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If you have been unable to find Obama campaign buttons locally, and can’t afford to buy them in bulk from on-line sources, you can do what I did and make them yourself. All you need is a package of die-cut wooden circles, which are available at Michael’s and other craft stores, a package of pin backings, (either the pin/clasp variety or the push/pin type, available in the “jewelry findings” section of craft stores), some “super glue,” a can of clear, spray-on, acrylic varnish and your printer. Simply “cut and paste” a logo from one of the numerous on-line sites that provide them for free, or create your own design, then print it on either plain card stock (won’t “wrinkle” when glued like the lighter weight paper) or adhesive backed large shipping label sheets (Avery product # 8463, for example.) Allow the ink on the printed sheet to dry for at least 30 minutes, then spray the sheet with the acrylic varnish to make the printed image “waterproof” so it won’t “run” if it is exposed to moisture. Cut out the varnished logo one it is completely dry and attach or glue it to one of the die-cut wooden circles. Attach a pin to the back of the wooden circle using the superglue and your campaign button(s) is complete. For other projects, like magnetic car signs or bumper stickers, Avery produces magnetic sheets (Product # 3270) for use with printers. To make your own tee-shirt Avery has “Iron on” transfer sheets (Avery Product # 3271-for light colored tee-shirts. Avery also has iron-on transfer sheets for black or dark colored tees). Just remember to reverse the image before printing your “iron on” transfer. I wanted to sew an appliqué a campaign design on cloth tote bag, but found the printable fabric sheets found at fabric and craft stores somewhat costly. Then I discovered a pad of primed artist canvas at Michaels craft store (look for Fredrix Product # 3500 in the Fine Art Supplies Section of the store) that had 10 sheets per pad. The sheets were 9 X 12 inches, therefore I had to cut them into the 8.5 X 11 inch sheets that my printer would accommodate. The canvas sheets are sturdier than the fabric sheets, did not cause as many printer “jams” and produced a cleaner printed image. Since the canvas is “primed,” it doesn’t absorb as much ink as the fabric sheets do, so that saves a few more pennies. Once the ink was dry, I “fixed” the image by using a spray-on acrylic varnish in order to be able to hand-wash the tote bag later without causing the image to bleed. Another advantage to the primed canvas is it won’t ravel at the edges like the fabric sheets do if you are cutting out complex shapes of sew on appliqués.
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