Create a Dimensional Garden Labyrinth with Modeling Paste

Hi, my friends! I'm Consie Sindet and this is my first post for StencilGirl®. I'm a mixed media artist that loves playing with supplies, experimenting in my art journals, and delighting in sharing what I come up with!

I'm a big fan of being outdoors and walking a local labyrinth in my town. I find the experience to be very meditative. However, sometimes the weather doesn't cooperate! Today, I wanted to share with you how to create a finger labyrinth in your art journal so you can always "walk" the labyrinth anytime you want.

BTW...I made a video of the process which you can find at the bottom of this post.

Let's start with the supplies:

Ceremonial Labyrinth stencil #2 by Cynthia Silveri: M228

Leafy Doodle Verge stencil/mask by Valerie Sjodin: S714

ATC Mixup Evan stencil by Jennifer Evans: L654

ATC Mixup Apter stencil by Seth Apter: L664

Watercolors

Makeup sponges

Modeling paste

Palette knife

Inktense pencils

White paint pen

The first thing I did was to create a background of mossy rocks to anchor my garden using a variety of green watercolors and a makeup sponge. The ATC Mixup Apter stencil by Seth Apter: L664 had a few different size circles that I could use to add a layered look to the page.

I then applied modeling paste with a palette knife to form my garden and labyrinth. I used the Leafy Doodle Verge stencil/mask by Valerie Sjodin: S714 to add the trees and foliage that I have at my actual labyrinth and the ATC Mixup Evan stencil by Jennifer Evans: L654 to add the garden on the bottom of the page to represent the flowers that grow in the surrounding woods. 

After I applied the paste through the Ceremonial Labyrinth stencil #2 by Cynthia Silveri: M228, I went back in to fill in the sections that were not covered by the bridges in the stencil. I wanted to have the walls as a single piece. Because I was adding the paste without a stencil, the finished texture had a wonderful rough stone feel about it!

A quick note: I don't as a rule clean my stencils except when using modeling paste. I did clean each of these stencils right after using them and allowed the modeling paste to dry with each layer on my page so I didn't pull up what I had already put down when I used the next stencil. 

Once all of the paste was dry, the next step was to add watercolor over all of the raised sections. I used a dry-ish brush to apply the paint. It is not really possible to drybrush with watercolor as you need moisture to get the paint to move! However, if you use as little water as possible, you can get the paint to catch on the modeling paste and not as much of the background paper. A light touch and layering works better than trying to get the color to cover all in one go.

After the watercolor had dried, I went in with my Inktense pencils to add more depth to all of the sections. Feel free to use watercolor pencils, water-soluble crayons, or any other supply you want to experiment with! I used the pencils to add shading to get all of the garden elements to really pop off the page. 

Most of the shading was done on the modeling paste itself. However, with the labyrinth, I wanted that to stand out the most. So, I shaded around the outside of the paste to really give it a raise stone wall look.

The final touches included a few highlights with a white paint pen on the flower petals and the labyrinth, and some splatters using the Indigo Inktense pencil. Now the labyrinth is ready to use whenever I need a meditative minute or two in my day!

I would love to see what you create using these stencils! You can tag me on Instagram and find me in the following spaces!

Website: AtopSerenityHill.com

Instagram: @consie_atopserenityhill

YouTube: @ConsieSindet

The Creative Playground membership

Spring Forward with New Designs from Linda Edkins Wyatt!

StencilClub February 2022: Make Your Own Mid-Century Modern Garden

Valerie Sjodin's Mid Century Modern Garden set is the February 2022 StencilClub exclusive design. This set includes two 9x12 stencils and seven masks! 

Here is Valerie with a preview of this month's exclusive design and project. 

The Mid-Century Modern Garden stencils ship to StencilClub members on the 15th of February. 

On the same day members will get the exclusive project video that Valerie has created for you along with a PDF. Both are downloadable.

Club members are also the only people who get 20% off stencils each month.

Boho, Banner Planner, Emotions & Feelings, & Garden Stencils

Wow! If you love stencils like we love stencils this is a very good marvelous sun-shiny day. Carolyn Dube, Valerie Sjodin, Cecilia Swatton, and Gwen Lafleur all have new stencils!

Words, an alphabet, bullet journal banners, flowers, faces, and medallions await you...

The Feelings and Emotions Stencil collection designed by Carolyn Dube was inspired by the rollercoaster ride this year has been.  

Carolyn says: "These stencils are a way to honor the full range of feelings, not just the happy ones. Use them as a tool for storytelling. Use these words front and center for a card, in your art journal, on a collage.  Embedding the words in the early layers of your play allows you to express and respect your feelings privately.  When you are using stencils, you have incredible flexibility so you can use it in the way that fits your creative process."

