Stencils-Oh the Thinks You Can Think!

Who doesn't love Dr. Seuss? And what child wouldn't love a special stenciled reading hideout-a place of their own? Lina from Fancy Frugal Life combined both to create a darling reading nook for her kids in this adorable stencil project. 

Lina used our Small Endless Moorish Circles Moroccan stencil to add a bright punch of pattern to the back of the bookcases in "The Club"-a special space created in an under-the-stairs closet in her home.

The before and after photos show just how clever and cute this transformation is. Lina had used this stencil previously in this Stenciled Photo Frame Project, and found it ideal to use again. Of course, that it what is SO GREAT about stencils! You can use the same pattern over and over in completely different colors on different surface. What other decorating tool it THAT versatile?

Now Lina's kids have their own special space to read their favorite books and be creative. We should all follow Dr. Seuss' sage advice.... "Think left and think right, think low and think high, oh the thinks you can think up if only you try!"

Are you looking for more creative think ups?

• Click the Subscribe to Blog Post button just below to stay current on all the fun "thinks" we post here on our Stencil Ideas Blog!
• Follow Royal Design Studio on FB to see what others are thinking up with our stencils
• Check out our thousands of inspiring Pinterest Boards-you know, just to get you thinking....
  

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Houndstooth of a Different Color

Here is a fabulous idea for dressing up a feature wall with a classic Houndstooth stencil pattern with a modern feel. Jess and Monica from East Coast Creative blog took on the project of updating a boring guest room using a colorful wall stencil treatment as the fabulous focal point.

The girls chose a pretty vintage-y color palette to use for the Houndstooth Wall Stencil Pattern and cleverly alternated the colors in the stencil to create a bold backdrop for the feature wall that they then accented with pretty pops of color throughout their other DIY projects in the room. Jess and Monica were given a great pro stencil assist by longtime customer of Royal Design Studio Stencils, Bernadette Forese-otherwise known as The Faux Pro. Bernie showed them how to set up the ideal stencil project space, anchor their project with proper prep work, and obtain crisp stencil results by using our quality Stencil Brushes. The result of all this great teamwork is fabulous feature wall in a fully original decorating treatment.

Are you inspired by stenciling? We are always on the lookout for interesting ideas and ways to use stencil patterns and routinely share them our Royal Design Stencils Facebook Page. Many of the ideas we share come from our growing Pinterest Stencil Boards. Follow us on both so you won't miss a drop of inspiration!

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Board and Batten Moroccan Feature Wall

What do to when you can't choose between all gorgeous Moroccan wall stencil patterns in our Moroccan wall stencils collection? Well, we think that LA-based decorative artist and interior designer Rachel Goddard of Paint|Design|Decor came up with an ideal decorative solution. In a design project for her own home, Rachel used a variety of Moroccan stencils in a clever "board and batten" wall treatment to  update her son's nursery into little boyhood.

Board and Batten walls are all the rage, and they can range from very simply DIY installations of straight-edged boards to more complex treatments such as Rachel's, which features molded edges and mitering that requires more finish carpentry skills. The crisp, white painted boards make beautiful frames for the colorful Moroccan stencils that Rachel did in a limited palette of bright colors. If you were starting a feature wall project like this from scratch you could easily complete your stenciling first on the separate boards, prior to installation-or even directly on the wall if you are simply framing it with the molding for a faux board and batten treatment.

How to Get this Look!

• Choose at least 5 different stencil patterns with a similar theme, but with a VARIETY of scales (some small, some large) for more interest. The stencils used here were: Endless Circles Lattice, Moroccan Key, 8-Pointed Moroccan Stars, MarrakechTrellis, Moorish Fleur de Lis, Moroccan Star Diamonds, Hollywood Squares, Sun Flower, and Lisboa Tile.
  
  
• Stick with a limited color palette and vary the colors used when you repeat the patterns. Note how Rachel paired several shades of neutral gray with bright yellow, red, blue and purple. The gray provides both a calming and unifying effect.
  
  
• Use a good quality latex paint and have sample sizes mixed to provide the perfect amount of paint for this type of stencil project.
  
  
• Leave some negative space to give the eyes a rest. Note how Rachel used solid blocks of color here and there.
  
  
• If Moroccan stencil patterns don't fit your design scheme, consider using a range of our Modern Wall Stencils or Floral Damask Stencils. Mix, match, and have fun!

Rachel has done an amazing array of stencil projects with Royal Design Studio stencils and was one of our Facebook Page Saturday Stencil Stars and feature in this Stencil Star post on Designamour. Be sure to follow us and keep up with our latest features there!

