Category Archives: stencils

Design It

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Life is full of so many opportunities to grab a hold of and run with.  When the opportunity came to stencil and blog for Just A Trace, I thought, “Why not?!”  It’s been a fun ride, but unfortunately this will be my last post.  I have enjoyed learning about stenciling, since I really knew nothing about it, and I am grateful for the opportunity.

My last project is one I plan to put in my Interior Design office to inspire me daily.  It will remind me of how once you start stenciling, it’s really hard NOT to think of what you can stencil next!  Happy Stenciling Everyone!

- Michaela

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I found wooden letters at a craft fair and decided on the word “design”.   I am obsessed with the color mint green and any variation close to that color right now, so I thought that color scheme would be perfect!

IMG_6258Items you’ll need include wooden letters, paint, paint brushes and foam pouncers, and maybe tape. (I ended up not using tape and held the stencils down with my hand.)  You’ll also need the Small Palazzo Pattern Stencil, Mini Mamma Giraffe Pattern Stencil, Mini Baskerville Pattern Stencil, Small Camille Pattern Stencil, Mini Dangle Pattern Stencil,and Mini Pinwheel Two Pattern Stencil.

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I began by painting all of the letters gray.  I chose gray instead of black so that the color wasn’t as harsh on the eye.

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Because these wooden letters did not have a smooth surface, I thought, why not embrace this?!  I chose to go for more of an ‘antique look’, which means I dry brushed the cream paint onto the wood instead of applying a smooth layer of paint.

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The beauty of going for an “antique look” meant my perfectionist personality went out the window, and each letter became unique and a piece of art on its own.

IMG_6267I lined up the stencil and tried to get a very small amount of paint on my foam pouncer.

IMG_6268I found holding the stencil down with  my hand worked better than trying to tape it down to the surface.

IMG_6270As soon as I finished one letter, I moved right on to the next letter and stencil!

IMG_6272I chose to use 3 different colors of paint so I alternated the colors that I used on each letter.  Above, the Small Palazzo Pattern Stencil and Small Camille Pattern Stencil were painted with the same color.

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The Mini Mamma Giraffe Pattern Stencil and Mini Dangle Pattern Stencil were stenciled on the E and G.

IMG_6275And the Mini Baskerville Pattern Stencil and Mini Pinwheel Two Pattern Stencil were painted in their own color as well.

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Here is the finished product!  I chose to keep the letters loose, but they could also be glued or attached together with a staple gun and a stripe of wood.

 

 

 

 

 

Men’s Valentine’s Day Gift Idea

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Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and what better gift to give to your significant other than a gift you made yourself?  I decided to stencil a book for a guy to use to journal or sketch in, or to write down recipes.

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Above are the supplies you’ll need, which includes a book, the Mini Mamma Giraffe Pattern Stencil, pouncer, paint, scrapbooking paper, mod podge, foam brush, items to embellish cover of book with and a glue gun.

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I began by taking the front and back of the book off of the wire binding to avoid having to stencil around it.

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I then taped the Mini Mamma Giraffe Pattern Stencil down to the book and began applying paint.

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I found that while one cover of the book was drying, I could stencil the other side of the book to save time.

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I matched up the stencil pattern and kept painting!

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After four times of stenciling each side, I was done stenciling.  I didn’t need to stencil to the bottom of the book because I was applying scrapbooking paper at the base.

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In order to get the look that I wanted to achieve, I tore the scrapbooking paper instead of cutting it.

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To determine the size of the paper, I set the book on top of the paper and drew a line for me to follow when I cut it.

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Once the paper was cut, it was time to apply it to the book.  I used Mod Podge to adhere it.

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First you start out by applying Mod Podge to the book to help the paper to stay in place.

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You then cover the other side of the paper completely with Mod Podge.

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Once the Mod Podge had covered the whole surface, I then applied another stripe of paper to add a little more interest to the cover of the book.

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I then chose some masculine looking embellishments and adhered them with hot glue.

