Grunge and Neon Mass Make Tags

Hi friends! Consie Sindet here with another fun project for you. I love how inspiration can show up. This project came about because of a tag someone made me, a birthday gift of neon paints, and my love of reading and using book paper.

If you are looking for a delightful gift for a bunch of people, try this project! It is a great mass make. Let's jump in to how I made them!

Let's start with the supplies I used:

ATC Mixup Evan stencil by Jennifer Evans: L654

ATC Mixup Apter stencil by Seth Apter: L664

Feather Patterns mask and stencil by Valerie Sjodin: S939

Interesting Dots Repeating Patten by Jennifer Evans: S769

8.5x11 white cardstock

Cookie sheet or tray

Watercolors

Water spray bottle

Makeup sponges

Neon + black acrylic paints

Black Sharpie pen

White paint/gel pen

Book paper

Teabags

Paper cutter

Corner rounder

Scissors

Sewing machine

Black eyelet/grommet setter

I started by grunging up my white cardstock using watercolors in brown tones. I sprayed water onto a cookie sheet, added brown watercolor to the sheet, sprayed the cardstock a little with water and then laid it down into the watery watercolor. I flipped the cardstock back and forth a few times, adding more watercolor and water to get the color and darkness that I wanted. I also added splatter with the same browns to get a mottled effect. Let it dry.

To add even more grunge to the cardstock, I used the Interesting Dots Repeating Patten by Jennifer Evans: S769 stencil and a dark brown to add random marks all over the page. The final step to the background paper was to splatter orange neon paint all over. Let this dry completely. Then cut the cardstock into 8 equal pieces: 5.5" x 2.125". I used a corner rounder paper punch to round the bottom corners of each tag. Set them aside.

I then created the teabag overlays. Each teabag was able to be torn in half so it fit over the tag pretty closely in size. I used one of the masks from the Feather Patterns mask and stencil by Valerie Sjodin: S939 to add a multi-colored neon acrylic paint feather to each teabag. I then used a black Sharpie pen to loosely outline the feather. Remember to keep it loose and imperfect!

Back to the tags... using the ATC Mixup Apter stencil by Seth Apter: L664, I added a word on each tag along with some fun background marks with black acrylic paint. I kept the words the darkest and added the marks with a lighter touch. I did put the words on the bottom of the tags.

On my book paper, I stenciled the faces from the ATC Mixup Evan stencil by Jennifer Evans: L654 and then ripped each face out. I used one larger and one small face for each tag.

To add more neon to the grunge, I added touches of yellow to the faces and orange to the edges of the tags. The orange on the tags picks up the splatters that we did earlier!

I glued a set of 2 faces to each tag above the words. I paid attention to the marks on the tags and moved the faces a little this way and that to take advantage of what was showing. I also added a white highlight with a gel pen on the eyes of all of the faces.

If you do not have a sewing machine for the next step, glue or a stapler are great options! I folded the teabag over the top of the tag, then sewed with a straight stitch a few times back and forth across the top of each tag, leaving the strings for a fun messy look.

Using a black eyelet and grommet setter, I added more texture and function to the top of each tag. Add ribbons, string, a bulb pin, a paper clip depending on how you will use the tag.

I left the back of the tags blank for journaling, quotes, or anything else you want to add! Since these are made in sets of 8 from one sheet of cardstock, you can make 16 pretty easily for a fun mass make to send out as happy mail, give to your bookclub or art group.

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

Make a Pocket Book out of Envelopes and the April 2026 Stencil Club Set

There is something quietly satisfying about a stack of envelopes—especially the kind you don’t quite remember saving. They surface in drawers and boxes, tucked between the practical and the sentimental, carrying with them a faint suggestion of intention. This project began, as many good ones do, with that kind of rediscovery: a small collection of envelopes made from thick, watercolor paper, too beautiful to discard and too intriguing to ignore.

