Stenciled Mirror on the Wall...

Stencils are a fabulous way to add a fun decorative element to mirror glass, especially if it's older or one used for purely decorative purposes. A stenciled mirror or a stenciled glass piece can also hide the mars and nicks of the piece easily.  Many times, changing a frame can prove cost-prohibitive and this is an excellent option for keeping that frame and adding interest to the mirror instead. You can use just one color or various as well as metallics and frosting.  Isn't that cool?  And here's the best part: You can easily find so many great mirrors in flea markets, antique shops and yard sales at budget-friendly prices. We've spied some very pretty mirrors to share and inspire YOU to say "Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, I think I'll Stencil you after all...".

Dana from Shabby Chic Addiction decided she was going to have her mirror in the garden -- that means the exterior, the outside, the place where it will face the weather!!! But she knew you could never go wrong Chalk Paint® decorative paint and the Serenity Damask Wall Stencil from Royal Design Studio.  She chose Provence Chalk Paint® and Pure White Chalk Paint® to stencil in the design, which is from the Allover Damask Stencil Collection. Be sure to read about her stenciled mirror project on her blog. We think it's a lovely idea to have a patterned mirror in the garden!

Nan from Sea Rose Cottage decided to go with a glam and gilded stenciled effect for her mirror! The Springtime in Paris Letter Stencil is perfect to create that beautiful, faded French feel most of us love so much.  The stencil itself is a lovely French Poem and is part of the Letter & Typography Stencil Collection. For the gilded effect, the Royal Stencil Creme Paints are easy to stencil with, easy to clean and durable. Plus, they look fantastic on mirror or glass with that special metallic shimmer. Just clean gently with regular window cleaner and a soft cloth (No scraping!)

As you can see, Michele from Hello Lovely used the same stencil but with regular house paint instead! It truly showcases how versatile a stencil can be -- in fact, she used the same pattern to stencil a bath wall in her stenciled mirror post!  Michele shares that it took her all of 10 minutes to transform this mirror. Now that's a perfect evening or weekend DIY project!

This stenciling project can be done on any mirror and glass surface including mirror insets, glass tabletops, old windows and also glass dishes. You can have fun girlfriends dreaming up creative ways to turn "trash into treasures". Stenciled glass and mirrors make fantastic  one-of-a-kind house warming and birthday gifts -- for yourself or a friend, too!  Have fun diving into the looking glass!

Inspiration and ideas abound -- but whose the fairest of them all? Take a look and let us know!

• Take a look at a beautiful stenciled mirror art piece with the Queen's Crown Stencil by artist Debbie Hayes!

• Our sister company, Modello® Designs, has a beautiful gallery of stenciled glass and mirrors!
  

• Want to try your hand at antiquing mirrors? Take the affordable How to Antique Mirror virtual workshop and you'll soon be a pro!

• Our How to Antique Mirror Pinboard has excellent projects combining stenciling and patinated mirrors!
  

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Whoa Baby! Sweet Nursery Stenciling

  

Whoa, Baby! There are so many fun ways to incorporate stencils and pattern into a nursery that tie in with any color scheme, whether it be pink, blue or gender-neutral colors such as yellow or green.  A story or favorite piece of artwork might spark the idea for a beautiful theme and/or color scheme -- and stencils are a fantastic way to help add interest to the chosen design.  Stenciling is very versatile and you can incorporate the pattern on a feature wall, furniture piece, pillows, floor rugs and even the lampshades in a nursery. Royal Design Studio has a Children's & Nursery Stencil Collection but Kathryn of Do It On a Dime decided upon the Circling Allover Stencil from our Allover Modern Stencils Collection. It's an effervescent and contemporary design -- perfect for baby Carson!

  

Kathryn is currently expecting and so her husband Charlie pitched in to help, too!  She says the stenciling process was so easy that "even if you stink at painting like I do, you can totally stencil" -- just what we've been saying! Charlie enjoyed this DIY stenciling project and they thought the end result was cute, whimsical and created a great design statement. We think it's fantastic, too!  As to the time it took them to stencil the feature wall?  TWO hours! Time for that Happy Stencil Dance!

 

The super adorable Kathryn created a video stencil tutorial for her YouTube channel to showcase her entire process. The video is full of good stenciling tips for when you tackle your DIY stenciling project! She included the stencil supplies you will need and visuals on everything from prepwork to lining up the stencil to rolling the color in. Oh -- and there's a $50 Stencil Shopping Spree Giveaway, too! Be sure to click into her video to watch the how-to AND enter to win!  The deadline is March 31, 2013.

