My studio uniform with a side of my own hand-painted denim jacket and canvas sneakers!
I have a painting uniform - three pairs of painting pants and a handful of t-shirts on rotation as studio clothes. It’s one less thing I have to think about in the morning and I like to be comfortable when I’m working! Those looks, along with my studio shoes, are covered in paint from years of wear and mess making. A little over a year ago I started painting denim jackets after the idea came to me by accident when I spilled paint on myself. Between my new painted pants and marks, drips and splashes all over my drop cloth, it was a no brainer to try denim as a blank canvas. But it seems I can’t stop!
I love slip-on sneakers and have a few well-loved pairs for every day. They’re so easy! I bought a pair to experiment painting on and ended up buying a ton more and went to town! I wanted to make colorful, wearable art as well as a few neutral pairs in an animal print and in black, white and silver. I am obsessed and I’m happy to say that a few clients walking around with my creations are, too!
I make these shoes (as well as my denim jackets) using my favorite acrylic paints from Liquitex as well as my favorite fabric medium which is also by Liquitex. I like to use only the best materials for my work whether I’m making enormous paintings, mini paintings or denim jackets so for this reason I prefer not to use fabric paints. I tend to favor heavy body paints (because I like to have control over how thin I make them simply by adding water or flow aid) and I haven’t been able to find a fabric paint that isn’t too thin so I prefer to use my own and mix it with a fabric medium. I’m super picky! It’s a more expensive option but I prefer to spend money where it matters - on my materials to make the best quality products and work I can create! In case you’re wondering, if you’re not going to use fabric paint, you need the fabric medium so that they paint doesn’t crack on the material - assuming you haven’t primed your denim or canvas shoes or whatever other material you’re painting on. Pro Tip: Use a brush to mix one part fabric medium and two parts paint.
I’ll be sharing more of these on the site soon and please reach out if you’d like to learn more! These make a really fun gift and I’ve taken commissions for them just like with all my other work!
All photo in this post by Federico Photography