🎨 What are Jacquard Textile Colors & how to use them
Jacquard Textile Colors are professional-quality acrylic paints specifically formulated for painting and decorating fabric. They are widely used by artists, illustrators and textile designers because they provide rich color, excellent adhesion and outstanding wash durability after proper heat setting.
Unlike many fabric paints that leave a stiff or plastic-like surface, Jacquard Textile Colors remain soft and flexible on fabric, allowing the material to move naturally without cracking. This makes them ideal for both artistic work and wearable projects such as clothing, bags and home textiles.
✏️ How to apply Jacquard Textile Colors
Jacquard Textile Colors are extremely versatile and can be applied using different tools depending on the effect you want:
- Brushes for painting and detailed work
- Sponges for gradients and textures
- Stencils for repeating patterns
- Stamps or stamp pads
- Squeeze bottles for controlled lines
- Airbrush
👉 For airbrush use, the paint can be thinned with water up to 25%.
🔥 Heat setting the paint
To make the paint permanent and washable, it must be heat set once the paint has completely dried.
Heat setting methods
Iron (recommended method)
- Iron from the reverse side of the fabric
- Use the appropriate temperature for the fabric
- Do not use steam
Clothes dryer
- Place the painted fabric in a dryer
- Use the highest heat the fabric can tolerate
- Run for about 35–45 minutes
After heat setting, the paint becomes washfast and durable.
🧼 Cleaning tools
Clean tools promptly after use with:
- warm water
- mild soap if necessary
Because the paints are water-based, they clean up easily before drying.
🎨 Useful techniques & tips
Mixing colors
Jacquard Textile Colors are available in a wide palette of colors, but they can also be mixed together easily to create custom shades.
Creating pastel colors
- Add Jacquard White to any color
- Start with a small amount and increase gradually
Increasing transparency
- Add Jacquard Colorless Extender
- The more extender you add, the more transparent the color becomes
Watercolor-style effects
- Add up to 25% water
- This increases transparency and flow for a softer effect
Combining with other Jacquard paints
Jacquard Textile Colors mix beautifully with:
- Dye-Na-Flow
- Lumiere
- Neopaque
This allows for even more creative techniques and effects.
Creating metallic colors
You can mix Textile Colors with Pearl Ex Powders to create your own custom metallic or pearlescent paints.
💡 Inspiration Tip
For more painterly textile artwork, work in thin transparent layers using Colorless Extender or slightly diluted paint. This technique allows you to build depth, shading and beautiful blended effects while keeping the fabric soft and flexible.
