Fabric Paper by DCWV (Die Cuts with a View)Â was on display at CHA Winter 2012, and all of us on TeamCTD got a little giddy. Fabric? That acts like paper? That’s ADHESIVE??? *Squee!* So let’s see how it works in real life! Ready?
So first, let’s see how it’s described by the manufacturer:
Newest in our line of innovative products is our Adhesive Fabric Paper Stack. Bursts of flowers, ornate accents, and weathered solids will give your projects and pages an entirely new look and feel.
Try these with your personal die-cutting machines or paper-crafting machines to cut out intricate shapes. Our fabric paper is so easy to use—with adhesive on the back, all you need to do is cut, peel, and stick! Stack comes with 12 sheets; 2 of each print.
I took a nice, close look-yes, it’s a sheet of cotton fabric that has an adhesive applied to the wrong side of the pattern and a protective paper backing.
Fabric Paper peeled back from the protective backing.
The first thing I did was pull out a sheet and cut it with my Martha Stewart Paper Trimmer.
DCWV Fabric Paper- cut with a paper trimmer.
You can see that there is a few strings, which you will need to snip with some scissors.
(Note: do NOT pull the threads- they will pull and pucker the fabric and then it gets gummed up and is difficult to straighten back out. Ask me how I know.)
Next, I tried to cut the fabric with a paper punch (it was a simple, round 2″ punch.) Sadly, it did not work at ALL. While I didn’t take a picture, I’m here to tell you that it jammed up the punch and I was worried that I wouldn’t get it free. Luckily, I did…but hand punches are of the table.
On to die-cutting! First, I pulled out the Spellbinders dies and the Cuttlebug and gave it a go.
DCWV- Spellbinders Nestabilities attempts.
I tried 3 different dies and with 3 different levels of extra shims (shown above.) The Spellbinders dies just wouldn’t cut it (pun intended.) So, on to Sizzix dies.
Fabric Paper cut with Sizzix dies.
Success! It’s hard to see in the photo, but there were just a few straggly threads (which again, need to be snipped, not pulled.) But on the whole, they worked GREAT! The fabric tabs show above make my heart go pitter pat!
And then I tried my Cricut Expression 2:
Cutting Fabric Paper with the Cricut.
I tried the “heavyweight paper” setting first, and the buckled and snagged. So I tried the setting for fusible-web-backed lightweight fabric, and used the “multi-cut.” But it again, snagged and did not cut through cleanly.
Now, this doesn’t mean that it isn’t able to be cut with the Cricut. But it does mean that it needs some tinkering to find the right combination, and that no one has found that (yet.) So for now, I’m tabling it and maybe I’ll have time to discover the magic combination later.
But onward.
So… now I got to thinking…what if I want to color the fabric? Will the adhesive stay tacky? Will it take inks? Well… I did a little swatch test for that.
Swatch test for wet materials on Fabric Paper.
As you can see, the markers bled quite a bit. However, it took stamping very well. (Thank you, Archival Ink.) The Chalkboard Mist by Tattered Angels and the LuminArte Glazes performed well, and most importantly, the adhesive stayed tacky.
Fabric Paper Scrapbook layout.
I used Fabric Paper on the layout above- both as a die-cut (using the Butterfly in the upper left corner and the multitude of Tim Holtz Flowers) and some of the Distress Stains on the striped strip along the bottom. It adds a lovely texture to the layout.
Fabric Paper Explosion Card.
In this sample, I used fabric paper to the front of this card to make it look/feel more like a pocket. By the way, I added some PanPastels to the fabric paper, and it ‘took’ beautifully.
Fabric Paper Tag
In this last sample, I ruched the fabric paper just by pinching it with my fingers. The adhesive helped it keep it’s ruffle while I stuck it down to the tag. Then I sewed through it with my sewing machine AND painted on top. Just to let you know, the adhesive did not let go once the fabric paper was wet. Nice!
