable Photos

p.s. Yay! 4by6.com has a free special for Photojojo fans today. They make primo square cards from your Instagram shots & more!

Why it’s cool:

1. You’re wearing photographs.
2. You’re wearing photographs!
3. And, you made them yourself.

Within a few short hours, you’ll have photographs permanently printed on fabric. You don’t even need a darkroom. This stuff comes ready to go out of the bottle. Just mix, paint, and expose. Watch the dye change right before your eyes.

Ingredients:

• Sewing Pattern
  (If you’re new to sewing, you can print on pre-made clothing, too!)
• Fabric
• Photo Fabric Dye
• Negatives
• Scissors
• Scotch Tape
• Masking Tape
• Sponge Brush
• Water
• Measuring Cup or Mixing Bowl
• Portable Hard Surface to work on
• Additive Free Sop
• Washing Machine
• Sewing Machine

Step 1 – Pick your favorite pattern

Buy enough fabric for your pattern and size. We found that 100% cotton that has been prepared for dyeing (PFD on the label) works best. Feel free to experiment, but test small pieces first.

TIP Need a little help sewing? Check out this page for step by step instructions.

Step 2 – Print your negatives

Scan old family photographs or use that amazing digital image you shot yesterday. Inverted your photo in Photoshop to make a negative image, and printed them on 8.5 x 11″ transparencies.

TIP Higher contrast images tend to work better. Boost up your contrast before inverting it.

Step 3 – Plan it out

Think about the layout of your pattern and how you want your images to look in the end.

Do you want all of your images facing a certain direction on your dress? Do they need to be placed vertically on your fabric or horizontally? Will you cover the whole dress or just the skirt?

Cut fabric into manageable parts. This will make it easier to transport and manage during the dyeing steps.

TIP Remember that whole measure twice cut once theory? It’s a good one. Make sure you cut your fabric into pieces that will leave you enough room to cut out your pattern later.

The cut fabric will shrink and fray along the edges in the wash, so don’t cut out your perfect pieces just yet… Just big sections that are easier to work with.

Step 4 – Secure your fabric

Use a portable hard surface to tape your fabric onto. We found a sturdy board does the trick.

You want to be able to pick this up and move it outside. Imagine a windstorm as soon as you walk outside. Make sure your hard work (and delicate materials) stay in place. Tape, tape, tape!

Step 5 – Get ready:

Set up your workstation in a shaded place. Lay out all of the materials you’ll need within arms reach (dye, water, measuring cup, brush, tape).

The dye is light sensitive, so you’ll want to work quickly to minimize unwanted exposure.

Step 6 – Shake, rattle and roll, paint:

Shake your bottle of dye really well before opening. All the good stuff settles to the bottom. Paint it onto your fabric.

TIP Try diluting the dye with water in equal parts and mix well. You’ll get a little more out of your bottle, and painting it on will be much smoother.

Diluted dyes take a bit longer to expose. We definitely recommend doing a small test exposure before diving all the way in.

Step 7 – Tape Down your negatives

Lay your negatives on the coated surface and tape them in place. Remember that windstorm we mentioned?

Trust us, you’d rather spend a little extra time taping all the edges down now than chasing those negatives down your driveway.

Step 8 – Expose!

Just like magic! Take your coated, taped fabric outside and watch the sun do its thing.

On a clear sunny day, exposure is usually around 6-8 minutes. If it’s cloudy, later in the day, or a diluted solution, exposure may take a bit longer.

TIP Do smaller test pieces first to check your desired time.

Step 9 – Rinse and Repeat!

When you’re satisfied with your exposure, take the whole board back into a shady place. Remove your negatives, marvel at your accomplishments, then get that sucker into the wash.

Use HOT water and additive free soap- you don’t want any crazy chemicals mixing with the dye. We used a little Dawn dish soap.

Run your fabric print under water and scrub it with your hands before the washing machine cycle. This stops the developing process, and the wash will remove unexposed dye. Prints will lighten a bit after washing and drying.

Repeat the above steps for the rest of your fabric.

Step 10 – Stitch

Follow the directions on your pattern. Cut. Stitch. Magic!

Voila!

A wearable photograph. You’re welcome! :)

GO Nuts!

• Why stop there? The Photo Fabric Dye can be used on virtually any fabric surface (searching closet now). If sewing seems too much, try making pillow cases, like the photo above, tote bags, t-shirts, shower curtains, even lampshades.
• Tile photos together to make larger prints. Bigger is better right?
• Get inspired by this vid all about using Photo Fabric Dye (from the makers, Lumi!)
• Get artsy with fabric photos! Artist and photojojo fan Margo Duvall, of The MARMAR Studio, has been using the Photo Fabric Dye for installation based art works.

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It’s beautiful and sparkly. It’s the night sky!