Hello again—I’m Kim Hamburg, mixed media collage artist, and today I’m working with the April 2026 StencilClub stencil set, Ribbon Dance, designed by Jennifer Evans. In this project, I’ll be transforming a handful of envelopes into a small, sculptural book with exposed pockets—spaces ready to hold ephemera, tags, ATC cards, and whatever fragments of story you feel compelled to tuck inside.

Jennifer Evans’ designs feel particularly at home in this kind of work. She creates stencils that lean into abstraction—marks that resemble intuitive, almost instinctive gestures. They are wide, expressive, and open-ended, suggesting a structure without confining it. There’s a generosity in that approach: the stencil offers a starting point, but leaves plenty of room for the artist to respond, layer, and reinterpret.

And of course, when faced with envelopes and pockets, I had to make a pocket-book.

Supplies

• Envelopes (any size; I used five, but the number is entirely flexible)
• Acrylic paint (at least two colors)
• Paintbrush, brayer, or sponge
• Adhesive (I used PVA glue)
• April 2026 StencilClub Set - Ribbon Dance

Optional:

• Gelli plate
• Markers, pens, or other embellishing tools
• Additional collage materials or ephemera

The Process

I began by painting each envelope, front and back—thinking less about perfection and more about establishing a base layer of color and movement. Some envelopes were printed using a gelli plate, which gave them a soft, atmospheric variation. Others I painted directly, letting the brushmarks remain visible, like handwriting.

Once everything had dried, I returned with the stencil set and a second color. This is where the structure began to shift into something more expressive. One of my favorite moments in the process was layering all three stencil designs together on the gelli plate at the same time. The result was unexpected—a kind of visual overlap that felt almost chaotic, but in a way that suggested rhythm rather than disorder. Marks collided, repeated, dissolved. It created a beautifully abstract, slightly jumbled surface that I wouldn’t have arrived at if I had approached each stencil separately.

From there, the envelopes began to take on a new identity—not as individual objects, but as pages. Glued together along their edges, they formed a small book, each pocket left open and accessible. The structure invites interaction. It asks to be filled.

How to Assemble the Pocket-Book

Take two envelopes and place them with the flap side facing up. Tuck the flap of one envelope into the body of the other, so that one flap is secured inside while the other remains extended. That remaining flap becomes your connector—it slides into the next envelope, whose flap will then extend outward in turn.

Continue this rhythm—tucking one, leaving one—until you’ve linked together as many envelopes as you like. To finish, simply glue the final flap to the envelope it meets.

What makes this structure especially satisfying is its flexibility. Because nothing is glued along the interior spine, the book isn’t fixed in size. It can grow. You can continue adding envelopes, extending the piece over time—an expandable object that evolves alongside whatever you choose to place inside it.

Why This Works

There’s something compelling about using envelopes this way—their original purpose lingers, but shifts. Instead of containing a single message, they become containers for many small ones. A scrap of paper, a stamped tag, a handwritten note—each addition becomes part of a layered narrative.

And that’s really what this project is about: not just making something, but making space. Space for collecting, for holding, for returning to.

It’s a small book, yes—but also a quiet archive of whatever you choose to keep.

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You get lots of great benefits as a club member, including a coupon for 25% off all regular collection stencils, a project and PDF from the artist, and an additional project by me that is for members only. So don’t delay!

Get more information about Stencil Club here
Stencil Club

I would love to see your work. Please tag me on Instagram — check out my IG

https://www.instagram.com/gluepaperscissors_/?hl=en

Kim Hamburg on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/kimhamburgart

Artist Jennifer Evans on YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdoBz3l_piQ

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

Adorn Your Art with this New Design by Jennifer Evans

Jennifer said, "When I started making my own jewelry, I thought of it as a way to experiment with colors and textures. I love vintage jewelry and the look of gunmetal, silver, and hammered gold. Gemstones fascinate me. I have such fun playing with these materials that I thought, 'Why not have a jewelry design to work with in my 2D art as well?' You can have fun "designing" your own creations using markers, metallic paint, or anything that shimmers. Wouldn't it be fun to stencil the outside of a gift box?"

