Started: I’ve been working on ways to use all the fabric I’ve collected lately. I bought a bunch of vintage Marimekko fabric on eBay – repeating circle patterns in bright colors. I wanted to use the fabric in the kitchen, but the peices aren’t large enough for curtains. On the HGTV site, I read about a process using liquid laundry starch to adhere fabric to walls that won’t damage the paint or plaster. Since we’re not supposed to paint the walls in our apartment, this seems like a great way to brighten the kitchen. When I move, I can just peel the fabric off the walls.
Liquid starch is not the prefered laundry starch in Cambridge – every place I checked only had the aresol spray starch. I finally found some at the “secret” Star Market. The process is messy – ok, I’m messy. Luckily, starch cleans up with water. I slapped up a piece above the pantry door, to get an idea of what it’ll look like:
After putting up this section, I realized that the kichen has a lot of wall. I’m looking at a big project.
Finished: There’s a small alcove in the bedroom, between our closets. Not only did Peeler’s dresser fit perfectly in the space, but this panel of silk fabric I picked up at a yard sale last year is the perfect size for a wall hanging. There’s some light fading and some faint waterstains, but I think it looks good. And hey, what do you want for $2?
Taking too long: The pattern seemed straight-forward, but I’ve been tweaking it after every row of blocks. I ripped back several times because I didn’t write down my pattern amendments. Now it looks more like basketweave than diagonal checkerboard.