When the night is clear, the stars and astrophotographers come out to play. But you don’t need to be an astronomer to shoot the stars. We’ll show you how.

Immortalize the ever-changing cosmos in glorious photos with a few handy rules on tripod-use and exposure.

Whether you’re shooting the auroras or want to capture star trails, long exposures will get you there. Click on for our best tips!

How to Catch Stars With Your Camera(...)
Read the rest of How to Shoot Star Trails & Out of This World Night Sky Photos (679 words)

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It’s the perfect time of year to take a break from editing at your computer. Take a stroll outside and breathe in the budding aroma of flowers.

Unbeknown to most folks, those pretty flowers harness the power to produce a stellar photograph! An anthotype to be exact — a photo print made with plant matter.

Spinach, daisies, wine, strawberries, onions, and other plants are all light sensitive. If you leave them out in the sun long enough, you’ll have your very own plant prints, just like that.

Not only do plants feed us and give us shelter, but they make photos for us, too! Is there anything these guys can’t do?

How to Make Photo Prints with Plants

p.s. We’re judging Viewbug’s self-portrait contest. Check it out for chance at $100 in our shop and a flat screen TV!

What’s an Anthotype?

The concept behind Sir John Herschel‘s anthotypes goes like this. Grind up plant matter and paint the juices onto paper. Plop a positive film on top and allow nature to execute its handy work.

You can use all kinds of petals, leaves and berries for this process.

Here are just a few to choose from:
Note that the final color may not be the color of the original plant!

Spinach: 4-5 hours, light green (This is what we used.)
Daisy: 1 week, sepia
Red Wine: 1 week, burgundy
Pansy: 2 weeks, purple
Onion: 3-4 weeks, orange
Beetroot: 4-6 weeks, fuchsia

There is one catch. Anthotypes will fade if left out on display. You can slow down the exposure a couple of different ways.

Artist Binh Dahn encases his work in resin. Rosemary Horn exhibits her anthotypes but covers them so that viewers have to lift a flap to view the print. This protects her work but also makes you think about the fragility of nature.

Ingredients:

• Newspaper
• Rubber gloves
• Grubby clothes
• Petals, berries or leaves
• Blender or mortar and pestle
• Denatured alcohol (found at hardware stores)
• Container for mixing
• Coffee filter or cheesecloth
• Foam brush
• Hefty watercolor paper (300gsm suggested)
• Contact print frame
• A positive image on transparency film
• OR items to produce a photogram
• The Sun

STEP 1: Transform the plant into emulsion

Once you discover the plant that suits your fancy, it’s time to blend it up. In the case of spinach, use only the leaves and you will receive a darker pigment.

Splash some denatured alcohol in the mix. Alcohol is an ideal diluter because it helps extract the chlorophyll from the plants. Blend until it looks juicy.

Strain your mixture through a coffee filter or cheesecloth into a bowl. Drip, drip, drip.

STEP 2: COAT YOUR PAPER

Brushes with hair shed all over your paper, so you may try a foam brush.

Dampen your brush with water, so it doesn’t suck up all the plant goop. Dip it in your juice and coat your paper any funky way you like. Make sure you get it evenly spread out.

Since the sun bleaches the light areas of your positive, begin with as saturated a color as possible. This may require several applications.

Dry in a dark place to avoid premature exposing.

STEP 3: Frame it

Grab your positive film and arrange it on top of your dry piece of coated paper. Place it into your contact print frame and close it up tight.

You can also use a regular frame as long as the positive stays in place. Contact print frames are really the way to go if you can get a hold of one. They have a hinged back that lets you check the exposure without accidentally moving the positive.

You can snag a reasonably priced contact print frame at B & H Photo.

STEP 4: Give it to the sun

Find a place in your yard that has the brightest sun and leave your soon to be anthotypes there to cook. Check on them periodically to make sure they are not being blocked by shadows.

Now it’s time to wait. The length of your exposure depends on the weather conditions, so if it’s an overcast day, give it more time.

STEP 5: FINAL RESULT!

Admire your print!

Anthotypes are low contrast, but instead produce a subtle and delicate looking print.

From here, you’ll want to store it away from the sun. You might want to scan your anthotype. That way, even if it fades, you’ll be able preserve what it looked like forever.

Take it Further

©Rosemary Horn

1.) Expose your petals while you pedal, like artist Rosemary Horn. She attaches anthotypes and chlorophyll prints to her bike!

2.) Recommended Reading: Anthotypes by Malin Fabbri. The plant index is especially helpful with tips on which plants to use.

3.) Make a fancy food centerpiece. Place a stencil or positive directly onto fruit and put it in the sun!

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It’s a heartbreaking tale: film may one day be hard to find.

With companies cutting down on the kinds of film they make, filmophiles are working to amass a stash of their favorites.

The good news is film keeps better than a fruitcake from 2005!

