Linda’s Craft Corner: Napkin Art

Turn plain cloth napkins into pretty patterned pieces with Linda Phan’s easy tricks!

How serious is Drew’s wife, Linda Phan, about crafting? Serious enough that the couple dedicated an entire room in their home to ribbons and pom-poms and all things artsy. The colorful, inspiring space is one of Linda’s favorite rooms and is a go-to spot for the couple’s nieces and nephews, too. Linda hopes to spark your creativity with fun, easy projects that you can pull off at home—even if your craft area is just a cleared-off corner of your dining room table. Get started with these couldn’t-be-simpler patterned napkins, made mostly with stuff you have around the house.

1. Place an ironed, washed napkin on top of a thin towel to stabilize the napkin. Brush fabric paint on a fork (or whatever you’re using to make your pattern).

2. Firmly press the fork onto the napkin. Wipe off most of the remaining paint with a damp paper towel.

3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to complete your pattern. Let the paint dry, then wash the napkin again before using.

“I love finding random objects in the house that can be used in unexpected ways. It makes you look at things a little differently, appreciating the textures and patterns all around us.”

—Linda

Get the Look

Hair Pick

The long teeth of a hair pick make it easy to create a cool graphic grid.

Fork

Use a metal one for a fun, loose allover pattern.

Screws

For an orderly pattern, stamp lines of Phillips-screw heads along the edge of the napkin.

Spiral Hair Tie

Stabilize the springy coil by hot-gluing the hair tie to a lid. Stamp in trios to get the shibori-ish look you see above.

Crafts by Blake Ramsey Murray | Photographs by Peter Ardito | Prop Styling by Barbara Eisen

This article originally appeared in the Spring 2020 issue of Reveal, Drew & Jonathan’s lifestyle magazine.