Feelings & Emotions 1, L827, 9" x 12"

Inspired by large interactive murals that are designed to start conversations and get you thinking, Carolyn created a stencil to do this for you in your art journal. Journal Starters is a collection of prompts providing a place to start a personal dialogue honoring your feelings, your journey, and your experiences.  Add one of these prompts to your art journal or create an entire mini journal with these! 

Designed to work alone or in conjunction with the other stencils in the Feelings and Emotions collection.

Journal Starters, S845, 6" x6"

Feelings & Emotions 2, L828, 9" x 12"

Inspired by illuminated letters, the Feelings and Emotions Alphabet Stencil includes a large and small alphabet.  Having two coordinating alphabets in one stencil gives you lots of flexibility!  Create a modern take on illuminated letters by starting a word with a large letter then stenciling the rest of the word with the smaller alphabet. Great for creating titles or adding a word for impact in your art!

The small alphabet is the same size as the words in the Feelings and Emotions collection so you can build any word you want, and it will match the others perfectly.  

Alphabet, L830, 9" x 12"

Feelings & Emotions 3, 9"x12", L829

The ribbons in the PlannerBanner Bullet Journal Ribbons Stencil by Valerie Sjodin are perfect for bullet journaling, art, and planner use because she designed them to be cut and fit into the pocket of an A5, or Moleskine journal. Use them for months of the year, headings, cards, and to make any header special. A perfect pairing with Script Sans Serif Planner Alpha & Grid L833 that will add just the right lettering style to your headings. 

Planner Banner Bullet Journal Ribbons, L832, 9" x 12"

Lettering is so easy for your bullet journal and planner with the Script Sans Serif Planner Alpha & Grid Stencil designed by Valerie Sjodin. Two alphabets, one script and one sans serif are included, along with the 12 months of the year. ALSO included is a bullet journal grid to make drawing a calendar quick and easy. It fits perfectly on a dot or grid journal such as Moleskine, Leuchturrm1917, or any A5 dotted or grid journal. This 4-in-1 stencil can be cut so all 4 pieces fit into the pocket in the backs of the journals. Make your headings even more special by combining these letters with either the Planner Banner Ribbons L832 OR the Mid-Century Modern Banners L711.

Sans Serif Alpha Grid, L833, 9" x 12"

The Garden at Nemours Stencil by Cecilia Swatton was inspired by her happy experience at the gardens by the same name in Pennsylvania. These gardens, lush with greenery and giddy with flowers, Cecilia says she was inspired with every step she took. S658 is the alternate Mask.

Garden at Nemours, 6" x 6", S844

 

Boho Faces, L831, 12" x 9"

The two faces on this large stencil are a mash-up of tribal influences from Gwen Lafleur's travels as well as her imagination and the interest in her smaller rubber stamp designs for PaperArtsy. 

You can use one or both of the designs and you can also mask them off to use bits and pieces. They’re perfect for art journaling, mixed media artwork, mixed media portraits, and more. This stencil also coordinates beautifully with her Boho Daisies Small and Mini stencils as well as the other designs in her Boho collection.

Boho Daisy Mini, M318, 4" x 4"

Each of these Boho Daisy stencils were inspired by the daisies that Gwen started drawing around the eyes of her tribal or Boho faces. Use both stencils to create a layered flower or separately in your art journal, as embroidery patterns, for art journaling, and handmade tags.

Boho Daisy Small, S846, 6" x 6"

Suzani Circle Medallion, S847, 6" x 6"

The small Suzani Circle Medallion and Flower Medallion, and the mini Circle Flowers were inspired by the traditional hand-embroidered Suzanis (textiles – usually bed covers or wall hangings) found through Central Asia, and especially in Uzbekistan. Gwen designed these stencils to coordinate with some of her PaperArtsy rubber stamp collections as well as the July 2020 StencilClub “Suzani” collection, which is exclusive to StencilClub members.

This detailed floral design is ideal for handmade cards and tags, art journaling, mixed media artwork, scrapbooking, and more. Repeat it or turn it in different directions for even more versatility in creating backgrounds and larger designs.

Suzani Flower Medallion, S848, 6" x 6"

Suzani Circle Flowers, M320, 4" x 4"

Palmistry Hand, M319, 4" x 4"

The Palmisty Hand Stencil was inspired by Gwen's experiences in having her palm read while traveling through Bali and India. This stencil features a right-handed palm with the Life Line, Wisdom Line, Love Line, Fate Line, and Marriage Line. This design also includes the symbols for Venus (love, sympathy, and grace,) Moon (courage, mysticism, and imagination,) and outside of the palm are Jupiter (confidence, wisdom, and leadership,) Sun (ambition, success, and creativity,) and Saturn (discipline, balance, and independence.)

This stencil is perfect for use on handmade cards and tags, for mini art journal pages or small focal points, scrapbooking, and much more. 

You don't need your palm read to know 

you want to check out all the latest stencils :)