With a few simple steps, the film you bought in 2012 will be usable for years to come.

How to Store Your Film

p.s. Photojojo’s hiring! We’re seeking a top-notch writer and a full-time buyer in San Francisco.

Why it’s important to store your film properly:

Film might not be around someday, but that doesn’t mean you have to stop using film for your photography and photo projects any time soon.

Expired film can be fun, but when you want your photographs to be true-to-life, you’ll want to make sure your film still looks vibrant.

While freezing film doesn’t completely stop your film from aging (gamma rays fog the film over time), it slows it down, giving you extra time to play with your film cameras.

HEADS UP: Polaroid, Impossible Project, and Fuji instant films shouldn’t be put in the freezer since it messes with the chemicals in the film.

Things You’ll Need:

• A label maker (or a printer and clear scotch tape)
• Your film stash
• Index cards
• Plastic storage bins
• Optional: matching empty canisters*

*If you don’t have enough at home, you can ask your local photo lab for some.

Step 1 – Break Your Film Out of the Box

Keeping your film inside or outside of its box doesn’t affect the expiration date.

When you’re organizing a huge stock of film, it will make it easier to store.

Space can be limited in freezers (after all, you need to store popsicles in there), and boxes only add to the amount of space taken up by your stash.

TIP: If the film comes in foil wrap, keep it in there. That helps with keeping the film fresh.

Step 2 – Become One with the Label Maker

To help you find the type of film you’re looking for faster, we recommend making labels with the type of film and the ISO.

If you don’t have a label maker, you can print on a sheet of paper and use a piece of clear tape for homemade label goodness.

Step 3 – Divide it Up

Put your film canisters in a storage bin (or more) and organize them with dividers. You can find all kinds of storage bins with lids at Ikea, The Container Store, or online.

You can make easy dividers using index cards. Fold down the top edge and pop a label on it.

You’ll know exactly where your color negative film ends and your slide film begins! Revel in the nerd moment.

Step 4 – Let Your Film Chill Out

Now choose where you’d like your film to live in your freezer, put the lid on the plastic bin, and let it freeze. A normal freezer temperature of 0 to -10F/-18 to 0C will do the job.

The freezer is like a spa for your film. It extends the life of the light sensitive chemicals embedded in the emulsion.

We’ve heard some folks have had film stay vibrant for almost a decade and a half! Check out this thread about photographer’s oldest rolls of frozen film.

For more technical information about film storage temperatures and the like, check out this guide from Kodak.

FUN FACT: The slower the speed, the slower the film ages. High speed films (like 3200) won’t last as long in the freezer.

Step 5 – Thaw When Ready

When you’re ready to put your stored film to use, you’re going to want to thaw it. We recommend at least an hour.

The film will be brittle and may snap if it isn’t at room temperature. Plus waiting til its room temperature before you open it prevents condensation from forming on the film.

Take your chosen rolls or packs out, and leave it on the counter for a few hours before loading it into your camera.

Tips For Amassing Your Own Stockpile:

• Film rarely goes on sale, but it doesn’t hurt to ask labs for bulk discounts.
• Same goes for photographers switching to digital — eBay and Craigslist are good sources for finding large stashes for sale.
• When buying don’t forget to ask how the film has been stored. If it wasn’t at least kept in a fridge and has passed its expiration, it’s most likely expired.

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You have a leftover box of photo paper from Photo 101, and it’s been taunting you from your shelf.

You could swear you once heard it wimper into the cold, dark night, “Make photos with me!” But, alas, you have no dark room or chemicals with which to make prints!

Good news: you can still make photos with it.

You don’t even need chemicals or an enlarger.

It’s the same concept as sun printing with a surprise appearance by analog’s bizzaro world counterpart: digital!

(All thanks to our pal Mike Dunckley for sharing his photos and showing us how.)

Make Photos at Home without Chemicals

p.s. Our phoneography blog, We Love Phoneography, is having a contest today! Check it out to try your luck to possibly win a Wood Camera iPhone Case or Cell Lenses.

Why It’s Cool

Making photos in the darkroom is endless hours of fun, but building one at home can pose a little bit of a challenge. If you don’t have the space to keep a photo enlarger or aren’t into working with harsh wet chemicals, what’s a photographer to do?

Here’s a way around it! Make photograms using black and white photo paper and the sun. Instead of preserving your exposure with chemicals, you can preserve it by scanning it. The image on your photo paper will eventually fade away, but it’ll be eternally preserved in pixels.

In short photograms are a way of making photos by directly placing objects or negatives onto light-sensitive paper. You might’ve heard of cyanotypes or sun prints — it’s the same concept!