Adornments LL1011

Available Now at www.stencilgirlproducts.com

Guest Designer Frieda Oxenham

A bit of sparkle never goes amiss at this time of year and I love taking a peek in all the lighted windows as I’m passing, admiring the decorations. That was the inspiration for this spread. Here is the tutorial:

1.     In your art journal (I used the large one by Dylusions) brayer white gesso onto a spread.

2.     While the gesso is still wet brayer on small amounts of 3 different colours of acrylic paint (I used blue, red and green) and spread the paint out across the pages.

3.     Remove some of the paint with a baby wipe through stencil L027 Fade Horizontal.

4.     Brayer on more white gesso randomly and take it away with a baby wipe through the same stencil used in step 3

5.     Repeat step 4 but this time using blue acrylic paint.

6.     Repeat step 4 but with green acrylic paint.

7.     Stencil on the page still using the same stencil, green acrylic paint and a cosmetic wedge.

8.     Spray onto the pages through stencil L600 Mosaic Flowers Repeat using gloss spray (mine was by Dina Wakley Media).

9.     Using red acrylic paint and the same stencil as in step 8, stencil flowers onto the spread.

10.  Using blue acrylic paint and the same stencils as in step 3 and step 8, stencil more flowers and small dots on the pages.

11.  Repeat step 10 using green Stencil Butter.

12.  Stencil on green leaves using the same stencil as in step 8.

13.  Using stencil L163 Window Ledger 9 roughly mark out (in pencil) the window shapes on metallic tissue paper with gold dots, cut out the shapes and glue them with matte medium, onto the right hand page using the stencil as a guide.

14.  Stencil onto the right hand page using the same stencil as in step 13 and using dark blue/green acrylic paint , making sure the metallic dot tissue paper appears in the windows.

15.  Stencil on the left hand page using stencil S954 Solitary tree as shown, using the same paint as in step 14. 

16.  Add the text (quotation by Don Shapiro), using your preferred method. I did it with a Dymo Writer using self adhesive tape.

17.  Outline trees, windows and text with a permanent white paint marker and outline the leaves with a sparkly green gel pen.

18.  Stencil on text to the left hand page using white acrylic paint and stencil L318 Wall of Words.

19.  Spray sparkling bronze spray paint onto the windows through the stencil used in step 3.

© Frieda Oxenham 2023

Field Desk UpCycle

Good morning!

It's Jane Bellante here- excited to be back with another stenciling tutorial!

I recently took Mary Beth Shaws class called "Living Mixed Media" here in Wisconsin at Shake Rag Alley.  It was such a great experience (and class!!) and the town was filled with galleries and studios.  Truly an artists dream! 

While there, I visited an antique store and found a vintage field desk for ONLY $20!!! I knew that this would be my next project for StencilGirl- I mean, it was a blank canvas just waiting for some stenciling.

I really love Jennifer Evans' 12 x 24 stencil "Daisy Wildflowers". I've used it in many ways, but being that this is a field desk, I thought it was perfect for my project.

I used some chalk style paint, some fiber paste, some metallic paste and some decor waxes to create a bright and pretty cover for my field desk. Now I just have to figure out what supplies to put in there!

You can watch the full step-by-step tutorial right here,  I hope you enjoy it!!

Supply list:

Daisy Wildflowers stencil by Jennifer Evans 

Paint Pixie Magical Chaulk Paints in Marshmallow and Violet Lemonade

Paint Pixie Forcefield Sealer

ReDesign by Prima Stencil Fiber Paste

ArtsSyVille Embellishments Metallic Paste

Prima Marketing Art Alchemy Metallique Wax - Rich Copper

Tim Holtz for Ranger flash card "Inspire"

Leave me a little note below and let me know what you think!

You can find me at janebellanteart.com and @janebellanteart on all social media channels.

Thanks for being here!

xo, 

Jane