Fabric Cupcake Liners and Toppers

So for this DIY, you’ll need:

• Fabric of your choice (1/2 yard makes approx. 8 liners or more)
• Fabric stiffener
• Cupcake baking pan
• Saran wrap
• Fabric Scissors
• 1 paper cupcake liner (optional)
• Small bowl

The amount of fabric you need depends on how many liners you want to make.  About a 1/2 yard of fabric creates 8 liners or more.  I used some scrap fabric, about a quarter yard, that yielded me 5 liners. This DIY can get a little messy, so also keep some paper towels and a sink near by.

For easy folding and molding to the pan, cut four, 1 inch slits at the top, bottom and sides of your circle.  If you choose not to do this, the liners will have wavier edges rather than a clean, round, circular edge.

Ok, here’s where it gets a little messy.  One option is to brush on the fabric stiffener with a paint brush.  That’s a less messier way to do it, but it may be hard to saturate the entire piece of fabric.  A second option is to pour a small amount of fabric stiffener in your bowl, and completely saturate the circular piece of fabric inside.  You’ll need your hands to wring out the excess stiffener before moving on to the next step.

Lay a small piece of cling wrap on one of the cupcake holes in the tray.  You don’t really have to use cling wrap, but it makes it so much easier to remove when dry, as it acts as a non-stick barrier between the fabric and the tray.  Using the tray as a mold, insert the piece of fabric in the pan, pretty side faced down..  Use your fingers to mold the fabric to the shape of the pan, while overlapping the fabric on itself using the slits you created.  There’s really no wrong way to do this.  If you want a smoother edge, smooth out the fabric with your fingers as much as you can.  For a more warped look, allow the fabric to take whatever shape it wants as you press it to the bottom of the pan.
The fabric needs about an hour to become dry to the touch.  The inside will dry first.  Once it is, take it out, flip the pan over and dry the backside of the fabric by laying it over top, on the back.  You shouldn’t need the cling wrap here because the inside should be dry.  More molding and shaping!

Let this dry for about an hour as well.  If you need to speed up drying time, turn on a small fan next to it.

Nope these aren’t cupcakes, they’re brownies.  Because, who wouldn’t want to make brownies in a cupcake pan?
They’re basically cooked the same way as in a 13×9 or similar pan, they just cook slightly less, depending on your oven.  I cooked mine for about 25 minutes.  So really these are brownie liners, not cupcake liners, no? :)When they’re done, you’ll notice they’re, well, stiff.  Here you can take the scissors and cut off any frayed edges to make them look cleaner.

Allrighty then!  Let’s top these off with some easy, 5 minute cupcake toppers!

Those sticky letters in the scrapbooking aisle aren’t just for making that vacation album, you can also use them and a few toothpicks to make toppers.

Choose two letters.  This looks better with letters whose mirror image is the same as its regular image, like H, I, or O.  Flip one letter over and attach the toothpick to the back.  Sandwich the two letters together, securing the toothpick in the center.  Use a little craft glue if the stickers aren’t holding it well enough on its own.

You can also bend paperclips into hearts as another quick, topper option.

That’s it!  Yes, the liners do take a while to make, but everything can’t be a 5 minute DIY, right?  I think its worth it if you have special fabric you want to use or colors.  They look so homey and yummy as opposed to paper liners- not to mention you can reuse them.  Now excuse me while my husband and I go eat these brownies!  Happy DIY!