What you need

• Objects that you can use to make an image (small enough to fit on your photo paper)
• The sun or a lamp
• Any size black & white photo paper
• A dark room (any room where you can completely block out light)
• A light proof box big enough to fit your photo paper — an old photo paper box works well
• A flatbed scanner
• A sheet of glass that fits over your photo paper (optional)

STEP 1: Plan Your Photo

Decide what you want your photo to look like. Think about how photograms work — if your object is opaque, then your image will look like a solid shape. If it’s a little transparent, the image will have texture.

We used leaves, flowers, and our hand, but you can pretty much use anything — paper cut-outs, confetti, plastic toys, ribbon … yep, anything!

You can even make tiny prints out of film negatives. The bigger the negative, the bigger the print. You can also add drawings or text to your photogram by using mylar (a clear plastic sheet) or transparency sheets and markers.

Did you know you can make transparencies out of Impossible Project instant film? Yup, those can be turned into photograms, too!

STEP 2: Light Proof Your Paper

Find the darkest room in your house. Closets or bathrooms without windows work best. You can also block out windows with dark fabric.

Just make sure it’s dark enough that you can’t see your hand in front of your face. You’re working with photo paper, and it’s very sensitive to light.

Gather your photo paper (we used 5″ x 7″ Ilford Multigrade RC in Satin, but any kind should work), your photo subjects, and your light-proof box. Take them into your chamber o’ photo-makery a.k.a. the dark room you just prepared.

Before you turn out the lights, memorize where you’ve placed everything on your work surface. You’ll be using them in the dark.

STEP 3: Prep Your Paper

When you’re set, turn off the lights.

Now that it’s pitch-black, it’s safe to open up your box of photo paper. Take out one sheet and place it inside your light proof box.

Compose your photo subjects onto the page. This is what’s going to make up your image! Once you’re done, close your lightproof box again.

Before you turn the lights on again, double check that your box of photo paper is closed, as well as your lightproof box with your single sheet of photo paper in it (so you don’t expose all that paper!).

STEP 4: Prep Your Light

You can choose between exposing your photo with the sun or with a lamp. Your exposure time will vary depending on which you go with, so keep that in mind.

Take your lightproof box with your one photo sheet in it to where you’ll be exposing your photo. If you’re using the sun, you can take it directly outside or you can set it by a window that gets direct sunlight.

If you’re using a lamp, you’ll be placing it right under that lamp where the light evenly hits the entire sheet.

Open your lightproof box, and double check that your composition is just how you want it.

TIP!: You might want to use a sheet of glass to flatten your objects. This makes the edges of your image sharper. An easy way to get a sheet of glass is by using the glass that comes in a photo frame.

STEP 5: Make an Exposure

Now that you have everything in place, you’ll wait for the photo to expose! In bright midday sunlight, 30 minutes to an hour should give you a decent image.

With a lamp light, it can take 1-4 hours to get the same results. The longer you have it exposed to light the darker the image will be.

Now it’s just a matter of waiting and letting the light do its magic. To pass the time you could make yourself a cup of tea or watch some Downton Abbey … or both.

How do you choose when to stop your exposure? When you see that the photo paper is much darker than its original color, your image is ready. It might take a couple of test runs to get just what you want, but that’s what’s so fun about making photos in the darkroom.

Here’s an idea of how long Mike exposed these photos for: yellowish plant photo exposed for 1.5 hours under a lamp, the hand exposed for 1.5 hours under a 100W work lamp (the hand was a matboard cutout in case you were wondering!), the orange exposed for 2 hours in sunlight, the purple colored plant exposed for 3 hours in occasional sunlight through a window.

STEP 6: Scan It Before It Disappears!

When your photo’s done, take the sheet of glass off if you were using one, and close the lightproof box. This will stop the exposure for the time being.

Since you aren’t using fixing chemicals, you’ll preserve your photo by scanning it.

Set up your scanner, open up your lightproof box, and place the sheet with your exposure on it on the scanner bed.

Scan it. Open up your image in any photo editing program, and invert it. This’ll make it look like a positive image, since photograms make images that look like negatives. If you like how it looks as a negative, you can leave it that way, too!

There you have it! Your creation, in its full glory. Beautiful, isn’t it?

STEP 7: Edit As You Please

You might notice dust or other bits that you don’t want on your image. To get rid of them, use a spot removal tool such as the Spot Healing tool in Photoshop.

At this point, it’s a free-for-all. You might want to up the contrast, play with color, or saturation.

You might want to save the original scan, so you can experiment with different renditions (think of it as a film negative you can go back to and make lots of different kinds of prints from!).

Your paper exposure won’t last forever since you’re not using any wet chemicals to preserve the image. It’s up to you whether you want to throw it out, keep using it to layer more exposures (save it in the lightproof box, if so), or hang it on the wall and watch it change over time.

