Frieda Oxenham: Poetry with StencilGirl® Stencils

A New Year brings fresh hope and new beginnings in many ways, specially this year. Hopefully we will be able to look back and realize that life became more normal in 2021 after the disaster that was 2020. As always I am using Ben Okri’s poem as my guideline and once again it was just what I needed to hear: “We are not much more than what we think, in our minds we swim or sink”.  Let’s all try to keep on Swimming!

Here is the tutorial for my spread:

1.      Mix gesso with blue Radiant Gel, and apply to 2 facing pages of a large art journal. I use the ArtbyMarlene one)using a sponge.

2.      Using stencil Leaf Zen Landscape and a variety of blue paints with a cosmetic wedge and apply to the bottom half of both pages.

3.      Take an 8 x 10” gel plate, add and brayer out a variety of acrylic paints (I used 6 different colours) and take prints on plain copy paper.

4.      Again using the gel plate, brayer on some darker colours, put stencil Looping Leafy Vines on top of the plate and take prints on the paper made in step 3.

5.      Repeat step 4 but using white acrylic paint.

6.      On the sheets from step 4 and 5 stencil the fish from Boho Fish using black acrylic paint. Use both side of the stencil to get a variety of fish swimming in different directions.

7.      Cut out the fish and glue onto the pages with soft gel medium.

8.      With various green acrylic paints, stencil on patterns of greenery to the bottom part of the pages using stencil Looping Leafy Vines, with a cosmetic wedge. Outline with a sparkling green gel pen.

9.      Stencil on the sun as shown, using orange acrylic paint, a cosmetic wedge and the small stencil from the February 2017 StencilClub.

10.  Make the words of the quotation using a Dymo writer with self-adhesive tape black on clear, and adhere to the pages as shown. Cover with clear gesso to take the shine away somewhat.

11.  Stamp on shell images to the bottom of the pages. I used small Tapestry Stamps.

12.  Stencil on the words Keep on Swimming from Boho Fish to the left hand page with blue paint. Outline with a permanent black marker.

13.  Outline the fish eyes with a permanent white marker

14.  Spray on the sky part of the pages through Tropical Floral with blue mica spray to make clouds.

15.  Edge the pages with a blue inkpad.

© Frieda Oxenham 2021. To see more of Frieda's work, please visit her BLOG.

Get a Mad Scientist Deal on Mary Beth Shaw’s Periodic Tables Set

MaryBeth is so excited about her Periodic Table Stencil, Periodic Framework Stencil, and Periodic Framework Mask that she is offering them as a set for $35!

StencilClub Member Bonus: Use your discount code and get them for $28!

Each periodic table stencil or mask has 118 squares so users can make a table of the known chemical elements however, Mary Beth plans to use these stencils in an artfully abstract way.

Mary Beth Shaw’s Periodic Tables Set includes:

Periodic Table Stencil – Line it up and use it to outline the Framework or on its own.

Periodic Framework Stencil – Line it up and use it with the Periodic Table Stencil to add colored boxes or on its own.

Periodic Framework Mask – Designed to be used artistically or scientifically. Snip the central motif out and use it in your abstract painting or you could line up this mask and use it with the Periodic Table Stencil.

SET13 - you get 2 stencils and 1 mask

This set of 3 is perfect for science teachers and students as well as mixed media artists.

You can also purchase the stencils individually.

Periodic Framework Stencil 9"x12" L836

Periodic Table Stencil L837

Remember, all StencilGirl® stencils and masks are as pictured. 

The white part is the mylar. The area shown in black is where the paint goes.

Periodic Framework Mask L842

Ready for a Mad Scientist Deal? Go to the Periodic Tables Set! 

Is Your Stencil Company an Angel Company?

Is your stencil company an angel company?

StencilGirl® Products is an angel company, meaning that you may use our stencils in original

(made by hand) art that you sell!

StencilGirl® stencils themselves are copyrighted by StencilGirl® Products and the designers. 

We ask you to be respectful of our brilliant artists and not use their works as the centerpiece image in art that will be mass produced and sold.

You are welcome to contact us if you have any questions. 

We love it when you credit the designing artist in your projects.

Thank you!

Happy Hour Stencils by Kristin Reese Williams

CHEERS! Here is a toast to you until we can gather! 

StencilGirl has produced new hand-drawn stencils by Kristin Reese Williams.

"These stencils were so fun to design," Kristin says. "I imagined all the fun party invitations or memories of vacations these might be used for! Many were taken from photographs of just those things!"

Ladies’ Night & Ritzy Drinks, L835

Kristin has a dear group of girlfriends that has been taking an annual trip together since 2012. She says, "Dubbed, “The Wicked Seven” since our first trip was to Maine (Wicked good, yeah?), we traditionally line up our glasses and take photos for posterity. This is one of the wine drinkers that trip. It’d be great to use in a scrapbook or as a memento spread of a great time with friends."

"My husband and I had a wonderful trip to Colorado with another couple. We popped into the Ritz for a late afternoon cocktail and I snapped a shot of our drinks. Champagne cocktails, and Bourbon drinks garnished with Rosemary completed our afternoon toast. Use this as a whole or take some of those yummy bubbly parts and add to your mixed media paintings."

Manhattan with 2 Cherries, S856

Kristin says, "I adore a good Manhattan and my husband makes the best. I also like taking photographs looking down into my glass. Add some interest to your art journaling with an abstract view of this delicious cocktail."

Cheers a Toast! S855

Whether you say Yamas! Salud! Porst or Cheers! It’s Wine O’Clock somewhere and the Girls Night Out Crowd is ready to PAR-TAY! It’s Happy Hour. Chin-Chin, Ya’ll!