Did you know that studies show that adding color and pattern reflects as a calmer and happier nursery environment for a baby?  It's also a more relaxing and joyful space for both Mom and Dad to be in as well.  Have fun creating the best space for your baby with stencils, color and decor you picked out with love!  Many thanks to Kathryn for sharing hers!

No need to wait nine months for special nursery & kids rooms ideas - check out MORE below!

• Project Nursery shared a glam, pink stenciled nursery with our Ribbon Damask Stencil!

• Our Endless Circles Lattice helped pull together a simple, sophisticated nursery for Cozy Cottage Cute!

• Have an older child? Here's a clever "board and batten" stencil wall treatment to update a nursery for boyhood.

• Our pin-spiring Stenciled & Painted Kids' Room pinboard will surely get your creative juices flowing!

Have a Stencil-rific day!

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A Dressy Damask Dresser!

Using Stencils to refinish and transform furniture can add pattern and interest to a plainer piece and also be the perfect surface to showcase a bold stencil design. Mary Spitzer of Because I Like to Decorate had a dresser she found at a thrift store and used both Chalk Paint® decorative paint and the Large Fabric Damask Stencil from the Allover Damask Stencils Collection to transform the dresser into a stunning piece! Our Furniture Stencils Collection is perfectly sized for stenciling furniture but here, Mary used a larger design made for walls and creatively designed the pattern to fit the piece perfectly.  She also chose to forego centering the design and instead off-set the stencil -- gorgeous!

Mary used one coat of Provence Chalk Paint® decorative paint because she wanted a lot of the wood undertones to show through the paint and distressing. She then applied a heavy coat of Annie Sloan Soft Dark Wax. Since the dresser had straight, simple lines, Mary decided to stencil the Large Fabric Damask onto the front with navy latex paint and not install hardware in order to maintain the modern style. [The dresser has grooves under the drawers for ease in opening.]  After stenciling, the dresser was distressed again, finished with the Annie Sloan Dark Wax and finally, the Annie Sloan Soft Clear Wax.

Mary wrote a beautiful post with more images on this stenciled furniture project for her blog.  If you are interested in stenciling and painting your own furniture, please be sure to read Royal Design Studio's Top 10 Furniture Stenciling Tips.  Many thanks to Mary Spitzer for sharing her stenciled furniture project!

Looking at your furniture with an eye to Stenciling? Check out these ideas, too!

• Here's another Chalk Paint® and Stencil furniture project with a full step-by-step tutorial!

• Find out how to layer many tones to creatively color and antique with Stencils!

• Sparkle up Chalk Paint® with our Royal Stencil Cremes for a gorgeous and color-coordinated furniture transformation!

• Our Stenciled & Painted Furniture Pinboard has SO many inspiring ideas just for YOU!

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First-Time Stencil Project a Draping Success!

Stenciling is an easy technique to learn -- and once you have the stencil basics down, the stenciling world is your oyster! There's a certain pleasure to pulling back a stencil and seeing the design pattern reflected in your surface and in the colors you love.  First-time stenciler and customer Maureen Heim was SO excited about her first stenciling project, the dining room drapes, that she shared her beautiful fabric stenciling results with Royal Design Studio.  

"These are the dining room curtain panels that I stenciled using the Small Acanthus Trellis Stencil. I did four panels and used Folk Art acrylic paint in metallic champagne mixed with a fabric medium," Maureen explains. " I'm so happy with the results!  It was my first stenciling project! I LOVE this stencil."

 

Since then, Maureen has used the stencil again to liven up the sheer fabric panels hanging in her den and she's also planning on more projects in the near future!  We love to hear that as we think stenciling is a key design technique for both DIYers and Pros -- one that can take a blah project into an extraordinary one.  You can see more Stenciling on Fabric tutorials in Royal Design Studio's How to Stencil area.

Some Fabric Stenciling Basics:

• Fabric stencil painting is best done on natural fabrics such as cotton, muslin, denim, velvet and heavier silks.

• There are many paints designed specifically for painting on fabric. Regular craft acrylics can be turned into suitable fabric painting mediums with the simple addition of Textile Medium. We also highly recommend using the Royal Stencil Cremes, which have lush colors and are super easy to stencil with, and work beautifully for stenciled fabric.
  