More Ideas to Try

• Make one exposure, then layer more objects on top for a second less contrasty image.
• Making a photogram indoors in artificial light gives you more control over your photogram since it’s steady light.
• Use pieces of cardboard as stencils to shape the light as it hits the page.
• Having trouble getting your composition right? Tape your subject(s) onto a piece glass first, then place that on the photographic paper.

Mike Dunckley is a photographer who was born in the UK and is now based in Delaware. All photos were made by Mike with the exception of the one above which was made by his mum.

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What is it that makes vintage photos so inherently beautiful? It may very well be that they’ve been loved for so many years.

And while we’d like to wait around to watch our photos get lovelier and lovelier by the year, it’d take forevs. That’s why we dug our pal Helen Stead‘s idea so much!

She prints photos on mulberry paper, a translucent paper made from the bark of mulberry trees.

It’s the paper’s fabric-like texture that turns your normally crisp digital photos into stunningly soft, muted visions of yesteryear.

Thanks, mulberry paper, for saving us the 50 year waiting period.

Make Vintage Style Prints with Mulberry Paper

p.s. We’re hiring a full-time buyer (a.ka. a treasure hunter!) to join our team in San Francisco. Could it be you?

Why It’s Cool

One of the best things about shooting analog is the mood that it captures with its quirks: light leaks, dreamy grain, unpredictability.

Printing on mulberry paper preserves just that. It’s something about the soft, semi-transparent texture of the paper that gives the photo an ethereal quality that regular glossy photo paper misses.



Another great thing about this project: anybody can do it at home. No need for a dark room or chemicals. Just a simple ‘ol inkjet printer.

What you need

• An inkjet printer
• A digital photo
• A sheet of A4 mulberry or handmade paper
• Glue stick
• 8 1/2″ x 11″ printer paper

STEP 1: Pick your photo

Firstly, pick out a photo that you want to transfer. You might think about upping the contrast or saturation since detail can get lost in transfers.

If your photo is an old-school print from your film shooting days, scan it into the computer and save it as a digital file. Scan tip: scan your photo at 300dpi at the size you want to print it.

STEP 2: Prep your paper

This project works really well with both mulberry paper and handmade paper. Both are textured and that’s what adds extra bit of awesome to your photo transfer.

You can find both at art shops, craft shops and shops that specialize in paper.

With your glue stick, lightly glue a piece of printer paper to your A4 mulberry or handmade paper. Since mulberry paper isn’t as stiff as printer paper, this helps it run smoothly through the printer.

STEP 3: Print Your Pic

Make sure you load your paper so that the photo prints on the mulberry side of your two glued sheets.

Print the image as you would normally on regular printer paper.

STEP 4: Peel It Apart

Your photo’s printed! And it looks rad, right?

Now, just peel the printer paper off the back of your mulberry sheet, and your vintagey print is ready to fulfill its photo destiny. Plant it on your wall or frame it for a friend.

More Ideas to Try

• Try transferring with transparencies for an even softer, dreamy image. Our inkjet transparency transfer tutorial. (Pictured above.)
• Mulberry paper is sturdy enough to withstand stitching. Stitch a border instead of using a conventional frame.
• Make more photo transfers with Impossible Project instant film (it’s like Polaroid)!
• Layer images or words onto one sheet of paper for a digital analog collage!

Helen Stead is a mixed media artist who specializes in alternative photo processes. You can read about her adventures in printing here at The Creative Diarist.

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Scratch-off cards sure know how to take you on an emotional roller coaster. First you’re filled with gleeful anticipation and then, womp-womp. It’s a dud!

Lucky for us, our buddy Brit showed us a sure way to always get a winning scratch-off.

She taught us how to turn Polaroids (or any photo) into the best scratch-off card ever.

You can make your own easy scratch-offs using dish soap and acrylic paint. It’s really that easy.

Give one of these away to your crush or BFF for Valentine’s Day! They’ll totally be impressed by your crafty photo skills, and who knows…maybe you’ll really hit the ultimate jackpot: true love. Awww.

How to Make a Scratch-Off Photo

p.s. Today only, we’re giving away $2, $5, and $10 coupons! See how to enter at the Photojojo Shop.

Why Scratch-Offs Rule

That lucky person you give your scratch-off Polaroid to will think you gave them an unexposed photo. That is, until they read the message and scratch away. It’s a guaranteed way to give them the warm fuzzies.

Direct from Brit, here’s a primer on making DIY scratch-offs:

What You’ll Need:

• A Polaroid camera and film OR
• A 3″x3″ glossy photo print
• Black acrylic paint
• Dish soap
• Scotch tape
• Paper plate (or surface for mixing paint)
• Piece of paper
• Paint brush
• Black marker

Step 1 – TAKE A PHOTO

Get creative and remember that your Valentine will have to do a small amount of work to reveal your photo. What type of secret message do you want to send?