I also folded a sheet of the fabric paper in half, sticky sides together, and then ran a gathering stitch to make the little flower accent in the upper left hand corner. I’m not sure if I would do a lot of this, though- the double-sticky layer made it difficult to sew through and gummed up my needle pretty badly. OH- and you can see how I stamped on the fabric paper in this example too.
So here’s the nitty-gritty- the Fabric Paper stacks seem to be running about $20 USD per pack, and contains 12 sheets. So at less than $1.70 a sheet, that’s a pretty good deal. It is worth that to me not to have to cut my own fabric to size, iron it, and run it through my fabric adhesive cartridge with my Xyron machine. And since you can paint/ spray/ink up Fabric Paper, you can alter it quite a bit to suit your needs. (Right now there are only 2 stacks- pink and blue- and the colors a more vintage/ muted.) I hopehopehope that DCWV will come out with a few new stacks that are bright and modern in the patterns- we’ll have to stay tuned though.
I am disappointed in how it worked with my thin dies and Cricut. But it was a success with my steel-rule dies, so that’s something. I have to say the some of the flower die-cuts were challenging to work with- trying to remove the release paper and keep the petals from sticking to each other was tricky, since the adhesive itself is fairly “grabby.” But if you have a lot of die-cuts to do- say for invitations or a party- the DCWV Fabric Paper is awesome.
What would you make with it?
Disclosure: Sample provided for review.
If you are considering purchasing DCWV Fabric Paper Stacks, please use CTD affiliate links- thank you!
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I’ve seen this in stores- LOVE the blues. However, the question you ask, what would I do with it, is the reason I haven’t gotten it. I’m not sure I’d use it much differently than patterned paper on my layouts and those go into sleeves so it wouldn’t really be noticeable. I think it would be nice on my cards … hmmmm…. maybe I should get some… curses! 😉
I have not seen these in stores as of yet. Thanks for the review. I can’t say if I would run out to buy them or not. They would be great for altered items. Tins, boxes, etc.
I have some fabric paper I bought when I first started crafting four years ago, but it doesn’t have a sticky back, only the sizing. I’ll have to hunt for it and use it – then, I’ll go bet me so DCWV.
Thanks for the craft test!
Carmen L
These sound like something that I must give a try. Planning to go to craft shop in the next day or so and I hope they have it available…if not there is always the internet. I would love to do somehting altered perhaps a canvas and use flowers, etc. on it.
Thanks for another invaluable review…you are always so helpful.
I think I would use this fabric paper on the front and back covers of handmade scrapbooks. I have always liked the texture that fabric provides and it would be nice to peel and place. If the adhesive was strong enough, it could be used to “decorate” the spine of handmade scrapbooks/journals.
Have you been sneaking around looking on my desk?? LOL! I just got a pack of the blue for my birthday and was wondering what the heck to do with it. Very pretty patterns and I’m happy to hear that the glue will stay good if I “ruff” it up a bit! Great review! Thanks!
I bought both the blue and pink packs and so far I have only used them to make a card. I didn’t try diecutting it but I can see how it would be an issue. One thing that isn’t discussed in this review is how flexible and stretchy the fabric is once it is off the backing, which can be a bit of an issue if you are looking for a particular size cut or want something to keep its shape. I found that I had to retrim my piece once I applied it to my card base. Other than that I do like the texture that it adds and it is really pretty!
This seems to me to be a good product. I don’t have a die cutter, so I don’t know how useful it would be to me. But I could use my non-stick scissors.
These are really pretty. I love the idea of using adhesive backed fabric. Thanks for the review.
The current patterns available is the only reason I haven’t bought a stack…they just aren’t my style. I know I could alter them with my myriad of inks/sprays/etc…but then I come back to the “what would I do with them” question…and since I don’t have any defined plan or need, that combined with the lack of “I must have this” designs, is why I haven’t gotten any yet. LOL…if that made ANY sense at all…
I would love to have either one, but have not been shopping in a while. I would make ruffles, rosettes, use it for a boarder. I would use it on a card or a scrapbook page. I have seen fab rips at two peas in a bucket and so I know they can be used for lots of stuff. Thanks for the review about the die cutting machines.