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Here’s a look at the front and back covers of the book!

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Once the covers were dry, I put them back on the spiral ring and the book was complete!  Now to decide who to give it to for Valentine’s Day… :)

- Michaela

Stenciled Holiday Plate

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With the holidays fast approaching, I began thinking about holiday tablesettings and how to make my own patterned plates.  These are the steps that followed that thought:

Here are the items you’ll need:  A plate (glazed or non-glazed), fine-tip Sharpies, tape, an oven, and The Palazzo Stencil

Begin by taping the stencil down to the plate and grabbing your desired fine-tip Sharpie!

Start by outlining the shape and then filling it in with Sharpie.  I would recommend being consistent with the direction in which you apply your Sharpie.  For example, I chose to use up and down motions to create a clean look.

When I had finished coloring in the pattern I thought it looked good, however, I was not a fan of the distinct line all the way around the pattern.

So I decided to finish stenciling in each shape.

Using tape was helpful in securing the stencil down to the plate, but since the plate had a sloped edge, I found it helpful to apply pressure from my hand, while filling in the rest of the pattern.

I was happier with this result, however, I was not happy that you could see a visible line which almost divided the red shapes. (My perfectionism shined through with this project!) I addressed this issue by applying more Sharpie to the surface of the plate in hopes of disguising the line…and it helped! :o )

The next step is to heat your oven to 350 degrees.

Place the plate in the oven and…

…let it bake for 20 minutes :o )

The heat from the oven helped disguise my “lines” even more as well as darkened the colors.   

I loved the end result!  The pattern reminds me of ornaments which would be great for the holiday season, but it could also be used year round too!

 -Michaela

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turkey Place Setting Card

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Thanksgiving is just around the corner and my question is, do people still use place setting cards?!  If not, maybe it’s time to start!

 When I got to looking at the Dangle Pattern Stencil, I was also thinking about Thanksgiving and the pattern began to remind me of turkery feathers.  I then got the idea to create turkey place setting cards.

Here are the supplies you’ll need!

The first step is to cut your paper to your desired size.  Mine is 3″x3.75″ when folded.

You’ll then tape your card down with your Dangle Pattern Stencil.

Once everything is in place you’ll start coloring in the stencil with sharpies, or any type of marker. I outline the shape first and then color it in.

I chose to use two different colors of marker to add some interest.

To make the beak of the turkey, I chose to trace around the starburst part of the stencil. Cutting out a diamond and folding it in half would work too.  I just wanted the lines of the beak to line up with the lines of the stencil when I glued it down.

I then used tacky glue to apply the beak to the place card.

I also used tacky glue to apply the gobbler and googly eyes onto the card.  Hopefully you’ll be better at making a gobbler than I am and your’s won’t look like the turkey is sticking their tongue out at you! :o )

The next step is to either write the person’s name on the card or write it on a separate piece of paper.  I chose to write it on a separate piece of paper and apply it with glue dots.

The end result is this–an abstract turkey place setting card that you can use this year at Thanksgiving.  Enjoy!

-Michaela

Designer Gloves

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Why buy a pair of fancy gloves when you can make your own?!  That’s what I say!

Supplies needed:

  • Gloves (I bought an inexpensive pair from Target)
  • Paint (I used fabric paint, however, acrylic or house paint would work too!)
  • Stencil Pouncer
  • Stencil! Tiny Cabin Pattern Stencil (…which just happens to be on sale right now!)

Usually, I like to tape the stencil down to the table just to make sure it’s secure.  For this project, I found that holding the stencil down with my hand worked just fine!

Begin by placing the stencil at one side of the glove and start applying paint!

Since I chose to use the tiny Cabin Pattern Stencil for this project, it took 4 times of stenciling/matching up the pattern to create the “Chevron Stripe” across the glove that I wanted.  I like the scale of the pattern compared to the glove, so it is totally worth your time!

See!  Look at those gloves!  The pop of the metallic gold paint against the black gloves will be sure to catch someone’s eye!

~ Michaela