The easiest way to get a Polaroid photo is to shoot one! (Psst, you can find Polaroid cameras here. Or if you need film, Impossible Project makes some!)

If you don’t have access to a Polaroid camera, you can always make a faux Polaroid by cutting out a 3″x3″ photo print and crafting a card stock border. Glossy photos work best! A Polaroid print is 3 1/2″ x 4 1/4″, so cut the border out to be that size and paste your print on top.

A short cut to that is using a Polaroid Postcard to frame your photo print.

Step 2 – MIX PAINT + DISH SOAP

Combine one part dish soap to two parts acrylic paint and blend on a paper plate or whatever mixing surface you chose.

We used black paint, but you can use any color (red the color of loooove, mayhaps?).

Step 3 – TAPE EDGES

Use your scotch tape to cover the white edges of your Polaroid photo. The tape will protect the edges from getting paint on them.

Use the same tape to stick your Polaroid down to a sheet of paper. This will be your paint surface.

Step 4 – PAINT

With your paint mixture and brush, paint over the photo section of your Polaroid.

Use a similar stroke (sideways or up and down) throughout so that your paint dries better. Once dry (about an hour), paint a second coat to completely conceal your photo.

Step 5 – REMOVE TAPE

Once dry, remove your scotch tape from the borders of your Polaroid.

Step 6 – PREPARE TO GIVE

Using your black marker, write a note like “Scratch Me” on the bottom of your Polaroid.

Seal it in an envelope (and/or with a kiss) and get ready to surprise your Valentine!

Even More Ideas:

• If Polaroids are scarce in your hood, try a Polaroid Postcard frame. DIY it or pick one up!
• Create a series of photos with hints that lead to the next photo and leave it around your house. Your Valentine will be scratching away with suspense!
• Try taping a penny or quarter to the photo so that your special someone has all they need to scratch.

Started by Brittany Morin, Brit seeks to keep the digital generation up to speed with innovative technologies, consumer products and DIY ideas for creative living. Follow Brit on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest and watch more videos from Brit on YouTube.

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What’s incredibly soft, keeps you warm, and spends its days around your neck?

A) Your cat, Harold. B) A plush dolphin travel neck pillow. C) Solid gold bling. D) Your new favorite DIY camera strap.

If you answered D, you win! Because that’s what this tutorial is all about: how to make a DIY scarf camera strap.

It’s the warmest, most colorful and winter-friendly strap your camera’s ever met.

Our pal Stacie Grissom just so happens to be a leading authority on scarf camera straps. That’s why we asked her to put together this how-to just for you.

How to Make a Scarf Camera Strap

p.s. Today on Facebook, we’re giving away 2 sets of Cell Lenses and a Lens Wallet! Hurry and enter!

Why Silk Scarves Make Excellent Straps:

Here’s the backstory from Stacie:

Why silk you ask? Well, did you know that a silk rope is stronger than a steel cable? (Seriously! Believe it.) Silk is just too expensive to manufacture in those industrial quantities.

My little brother also told me this story about silk that he heard on Mythbusters:

Mongolian warriors used to wear silk shirts underneath their armor. When they were shot with arrows in battle, the silk wouldn’t break. That made it easier to remove the arrow from the wounded warrior’s flesh without digging around too much and causing more damage. (Sorry for the gross image.)

So the whole silk strength discussion with my brother got me thinking. If a silk shirt can protect a Mongolian warrior, then a silk scarf can totally support the weight of my cameras. So I made a camera strap from a scarf!

What You’ll Need:

• A silk scarf or cut fabric; 60″ long (Surprisingly affordable!)
• 2 key rings (Sturdier the better)
• Scissors
• Chalk
• Needle and thread
• Leather, pleather, or ribbon (optional)

Step 1 – Measure it out

Pick a scarf, any scarf. Patterns are nice, but hey, how about this solid colored one? Your choice! You can even go to a fabric store, and have a custom piece cut for you.

Now, put your scarf or piece of fabric on around your neck as if you were going to wear it like a camera strap.

Use your piece of chalk to mark where you want the strap to meet your camera.

Then, mark about an inch and a half below that. (You need to have room to stitch the bottom of the scarf up.)

Step 2 – Cut Along the Lines

Cut along the bottom line that you made. Easy.

Step 3 – Add the Key Rings

Slip the end of each scarf into a respective key ring.

You’re going to sew these guys in place with some needle and thread. Leave about an inch of wiggle room between the key ring and where you sew the fabric down.

It’s a short way to go, so you can do this by hand pretty quickly.

If this is your first time handling needle and thread, here’s a little guide.

If you have a sewing machine, all the quicker!

Step 4 – Spruce Up Your Strap (Optional)

This part is just a little added flare to make your strap look more finished. So, it’s optional.

You’ll be making two little tubes to slip over the end of each strap. If you’re advanced with sewing, try something sharp like leather (or pleather). Sew two little tubes as pictured.