• Heavier fabrics will not move much as you stencil, but lighter fabrics can be held in place for stenciling by working on a smooth cardboard surface that has been lightly sprayed with stencil adhesive. Using stencil adhesive to maintain your stencil in position is also very helpful.

• If washing the item in the future, the easiest way to heat-set your stenciled fabric is to place the item in the dryer on high heat for an hour. Otherwise, you can heat set the painted area with a hot, dry iron and pressing cloth for a minute or two.

• The basic stenciling technique is used in the same way for smooth fabrics. Heavier, textured fabrics such as velvet require more paint to fill in and cover. A stippling or pouncing technique can be used with the stencil brush to work the paint well into the fibers.

 

The Acanthus Trellis Stencil is a part of the Allover Damask Stencil Collection and comes in two sizes (Maureen used the Small version).  In fact, many of the Royal Design Studio Stencil patterns come in several sizes so that you can find the right fit for your project.  We hope this has helped inspire you to tackle your first stenciling project (or your hundredth!) and to share those with us on the Royal Design Studio Facebook page or via e-mail!

Here are other Fab Fabric Stenciling Projects!

• Stenciled pillows are oh-so-pretty -- see how blog Where the Grass is Greener stenciled hers with our Springtime in Paris Letter Stencil.
  

• Use Chalk Paint® decorative paint and Stencils to make your own stenciled floorcloth!
  

• Set a stylish table with stenciled placemats as featured in Family Circle magazine!
  

• See a plain white tote bag get a total stylish stenciled makeover!
  

• Our Stenciled & Painted Fabric Pinboard is cloth-full of inspiring ideas!
  

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Stencils at the Statthaus!

Royal Design Studio recently ran their Royal Stencils LOVE Photo Contest and received many incredible stenciled project submissions of walls, furniture, ceilings, staircases and more! Stencils are a gorgeous way to transform residences and both commercial and hospitality locations - and it was one of those latter entries that caught our eye.  Kristin Reuther-Mercurio owns the Statt Hotel (Statthaus) in Cologne, Germany and she entered many projects where she used stencil patterns on different surfaces to design the hotel's guest rooms and exterior! We had to learn more and so we chatted with Kristin about her hotel, the design inspiration and her fab DIY stenciling!

"I studied architecture and later bought the house as a ruin, renovated and furnished it - that was 11 years ago," Kristin explains. "Since then I have been renting all eight apartments for long or short-term. My guests are here for a few days on holiday or for visiting friends and family but also for some weeks or months for work or other reasons. I like the idea of hearing so many different life stories and hosting so many different people I would else never have met."

 

 

She further adds, "I also like that my guests can - in a different city or country – have their own space and feel at home, not like in a hotel. The building is in the very central, yet in a quiet street. From here one can explore the city on foot."  As her guests arrive at the Statt for the home-away-from-home experience, a colorful Intricate Zelij Moroccan Stencil design greets them and sets a happy, relaxed tone as soon as they enter hotel.

We asked Kristin how she came about choosing stencils from Royal Design Studio for her design plan. "I grew up with a Turkish stepfather and thus always felt very close to the Oriental lifestyle and decorations. When I went to Morocco I fell in love with their tiles, however, those tiles were so expensive and hard to mount. An artist friend of mine pointed out Royal Design Studio Moroccan Stencil Collection – and I fell in love immediately."  In a guest room's bedroom and kitchen, you can spy both the Small and Large Eight Pointed Stars Moroccan Stencil from the Allover Moroccan Stencil Collection.

Kristin shared her design dilemma. "For years people tried to talk me into tiling the kitchen walls (more practical!) but as the apartments are not so big and the kitchens are open to the living areas I did not want to do it. That way the whole apartment would have felt like a kitchen."  She decided stenciling was the perfect design solution! By only stenciling certain areas of the kitchen, she was able to keep the design light, easy and not as structured as tile would have made it. The Intricate Zelij Moroccan Stencil used on the exterior pulls double duty and adds a fun, pretty touch to one of the guest room kitchens, too.

 

Perks of using stenciling techniques include that stencils can be reused time and again and are also versatile enough to use on multiple surfaces.  The Small Endless Moorish Circles Moroccan Stencil is used on three stenciled surfaces: a kitchen backsplash, the bath floor AND the fabric shower curtain! These additions of pattern make such an exciting alternative to just having a plain surface, right?