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Up Against the Wall in an Airstream Trailer

Yes folks, this is a first! We never imagined that our Chez Ali Moroccan Wall stencil would grace the walls of a vintage Airstream trailer, but here it is! Ida sells vintage furniture from The Urban Cottage in Dallas and recently bought and completely refurbished an adorable Airstream trailer into an additional "traveling" showroom for her lovely painted  and stenciled furniture.

The Airstream was completely gutted before the transformation began and a wall stencil pattern was the perfect choice for tackling those curved walls. Stenciling an intricate pattern on the walls is actually a wonderful choice for a compact space. Contrary to what you may think, adding pattern to cozy spaces actually serves to "open up" the walls. So-in case you don't have an Airstream of your own, consider stenciling the walls of a bath, powder room, or laundry room with an allover stencil pattern to not only add color and interest, but to visually enlarge it!

You can see more of Ida's fun Airstream makeover on this Design*Sponge Before and After post.

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Wild Wall Stencil for a Twin Dream Room

Jeannie of Maxwell House Interiors wanted to create a special space for her twin girls. What better way to personalize a room than to stencil a feature wall with our Tiger Stripes allover stencil AND allow the girls to chose the paint colors?

Once she got "rolling" Jeannie was able to complete the wall in a couple of relaxing hours. With all the cute accessories she added, we imagine that the girls will be enjoying her fun feature wall stencil project for years to come!

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Stencil a Fabulous Feature Wall

Tackling your first wall stencil project can seem intimidating. Feature wall to the rescue! Cute Catharine and Derek from Your Modern Couple chose the Nova Trellis Wall Stencil for their dining room project. The narrow recessed wall now is beautifully accented with a versatile and modern "decorating friendly" trellis design in black and white.

The walls were quite textured, which can be a bit more challenging, but totally doable with a wall stencil and some patience. Catharine used a foam pouncer from the craft store, but I highly recommend using a good quality stencil brush for textured walls if you can. Simply by loading and then offloading the brush well onto paper towels (see our How to Stencil Basics here) you can easily achieve having "just the right" amount of paint on the brush to allow you to both stencil your walls cleanly and quickly!

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Wall Stencils Inspired by Amsterdam

Inspiration for using wall stencils can be found in all the obvious places: magazine clippings, damask patterns on wallpaper, designs on gift wrap, and pins on Pinterest. For Melissa Mortenson of the Polka Dot Chair blog, the elusive question of what to do with her dining room walls was waiting for her in Amsterdam!

On a visit to the Rijks Museum there, both Melissa and her husband were enchanted by the large damask design that been stenciled on the walls in grey and silver. They both immediately thought this color scheme and pattern treatment would be the ideal alternative to their current "dining room red" walls. Our Corsini Damask wall stencil had the design flavor they were looking for. After using a foam roller to stencil a damask wallpaper pattern using metallic paint-Melissa now has a wall that is a true work of art!

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SNAP! Stencil Star Contest, June 11-15, 2012

Royal Design Studio Stencils was SO happy and honored to be a Sponsor at SNAP! this past April in Thanksgiving Point, Utah! Attendees received a FREE Royal Design Studio stencil and were invited to participate in our SNAP! Stencil Star Contest for a chance to win a $250 stencil shopping spree with Royal Design Studio through our latest Royal Design Studio Pinterest Contest, which invites ALL to comment, repin and like the entries in order to pick the winner. To make this REALLY FUN, we've decided to give away a 2nd $250 stencil shopping spree with Royal Design Studio to one lucky commenter from the winning entry.

Please read on and play along….

• Visit our SNAP! Stencil Star Pinterest Board to see all the Stencil Project Pins
  
• Pick your favorite project (or projects!) and repin, like and COMMENT to your hearts content from June 11-15
  
• The Blogger Project Winner will be chosen from the Stencil Project Pin with the highest amount of comments, pins, and likes and receive a $250 Stencil Shopping Spree
• We will use Random.org to select a comment from the winning Stencil Project Pin to receive the second $250 Stencil Shopping Spree
• Both winners will be announced here and on our Royal Design Stencils Facebook Fan Page on Saturday June 16!
  

Good luck to all of our Bloggers and Pintastic Pinners!!
 

Pinterest Stencil Project Pins: Click Here to Vote on Pinterest

Featured Stencils: 1. French Numbers Stencil, 2. Small Endless Moorish Circles Stencil, 3&4. Hollywood Squares Small Furniture Stencil, 5. Small Chez Sheik Moroccan Furniture Stencil, 6. Japanese Flower Garden Stencil, 7. Beehive Allover Furniture Stencil, 8. The Buzz Bee Stencil, 9. Indian Paisley Wall Stencil

Blog Entries: GRAB OUR BUTTON For Your Blog!

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