If you’re not into sewing leather, you can make a tube out of ribbon by hand stitching two ends of the ribbon together.

Slip one tube over the each end of your strap, and sew it in place (so it doesn’t fall off!).

Step 5 – Wear and Be Admired

Attach your strap to your camera via the key rings, and there you have it.

Now wear it, and let the compliments roll in.

Mix it Up With More Ideas:

• Now that your original strap is replaced, you can use it to make a DIY sling bag.
• Think neck straps are so 2011? Make a DIY hand strap!
• If you don’t want to throw out your o.g. strap, make a colorful cover for it.
• Add a DIY lens cap keeper or get a Lens Cap Holder

.

Stacie Grissom is a DIY-er and photography-lover who runs Stars for Streetlights, a blog about crafts, fashion, and photography.

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Before printers spewed out photos on paper, photos were printed on glass!

Sure, that sounds like the kind of thing your Uncle Buck would make up, but we’re telling you, it’s totally true.

Just to prove it, here’s a tutorial on how to put your own photos on glass with etching!

It’s a different technique than 19th century photographers used and is as easy as old school iron-on transfers.

The results? They’ll put you on par with the most bad ass of our photo fore-fathers.

Etch Any Photo Onto Glass

Why it’s clearly cool:

Using this technique, you can personalize every glass surface you can think of.

Flat pieces of glass are easy to find and cheap to buy–think craft stores or old frames. If you’re in the mood to get fancy, you can etch on glass jars and the like.

All you need is your favorite photographs and just a little bit of elbow grease (or etching cream!).

What You’ll Need:

• Resist paper (we used PNP Blue, available in hobby shops and online)
• Glass etching cream
• Rubber gloves
• Safety goggles
• Scissors
• A strip of cardboard or a popsicle stick
• Masking tape
• Clear nailpolish
• A scouring pad
• Glass
• A laser printer or photocopier (inkjet won’t work on resist paper!)

Step 1 – Ditch The Colour

Once you have your photo picked out, desaturate it to black & white. This will make it easier to work with and give you a better idea of how the final etch will turn out.

Step 2 – Stamp it Out!

The stamp filter in Photoshop does an amazing job of preparing a photo for etching. Since small details won’t show up in the final etching, it’s best to remove them now to make it easier to etch.

You can find it under Filter > Sketch > Stamp. Play with the sliders until you get a high contrast between the whites and the blacks. We used a Light/Dark Balance setting of 4 with a Smoothness setting of 5.

Step 3 – Invert!

When you go to etch your glass, the white parts of the image are the parts that will etch, while the black parts will stay clear. In most cases, you’ll want to invert the image to make a negative for the etching process.

You can find the invert function under Image >Adjustments > Invert.

Step 4 – Print it & Cut it Out

Print the image on resist paper like PNP Blue using a laser printer or a photocopy machine. The resist paper will only work with toner. Inkjet printers won’t work.

PNP Blue is a type of resist paper normally used for homebrew circuitboard printing. It makes it easy to transfer toner to other materials like metal or glass to protect those areas from chemical etching creams. You’ll be able to find it in hobby stores and online.

Cut out the image and get ready. Things are about to get hot.

Step 5 – Strike While the Iron is Hot

Your iron needs to be pretty hot, so turn it up over Acrylic – make sure you leave the steam off, though!

While the iron is heating up, position the resist paper on clean glass – any dust or gunk will make a messy looking etch.

Using steady pressure, iron on the paper. It will adhere to the glass while it’s hot. Work out all the bubbles, moving from the centre to the edge and then let the iron sit on the paper for a minute or two. This will transfer the toner from the paper to the glass.

Step 6 – Peel

Once your glass has cooled – and it might take awhile, glass is really good at conducting heat! – carefully peel back the paper.

Step 7 – Touch it Up

Everywhere the toner transferred is going to be protected from the etching cream. If there were any bubbles or areas that didn’t turn black, protect it by taping it up with masking tape.

For smaller, more detailed areas, clear nailpolish works just wonderfully to protect the glass.

Step 8 – Lay it on Thick

Pop on your rubber gloves and safety goggles! Then, in a well-ventilated area (ah, the great outdoors!), apply a thick later of etching cream over the glass.

Follow the directions on the package, but most creams will take between 6 to 7 minutes to work.

Step 9 – Rinse!

Once the cream has been on for a good amount of time, slip the glass under the tap and rinse it squeaky clean!

Step 10 – Scrub!

Once all the cream has been rinsed off, remove the masking tape and clean the toner off the glass with a fabric scouring pad. Stay away from the steel wool type of scouring pad as it will scratch the glass.

Step 11 – Admire It!

Your finished piece is a work of art! To really make it shine, try to find a nice, brightly lit spot for your new artwork.

