For the Love of Jewelry

This how to comes from Marcela, a new Stencil1 team member!

Jewelry is an awesome way to accessorize, but all those necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings can get messy pretty fast. In fact, my jewelry can get so crazy I constantly forget about the awesome pair of earrings buried in the growing pile of tangled jewelry. In an effort to give all of my jewelry some love and accessorize like a pro, I decided to make a rocking jewelry stand that not only looks great, but also helps me organize my jewelry and have easy access to all of it.

Start with a wooden stand (you can make this by using metal hinges, found at any hardware store, to attach two pieces of plywood or any wood you can find), brass hooks and tape.

jewelrystand_Stencil1_1

I wanted to go with a colorful, geometric theme that was easy to paint and avoided a mess. I used tape to make a design that wrapped around the entire stand. You can make a pattern similar to mine or challenge yourself a little more by throwing in some curvy lines here and there.

jewelrystand_Stencil1_2

jewelrystand_Stencil1_3

jewelrystand_Stencil1_4

Next, I began painting. You’ll need some paint and a couple brushes. A cup of water and a rag will help you keep your brushes clean. I used Folk Art paint and stuck to 6 colors.

jewelrystand_Stencil1_5

jewelrystand_Stencil1_6

jewelrystand_Stencil1_7

Depending on what paint you use and what look you want your stand to have, you might have to do a few coats. When you’re done, let the stand sit for 10-15 minutes or until the paint dries. You can use a blow dryer to speed up the process! Once the paint dries, carefully peel off all the tape.

Lastly, decide where you want your hooks to go. You can use a grid system, make a pattern or place them randomly. I decided to place my hooks at the corners of the shapes I made my design with. Keep in mind your jewelry when placing the hooks, put some higher up for long necklaces and some further down for earrings or rings. Tip: Use a nail and hammer to make a small hole where you are placing the hook to make screwing the hook in a lot easier! Once you’re done, pick a home for your awesome, new jewelry stand and organize away! Don’t forget to share pictures of what your jewelry stand looks like with @stencil1

jewelrystand_Stencil1_8_fin

Ps. Not that into jewelry? This would make a great and unique gift for anyone that is!!

For Your Phone

This post comes to you from Marcela, a Stencil1 new assistant!

Accessories are always better when they’re custom made. Not only are they unique, but also YOU made it so when some ask where you got you’re awesome iphone case you can take all the credit! I looked around amazon for cheap solid-color iphone cases and decided to stencil them. (You can do this with any phone cases for you android user out there 😉

To make this iphone case you’ll need an plastic case (you can find them for a couple bucks on amazon), stencils, paint, brushes and water & paper towels.

cellphone_case_Stencil1_1

First, choose the stencil and paint you want to use on your case. I decided to go a with an arrow. Place the stencil on top of the phone case and use the brush to apply paint. Try not to use too much paint at once because so your image doesn’t get too distorted. Have fun mixing colors and using more than one color for different parts of your stencil! I made my stencil purple and gold.

cellphone_case_Stencil1_2

When you’re done painting, lift your stencil very carefully and set it aside. Let the paint dry for a good 5 to 10 minutes, a little longer if you used a lot of paint. Once the paint is dry you’re ready to show off your awesome iphone case!

cellphone_case_Stencil1_3

 

cellphone_case_Stencil1_3b

 

Show us what your iPhone case looks like! @stencil1

To Brighten Up Your Day

I was walking by a tall apartment building in NYC and there it was, a discarded avocado colored wood lamp. Solid wood! I carried it home on the train and got busy on this make-over!

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_1

First, I sanded down the surface to make it more receptive to paint. I dusted it off too.

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_2

Then I choose a light neutral colored paint as my base, a cream. I love it, it already looks happier.

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_3

Then I wanted to do something modern, on-trend but also folky so I choose some arrow stencils from the Stencil1 CAMP stencil set and another arrow in Stencil Style 101. I taped off areas to isolate the arrows. I then choose two colors, red and blue for my arrows.

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_4

I did a stencil test of my arrows on a piece of scrap wood.

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_5

I then stenciled arrows in various positions, all “shooting” upwards! I think it’s more positive in that direction! I used a very dry brush technique to give it a super handmade, folky look to it. Sort of modern folk, no? Anyway, I covered the entire lamp in hundreds of arrows and splurged and bought a new shade for this found treasure!

Lamp_howto_Stencil1_6

LAMP_howto_Stencil1_7_fin

And there it is, to brighten my day!

Layering Image with Pattern

One of my favorite techniques is layering. I love to layer iconic imagery over a pattern. In this case, I am making art that is a two layer stencil of a deer over a pattern. Sort of a city-meets-country feel to it!

I started by painting my board a neutral color.

I then mixed a little grey paint with the base color to slightly darken it for my pattern layer. I stenciled my quatrefoil pattern on top of the solid painted board. This stencil is designed to repeat like wallpaper so I moved it around to fill the board with the pattern.

Once dry, it was time for the silhouette layer of the Antlered Deer. I love this guy, he’s so confident. Anyway, I wanted to use some pop colors – bright yellow as the base. It took three coats to cover the pattern.

Once dry, I stenciled the deer detail layer in a deep blue. For detailed stencils, always go light with your paint, stenciling is a dry brush technique. I can’t say that enough.

And there you have your modern piece of art.

Wet Paint on Wedges

When I recently attended the ALT Summit held at Martha Stewart’s HQ, I noticed that many of the blogger gals there had on high wedges. Some were even decorated or painted. Well, I can do that too! I had to try it out. I got these cork wedge heels at Amarcord, a vintage store in Williamsburg Brooklyn for a few bucks. I thought my asian inspired rainbow repeat pattern would be perfect in a burnt orange for summer. I just held the stencil in place, filled in the design with a VERY DRY BRUSH, and there you have it. These say fun, do you agree?

Let go of expectations with watercolors


Sometimes stenciling doesn’t have to mean re-creating a perfect image from the cut design. Using watercolors and layering can produce some interesting results, rich with depth.
I first brushed with watercolor paper with some watery blue colors for my sky. Then, I stenciled using my small evergreen tree design, first in mid tone green. Then once it dried, I stenciled over it with less watery paint in a darker color.
Bob Ross, eat your heart out!