Kristin wanted her guests to feel relaxed during their stay -- and also find something new when they returned. "I enjoy changing the apartments from time to time and adding new decorations. While I'm stenciling, I can focus and relax and take a break from office work," she says. One fun bit of info -- the local name of the hotel, Statthaus, is wordplay in German. If the “City or Town-House” is spelled with double t it means “instead of” so instead of being in a hotel you feel like you are in your own home. It's wonderful to know that stenciling has become a pleasurable activity for Kristin and also one that allows her creativity to always find a new "home", too. Many thanks to Kristin for sharing her beautiful stencil projects at the Statt Hotel!  Be sure to book your reservations!

Want to see more hospitality projects around the world with Royal Design Studio Stencils? 

• Contemporary Columns with our Modello® Designs masking stencils make a Toronto coffee bar extra HOT!

• See the beautiful stenciled commercial projects of Shanghai-based artist David Hsueh!

• Featured in many shelter magazines AND a best-selling book, the stenciled surfaces at Peacock Pavilions in Marrakesh define global chic!

• The Lesic Dimitri Palace in Croatia has gorgeous tone-on-tone stenciled surfaces with Modello® Designs vinyl stencils!
  

 

 

 

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Say I DO to Stencils-Martha DID!

An industry guru in home and lifestyle decor, domestic goddess Martha Stewart recently featured a lovely wedding stencil idea with Royal Design Studio Stencils in the Spring 2013 issue of the Martha Stewart Weddings magazine. Many wedding planners and DIY brides look for extraordinary design ideas to not only create a memorable reception, but to create a custom ceremony space as well. Inspiring concepts for creating both unique and themed wedding ceremonies were featured using various decor elements, including stencils and stenciled fabric. 

Among the several wedding ideas, a sweet ceremony reflecting the freshness and fragrance of an well-tended and beautiful citrus grove was showcased.  Beautiful blues and whites along with the greens and orange of fresh potted calamandin trees brought a plein air feel to the wedding space.  For the aisle runner, the Large Florence Tile Wall Stencil from the Tile Stencils Collection was stenciled onto a swath of linen with ultramarine and cobalt blue acrylic paints. The fantastic article shows you how to create a lovely wedding ceremony space but of course the creative inspiration can be used during any event or special occasion!

 

 

This simple, elegant and budget-friendly creative stenciled linen project will be a hit at any wedding or special occasion since you can alter the stencil pattern, fabric and colors easily to coordinate with the event's theme. Stenciling on fabric is an easy technique to learn and you can always refer to the Fabric Stenciling Basics and the several How to Stencil on Fabric tutorials by Royal Design Studio.  Be sure to see our gallery of other great stencils and stencil supplies to help make your next event event memorable! Salud!

Here are other ideas to help your special occasions look their very Stencil best!

• Host a beautiful Moroccan-themed evening dinner party with stenciled linens for a gorgeous table setting. It's a perfect way to showcase the delicious food, too!

• Stenciled napkins, table runners and place cards will help make your brunch or luncheon party a fantastic success!

• East Coast Creative used the Indian Paisley Damask Stencil to create a gorgeous stenciled backdrop for a benefit!
  

• Or find your next inspiration on the Royal Design Studio Pinterest page, where new pattern, design and stencil ideas are always being pinned!

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Stenciled Canvas Art for Your Walls!

Stencils can transform surfaces such as walls, ceilings and furniture -- but did you know that stencils could also be used to create inexpensive yet great-looking custom works of art?  Stenciled canvas art pieces are easy to paint and can be a fantastic weekend DIY project!  Stenciled art is also a great option when you need to fill bare walls with color and pattern. Depending on your taste in artwork, you can easily use your stencils to create aged and vintage canvases, layered mixed media collages, or make a pop piece of modern and contemporary art!  Know what's BEST of all, though? Stenciling and hanging your own "fine art" gives the satisfaction of knowing YOU created art for the walls with your creativity. Deb from India pied-à-terre accomplished just that when taking paper, stencils and metallics to create her own cool artwork!

Deb had a "woeful-looking blank space on a wall" in her living room. She decided to primarily create her stenciled artwork with scrapbook paper, bronze paint and the Moroccan Arches Furniture Stencil. The stencil is part of our Allover Moroccan Stencils Collection but is perfectly sized for furniture and smaller projects, as is the entire Furniture Stencil Collection.  Her tutorial on how to stencil cool wall art is detailed fully on her blog but here are the basic points:

1) Use an inexpensive framed art piece as your base. The artwork is sturdy for your work and it is already framed! 

