This past Friday was the start of the Chinese New Year. We celebrated at Stencil1 by making this gorgeous piece of art on hand made paper. We layered our stallion stencil over our scallop pattern stencil—part of our new Stencil1 stencil line with Plaid! This layering technique creates a beautifully intricate and festive look.
For this piece you’ll need: stencil brushes, scallop pattern stencil, stallion stencil, multi-surface paint and hand-made paper.
Step 1: To start, we mapped out where we wanted to stencil the pattern on the paper. We used hand-made paper because it went with our Chinese New Year theme. But you can make this on any surface—a shirt, pillow, canvas, cardboard etc! We decided to cover the paper with the scallop pattern fully except for a border around the edges.
Step 2: Next, you can begin stenciling! Stencil using a dry brush technique, this means using very little paint and applying multiple layers. If you are stenciling on paper, you have to be extra careful not to use too much paint. Start extremely light and add on as needed. We used yellow, red and a metallic copper to get an umber look. To do this, we used three different brushes to paint different sections of the design. Try to blend your colors and don’t be afraid to overlap.
Step 3: Let that first section dry and move the pattern on to the next section. Use the part you already painted to align the stencil. Repeat this step until you’ve fully stenciled the paper.
Step 4: Once your paint is dry, you can stencil the horse. We used black because it resembles the black ink used in Chinese art. Place the stallion stencil centered on the paper. And use a brush to paint it in. Remember to use very little paint. Use a circular motion to cover the larger areas and an up and down dabbing motion to cover the more detailed areas. Apply as many layers as need to achieve the color you want.
Step 5: Allow your paint to fully dry and then frame your art! Place it somewhere in your home or office and send us a picture of your work @stencil1