 

ATC Mixup, L834

The drinks and bottle on this ATC stencil are perfect for card making, invitations, or adding some spice to an art journal page. Kristin prefers to cut her ATC stencils up as she finds them easier to work with that way. 

Sodas to wine to milkshakes to bourbon on the rocks, these represent so many different libations and a wine bottle! Cheers!

All of Kristin's stencils await your discovery right here, but meanwhile, it would hardly be Happy Hour without Kristin's fave drink recipes! 

Megan Whisner Quinlan: January 2021 StencilClub Stencils

When I first saw this month’s StencilClub stencil set (designed by the amazing Mary Beth Shaw) I immediately got excited. Upon seeing the “orb” motifs, my gears started turning. What if I could create orbs with all the patterns from the set? Of course, when I saw the architectural design, I also thought of creating doors that opened to reveal something interesting. Because I like to work with mixed media techniques on my pages, I often like to create interactive elements that invite the looker to interact with the page. Follow along to play with this month’s stencil set!

Step 1:

After prepping a journal page with gesso, spray the page with Ranger Ink’s Dina Wakely Media Acrylic ink sprays in Mineral and Sand. I often use these sprays to create quick, grungy backgrounds.

Step 2:

With a Ranger Ink Mini Blending tool and Dina Wakley Media Acrylic Marine paint, stencil the orb motifs onto different scrapbook pages, or similar ephemera. Use your blending tool to create “orbs” with the other stencil designs, by swirling in an orblike pattern onto your paper. Allow to dry.

Step 3:

Cut out your orb shapes and set aside. Next, stencil your architectural design onto the upper middle of your page. Allow to dry.

Step 4:

Cut your “doors” open on your page. Fold open the doors, and use your blending tool to paint the backs of the doors and white space from the under page. Stamp a focal image onto some of your ephemera scraps with Jet Black Archival Ink from Ranger Ink. I chose this ink because it is steadfast and won’t bleed should any paint blend in. (Here, I chose an image from the Lynne Perrella LPc005 set with Paper Artsy). Although, I chose to stamp, any magazine or personal image could work just as well. The possibilities are endless.

Step 5:

Add your image to the inside of the door. Glue the back of your journal page to the one beneath to seal it together as one page. Arrange your orbs in a cascading design coming from out of your doors. This effect will invite the onlooker to open the doors once closed. What you put on the backs of your doors is up to you. I always feel like my pages are “unfinished” unless I add text, so for this page I used some text from the Tim Holtz Idea-ology line to finish. Finally, I collaged some torn bits around the edges to create a border and to give my page more texture. Have fun finishing your piece with marks etc. and collage elements to make your page uniquely you.

Join StencilClub by January 15 to receive these three exclusive stencils and accompanying video tutorial with PDF, and 20% OFF STENCILS EVERY DAY!!

Hello! My name is Megan Whisner Quinlan. I have been art journaling and book binding for about 20 years. However, I took a 10 year break from paper arts when I had my first 2 children. About 5 years ago, I came back into journaling after some big life changes, including 2 more children. Journaling had always been a part of my life, especially to work things out in life on paper. When I first started out, I really only focused on making books by hand and some basic collage and stamping. I was intimidated by the amazing art journaling artists out there who could create elaborate, mixed media spreads.  When I came back to journaling after such a long break, I decided that I was going to really push myself to learn all the techniques I had been too afraid to try.  Painting and drawing have really allowed me to find so much joy in my creative process, and I now almost exclusively create mixed media every day. I feel excited to have joined the art journaling community and you can find me on Instagram @Megan_Whisner_Quinlan or on Youtube: Megan Whisner Quinlan.

Let's talk about "stencil masks."

Hi and welcome!

It’s Peg and Shel. We are so glad you found us today! Let's talk about masks.

Shel says, "Rather than thinking about face coverings like we did all of 2020, or making masquerade masks or Mardi Gras masks, or even talking about the figurative masks we all hide behind in our daily lives. Peg and I decided to talk about the definition and unique properties of 'stencil masks'. 

We get LOTS of questions and need for clarifications between what is a stencil vs what is a mask. I like to describe it this way. Think of a stained glass window. The stencil is the black part. The mask is the colors. Inny vs outy. And masks are probably my favorite type of stencil! So I made a quick and easy art journal page using several of my favorite masks from some favorite designers like Trish McKinney, Valerie Sodjin, and Traci Bautista.

Peg is glad you are here because she wants to share a canvas painting she did using Stencil Masks from StencilGirl®. Both Shel and Peg love masks and These are some of the best we have seen.

For the canvas, the masks are all are designed by Trish McKenney and have the look of all things found in nature, intertwining vines and leaves. So beautiful!  

Peg used the large wisteria mask to create the background and filled in with a few dripping moss masks. She followed up with a club set of leaf masks to create the grapevine look. using the leaf masks she then added outlines in white to enhance their visibility on the canvas.

Then several layers of iZink glazes were used to add depth and additional color.

If you don't like the shiny surface that you achieve using the glazes, add matte medium to the surface. I happen to like it on this piece although it make it hard to take pictures. Anyway, it would be fun to try this using different colors and make a seasonal choice in a spring and summer pallet.

Here is a short video shot in the studio while working on this.

StencilGirl® Stencils:

Tangled Beach Grass S660 

Leafy Doodle Verge S714

Scalloped Border Small Mask S644

Deconstructed Chrysanthemum S295

Garden Swirl L147

October 2019 StencilClub - Lacey Leaves

Wisteria Giant Product Code G026

Dripping Spanish Moss Product Code L684

Petals and Ripples Product Code L429

Lacey Spanish Moss S662