2) Find your favorite sheets of scrap paper that work with your decor and arrange them as you wish.

3) Use Mod Podge to decoupage the papers onto your "canvas" base and a brayer to smooth the papers out. Let dry.

4) Using metallic bronze paint (we suggest our Bronze Age Stencil Creme), stencil in your pattern over the paper collage.

 

 

Creating your own stenciled canvas art is a fun, personal way to decorate a small entry to a large living room wall.  It's also a great project to either do by yourself, with kids and even a group of crafty friends!  You can always use the suggested pre-framed wall art as your base but remember that wood is also a great surface for stenciling as well as canvas and even burlap!  We hope you've been inspired to become your own Picasso and fill your walls with stencil art you love! 

Are you inspired to create your own stenciled masterpiece?

• See MORE Stenciled Canvas Art ideas on our Pinterest board!

• Fabric & Embellishments help you create a fab mixed media wall stencil project!

• Click in to get daily stencil, pattern and design ideas on our Facebook fan page and Pinterest boards!
  

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Raven + Lily: Design with a Purpose

The very best design enhances our lives by uplifting our spirits, inspiring us with beauty, and provides balance and order to our lives. Raven + Lily, a socially responsible company that dedicates itself to empowering women around the globe through design partnerships and sustainable economic opportunities, not only provides this to us through their products but is uplifting, enhancing, and providing balance and order to the lives of the women who make them. 

 

Their gorgeous collections feature handmade, eco-friendly jewelry and accessories from North India, Cambodia, Ethiopia, and Los Angeles-and proceeds from the sales are returned to fund education, healthcare, and micro-loans to the communities they come from.

I personally own these amazing earrings and necklace, made in Ethiopia from recycled vintage coins and bullet casings. Read more about Raven and Lily's mission here, and you can imagine why I feel so good about wearing them.

 

This past year, they photographed their latest designs for their Spring/Summer Collection at none other than Peacock Pavilions-the site of our annual Peacock Painter’s Stencil Retreats-and many of our stenciling projects there can be seen in the backgrounds in this lovely LookBook. The allover stencils painted in black and white that you see on the stairs and door were inspired by classic zellij tile patterns, and were created for our first and second stencil retreats. All of these little lovelies are available in our Moroccan stencil pattern collection. You can see more of these stairs, as well as other ideas, in this blog post about using stencils on stair risers. The petite stencil patterns are such a fun addition to not only stair risers, but furniture, fabric, placemats, and stenciled accessories as well. Bonus! They also make a GREAT backdrop for fashion shoots! Collage background pattern: Arabesque Moroccan Stencil

 

The stenciled Moroccan dining tent that we created on our 3rd stencil retreat to Peacock Pavilions was used in another photo shoot. This tent, which we stenciled with designs drawn from Fez embroidery patterns is a super romantic dinner venue at night, but it's also a dreamy place to while away an afternoon with the soft filtered light and afternoon breeze blowing in. The Moroccan stencils used here are Moroccan Lace Stencil, Moroccan Star Border Stencil, Fez Blanket Moroccan Stencil, and Fez Fringe Border Stencil.

 

Far and away, the Peacock Pavilions stencil retreat project where we stenciled an Art Deco Mural inspired by the artist Armand Albert Rateau is the one that elicits gasps (of pleasure, of course!) It is super elegant, dare I say sexy, and offers heavy drama with stenciling in gold Stencil Cremes on a graphite colored wall. Due to the large scale, this particular stencil project was done with a one-time-use vinyl stencil from our sister pattern company, Modello® Designs. We have made these patterns available for YOU, in case you want to recreate this gorgeous look for yourself, and used a combination of DecPan219 and 220.

We just LOVE that some of our stencil projects in Morocco are showing up in fashion shoots and fashion magazines worldwide, thanks to the amazing talents and network of design associations of author and international interior design blog star Maryam Montague of My Marrakesh.

As I get ready to leave a month from now for our next Peacock Painters Stencil Retreat and project, I am already looking ahead to the NEXT trip which will take place in May 2014. This current retreat sold out in 2 weeks, so if you are interested in participating in our Moroccan stencil magic next year, please let me know!

RAVEN +_LILY TEAM credits: PHOTOGRAPHY: Kate Rentz, MODELS: Fatima Zahra and Kate Rentz, STYLIST: Lori Fox, ASSISTANT STYLIST: Candice DePrang Boehm

 

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