Think windows and in front of lightfixtures!

Mix it Up With More Ideas:

• Etch your photograph in layers: foreground, mid-ground and background. Etch each part on a separate piece of glass and stack them together for a cool 3D effect.
• Make a window ornament with your fave photo. The sunlight will make it easy to see!
• Make a sweet party chalice by etching a photo onto a mason jar.
• Use the resist paper on what it was really meant for – metal! Just be sure to use etching cream made for metal. The steps are the same otherwise, but you might need a little more elbow grease for Step 10 (and maybe some steel wool).
• Give your framed photos a ghostly halo by etching the print onto the glass and framing it. See our example above!

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Ansel Adams once said, “You don’t take a photograph, you make it”. Well this year, we’re making the cameras.

Forget about gingerbread men, women, and houses. Our pals Doug and Jenny got into the holiday spirit by making gingerbread cameras!

They showed us just how they did it, so you can make one at home, too.

Make a TLR, rangefinder or a Hasselblad. You can have any camera on your wish list!

Make Gingerbread Cameras

Why it’s cool:

There’s no question that we love our cameras. But a camera that tastes as good as it looks? What could be better?

Gingerbread cameras are not only delicious and super fun to construct, but they also make the perfect, mouth-watering centerpiece for your holiday meal.

These cameras will make your guests f/stop in their tracks.

What you’ll need:

• Gingerbread Dough and Icing (see below)
• Cookie Sheets
• Oven
• Rolling Pin
• Parchment/ Wax Paper
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Electric Mixer (optional)
• Toothpicks



Dough:

• 2 large eggs
• 3¾ cups flour
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• 1 stick of butter, softened
• ¼ cup molasses
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1½ teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon salt

Icing:

• 3½ cups powdered sugar
• 2 large egg whites

Step 1 – Make the Gingerbread Dough:

Using an electric mixer at low speed, cream the sugar and butter until thoroughly combined. Add the eggs and molasses and mix until combined. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and combine with a spoon or spatula.

Separate the dough into two even pieces and wrap each ball in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

(Great gingerbread recipe found here)

Step 2 – Roll out the dough:

Preheat the oven to 350°F and line the cookie sheets with wax paper.

On a floured surface, roll out half the dough to about ¼” thick. This part will be used for the sides and body of the camera. Roll the other half of the dough a bit thinner for the detail pieces, about 1/8 of an inch.

TIP: Roll your dough in between sheets of wax paper to keep it from sticking to your surface and rolling pin.

Step 3 – Cut out the shapes:

Use a knife, or circle and rectangle cookie cutters, to cut out the shapes you need. Use a spatula to transfer your shapes to the prepared cookie sheets. You can re-roll the scraps.

Use the printable template (above) for a twin lens reflex camera.

TIP: Before buying cookie cutters, see what shapes you have laying around your kitchen. We pressed the tops of drinking glasses into the dough for a nice circle outline.

Step 4 – Bake and cool:

Pop your shapes into the oven at 350 degrees for around 10 minutes, or until the edges start to brown.

Let them cool completely before building your camera.

Step 5 – Make the icing:

While the gingerbread is baking and cooling, make some hard-core icing that is sure to glue your gingerbread pieces together. You don’t want that camera collapsing after all your hard work! Here’s how:

Using electric mixer, beat egg whites in medium bowl until very foamy, about 1 minute. Add 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Beat until well blended. Add remaining cups sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating until well blended after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Beat icing at high speed until very thick and stiff, about 5 minutes.

Step 6 – Trim the edges:

While your pieces are still a bit warm, trim the sides with a sharp knife for nice straight edges that are easy to line up.

Step 7 – Assemble:

Start with the body of the camera. Construct the sides together using plenty of that thick icing. Once you have the body, go ahead and add the top shapes.

Step 8 – Details:

Glue on the lenses and film advance wheels.

TIP: Plenty of icing on the back of the piece holds it on tight. It also creates a nice white circle of icing when pressed onto the main body.

Step 9 – Fine Print:

Decorate your gingerbread camera with all the little details that make it awesome. Give it a brand name and a border, or polka dots if you want!

TIP: Spoon the icing into a re-sealable sandwich baggie. Cut a tiny corner off and squeeze the icing through for a more refined look. Use toothpicks to fine-tune the smallest areas.

Step 10 – Enjoy!

You did it! Now put that bad boy on display for everyone to see!

Take it further:

• Want more cameras you can eat? Check out these cookie cutters (above) and make ice-cream sandwich cameras!
• Make a collection of rad gingerbread cameras. Study your favorite camera and break it down to its most essential geometric shapes. Make a template for the shapes you need to cut out and bake. Photograph your camera and its sweeter counterpart together.
• Feeling extra festive? Make a gingerbread polaroid camera and prints. Draw your favorite photos with colored icing.

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